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The comprehensive guide to the world's leading tax firms

Blake, Cassels & Graydon is a full-service law firm with a tax team of 23 partners and 14 fee earners. It is a national practice with offices in major Canadian cities that does a considerable amount of M&A work and tax planning as well as tax controversy, ... [more]

Blake, Cassels & Graydon is a full-service law firm with a tax team of 23 partners and 14 fee earners. It is a national practice with offices in major Canadian cities that does a considerable amount of M&A work and tax planning as well as tax controversy, ranging from audits to administrative courts to tax courts. The firm is particularly strong in work for the natural resources and mining, financial services, and real estate sectors. Blake, Cassels & Graydon is advising Canadian energy company Nexen on its proposed $15.1-billion acquisition by China's state-owned CNOOC. If approved by regulatory authorities, the deal will be China's largest overseas purchase to date. The firm has also advised big financial institutions, such as Citigroup and Bank of America during the past year. It also serves as fund counsel for real estate investment trusts H&R and TransGlobe. Many members of the tax practice are recognised by peers for their expertise and knowledge. Practice group coordinator Jeffrey Trossman is highly regarded for his corporate tax and M&A work; tax controversy and litigation leader, Ed Kroft wins praise, too; Janice McCart earns rivals' respect as a transfer pricing adviser; and Allan Gelkopf is admired for his skill in indirect tax. The practice lost two partners to rival firms over the past year. Wanda Rumball joined KPMG's Calgary practice in August 2011. Edward Rowe left for Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt in May 2012.

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Led by Jay Hutchinson, Ernst & Young's tax practice has expanded during the past year to 119 partners. Its allied firm of tax lawyers, Couzin Taylor, has one of the largest tax controversy practices. As of October 2011, it also has Scott Wilkie, who ... [more]

Led by Jay Hutchinson, Ernst & Young's tax practice has expanded during the past year to 119 partners. Its allied firm of tax lawyers, Couzin Taylor, has one of the largest tax controversy practices. As of October 2011, it also has Scott Wilkie, who joined as a partner and is well respected by peers for his in-depth knowledge of corporate tax and transfer pricing. He now heads Ernst & Young's tax policy group which involves planning and controversy. The firm also expanded its R&D and business incentives practice in 2011 by acquiring OME Group Consultants, so Ernst & Young now has 80 engineering, science, and tax professionals across the country focusing on R&D in various industries. In November 2011, Derek Alty joined Ernst & Young as a limited partner in the international tax services practice, headed by George Guedikian, and as a partner of Couzin Taylor. Another notable addition is Mary-Anne McMahon, who joined the firm from the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA), where she was general counsel in the legal services branch. She will lead Couzin Taylor's indirect tax practice in Ottawa. Other members of the firm who are praised by competitors include Angelo Nikolakakis, in the area of cross-border structuring; Roger Taylor in tax controversy; Greg Boehmer, corporate tax; and Paul Mulvihill, for transfer pricing.

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Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt's tax practice, led by David Tetreault, employs 35 partners and 20 fee earners, most of whom work on corporate tax issues, but it has professionals in the other practice areas: indirect tax, transfer pricing and tax disputes. ... [more]

Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt's tax practice, led by David Tetreault, employs 35 partners and 20 fee earners, most of whom work on corporate tax issues, but it has professionals in the other practice areas: indirect tax, transfer pricing and tax disputes. Their clients are from a variety of industries, but they are particularly strong in financial services and energy. The East Coast practice serves six big Canadian banks and three major insurance companies, while in Calgary they act on behalf of major oil and gas companies. In September 2011, Osler represented US retail chain Target on its entry into Canada through its $1.85-billion acquisition of up to 200 leasehold interests in Canada from Zellers, the discount division of Hudson's Bay, which has a presence in the Canadian market dating back to 1670. Osler partners from all practice areas draw compliments from rivals and clients. Tetreault and Patrick Marley in M&A; Sean Aylward and D'Arcy Schieman, in indirect tax; Monica Biringer and Andrew McGuffin, capital markets/financial products; and Firoz Ahmed, for his "technical expertise and thoroughness" in corporate tax and cross-border structuring. In the area of tax controversy, Al Meghji's name is repeatedly mentioned. "He has developed a reputation for sophisticated tax litigation," said one competitor. "Osler has the best tax litigator in Canada. […] Meghji has an amazing success rate and it kills him to lose a case. That is the attitude I like when my company's dollars are at stake in litigation," one client said. Taxpayers choose the firm because "they have top talent, they use a team approach so the client benefits from the experience of the entire tax partnership". In May 2012, Osler acquired two new partners: Edward Rowe from Blake, Cassels & Graydon; and Edmund Gill from McCarthy Tétrault. The firm also lost a highly regarded partner when Scott Wilkie left in October 2011 to join Ernst & Young.

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Stikeman Elliott has a national tax practice with offices in Montreal, Toronto, and Calgary. The tax group covers all practice areas though most work focuses on corporate tax, which accounts for about 80% of business for the Montreal practice, led by ... [more]

Stikeman Elliott has a national tax practice with offices in Montreal, Toronto, and Calgary. The tax group covers all practice areas though most work focuses on corporate tax, which accounts for about 80% of business for the Montreal practice, led by Luc Bernier, and the Toronto team under Ronald Durand. The remaining 20% is related to dispute resolution and customs tax. The Calgary practice, headed by Doug Richardson, is focused on oil, gas, and renewable energy. The practice has been involved in several deals involving Chinese state-owned companies acquiring Canadian companies with foreign assets. They represented PetroChina Investment Company in its acquisition of the remaining 40% interest of Athabasca Oil Sands Corp.'s McKay River project for $680 million. The project received its final regulatory approval on December 23 2011. The firm had represented the Chinese company in its initial acquisition of a 60% working interest in the McKay River and Dover oil sands project for $1.9 billion in 2009. PetroChina's latest acquisition makes it the first Chinese national company to acquire 100% ownership of a northern Alberta oil sands project. Stikeman also has a small office in Vancouver. However, it does not have a dedicated tax practice there but is supported by the practitioners in the other three offices. Peers praise Cliff Rand for his skill in tax controversy and John Lorito for his expertise in capital markets/financial products and M&A. The Toronto practice acquired a new partner with the promotion of Jonathan Willson.

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With a team of 133 partners and 1,300 professionals, Deloitte's tax practice is one of the largest in Canada, covering the full spectrum of practice areas. Over the past year, the firm has handled several interesting and challenging matters, such as ... [more]

With a team of 133 partners and 1,300 professionals, Deloitte's tax practice is one of the largest in Canada, covering the full spectrum of practice areas. Over the past year, the firm has handled several interesting and challenging matters, such as their defence of a corporation that faced a large CRA assessment. While the taxpayer acknowledged some of the tax authority's claims it completely disagreed with others. Relations between the two were tense and reached a stalemate. Deloitte's tax controversy team was able to facilitate a resolution without further complicating the relationship, through careful analysis of the filed position, dialogue, and the application of the appropriate law, policies, procedures, and processes. In April 2012, Deloitte advised a large Canadian retail chain in a transfer pricing issue, valued at between $5 million and $15 million. The firm designed and implemented an optimisation strategy involving the cross-border transfer of commodity price risk between affiliates through a financial hedging instrument without altering the supply chain and causing substantial operational changes. In June 2012, Heather Evans replaced Andrew Dunn as national practice leader. The practice's transfer pricing team is widely respected, with peers distinguishing Rob O'Connor, Muris Dujsic and Richard Garland. Indirect tax leader Danny Cisterna is praised for his expertise in that practice area.

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Led by Douglas Cannon, McCarthy Tétrault's tax practice has a presence in Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto, and Montreal. It has a strong national tax litigation and transfer pricing practice. In July 2011, the tax team advised Research in Motion (RIM), as ... [more]

Led by Douglas Cannon, McCarthy Tétrault's tax practice has a presence in Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto, and Montreal. It has a strong national tax litigation and transfer pricing practice. In July 2011, the tax team advised Research in Motion (RIM), as part of a consortium, bidding for Nortel's patents. The consortium included Apple, Microsoft, Ericsson, and Sony. The deal was significant as it was the biggest patent auction in history, by number of patents sold and price tag. The final price was $4.5 billion for 1,000 patent families and 6,000 patents. RIM contributed about $770 million. The firm also advised Japan's Toyota Tsusho on its $610 million acquisition of a stake in a heritage coal bed methane field from Canadian natural gas company Encana in April 2012. The firm, seeking to expand its oil and gas practice, hired Ron Mar in May 2011, as a partner in Calgary. Competitors recognise members of McCarthy Tétrault's tax group in various practice areas. Cannon is praised for his M&A work; Jerald Wortsman, Nigel Johnston, and Gabrielle Richards, are all recognised for their in-depth knowledge of capital markets and financial products; and Tom Akin is respected for his transfer pricing expertise. The firm lost Robert McCue to Bennett Jones in May 2011.

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Bennett Jones's tax practice employs 14 partners and 12 fee earners. Darcy Moch leads the corporate tax services group and Thomas Bauer is head of tax litigation and dispute resolution. The firm is particularly active in the energy sector. In February ... [more]

Bennett Jones's tax practice employs 14 partners and 12 fee earners. Darcy Moch leads the corporate tax services group and Thomas Bauer is head of tax litigation and dispute resolution. The firm is particularly active in the energy sector. In February 2012, it advised Mitsubishi Corporation on its $2-billion acquisition of a 40% interest in Encana's Cutbank Ridge natural gas assets. In June 2011, it advised Gibson Energy on a $500-million initial public offering (IPO). Toronto managing partner and head of China, Steve Bowman, is widely respected by rivals for his expertise in capital markets and financial products. In May 2011, the firm acquired a new partner in tax litigation with the hiring of Robert McCue who joined from McCarthy Tétrault. In December 2011, it lost John Owen, co-chairman of tax and estate planning, to Baker & McKenzie.

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Dentons's tax group offers its national and international clients services in tax planning, transactions, transfer pricing, indirect taxes, and litigation. The tax group comprises 23 partners and 15 fee earners, and has offices in six Canadian cities. ... [more]

Dentons's tax group offers its national and international clients services in tax planning, transactions, transfer pricing, indirect taxes, and litigation. The tax group comprises 23 partners and 15 fee earners, and has offices in six Canadian cities. Gordon Funt stepped down as head of the practice in October 2012 to become a judge of the Supreme Court of British Columbia.

Over the past year, the tax group advised US Gold on its $1.4-billion acquisition of Minera Andes that involved a large and sophisticated exchangeable share transaction. In another sizeable deal, the firm advised Capital Power Income on its $1.1-billion acquisition by Atlantic Power Corporation. The sale involved the implementation of a cross-border plan of arrangement with reorganisation and compliance considerations in both Canada and the US. Clients who have worked with Dentons say they would absolutely recommend the firm, especially for tax controversy and litigation. "They have always stepped up to the plate," one client said. "Jehad Haymour is excellent to work with, he is very attentive; his quality of service is top notch and has great turnaround time," said one client of the tax litigation partner from the Calgary office. David Spiro, counsel of the firm's Toronto practice, is also praised for his tax litigation and dispute resolution skills by peers and clients. "We know and like David Spiro," said one client, who switched law firms when Spiro moved to Dentons. The firm acquired two partners with the promotion in September 2011 of Brian Cohen, who also co-leads the wealth management group; and Jacques Plante, who was promoted to partner in the tax litigation and dispute resolution group in 2012.

Dentons was formed on April 2 2013 as the result of the merger between Fraser Milner Casgrain, Salans and SNR Denton. [hide]

While Gowlings provides services in transfer pricing and tax dispute resolution it is very much a tax planning and consulting firm. Led by Brent Kerr, the practice employs 28 partners and 14 fee earners. During the past year, Gowlings was involved in ... [more]

While Gowlings provides services in transfer pricing and tax dispute resolution it is very much a tax planning and consulting firm. Led by Brent Kerr, the practice employs 28 partners and 14 fee earners. During the past year, Gowlings was involved in one of the biggest oil and gas deals of the year. In November 2011, the firm advised CNOOC Luxembourg, an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of the Chinese state-owned oil company, on its $2.1-billion acquisition of Canadian oil sands producer OPTI. Gowlings also advised US public corporation ITT in the spin-offs of its defence and information solutions business and its water technology and services business, into two separate public corporations. The complexity of the $2 billion deal, which closed on October 31 2011 was because Gowlings had to coordinate the Canadian planning with the separation of a highly integrated and complex international corporate structure into three completely separate groupings. Serge Gloutnay joined the firm from Fasken Martineau DuMoulin in April 2012.

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Headed by Michael Friedman, McMillan's tax practice is diverse with national reach, serving companies from the energy, financial services, auto, and mining sectors. Its expertise includes domestic and international tax planning, transfer pricing, structured ... [more]

Headed by Michael Friedman, McMillan's tax practice is diverse with national reach, serving companies from the energy, financial services, auto, and mining sectors. Its expertise includes domestic and international tax planning, transfer pricing, structured products and investment funds, tax litigation and dispute resolution, goods and services tax, and estate planning. In July 2011, the firm advised Teck Resources on a public offering of $2 billion in aggregate principal amount of new senior unsecured notes. The deal was large and sophisticated and needed to address concerns about withholding tax and Canadian tax for non-resident investors. In another deal, McMillan advised Intact Financial Corporation in raising $1.9 billion in subscription receipts, debt, and preferred shares to fund a portion of the $2.6-billion acquisition of AXA Canada. The firm acquired a new partner in December 2011 with the promotion of Christine Man.

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Torys's tax practice, led by James Welkoff, is particularly strong in M&A and capital markets. Its clients include Thomson Reuters, Scotiabank, TD Bank Group, Toronto Stock Exchange, and Northgate Minerals. The firm is advising Canada's grain handler ... [more]

Torys's tax practice, led by James Welkoff, is particularly strong in M&A and capital markets. Its clients include Thomson Reuters, Scotiabank, TD Bank Group, Toronto Stock Exchange, and Northgate Minerals. The firm is advising Canada's grain handler Viterra on its proposed $6.18-billion acquisition by Glencore International. The deal is expected to close in September 2012. In another corporate tax matter, Torys is advising TMX Group, which owns the Toronto Stock Exchange, on its proposed $3.85-billion acquisition by Maple Group, a consortium of financial companies and pension funds. The deal closed in August 2012. Welkoff is admired by peers for his M&A expertise.

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Baker & McKenzie has been expanding its tax practice, headed by Brian Segal, over the past two years and now employs four partners and five fee earners. It has also hired two new partners: Jacques Bernier in May 2011 and John Owen in January 2012; both ... [more]

Baker & McKenzie has been expanding its tax practice, headed by Brian Segal, over the past two years and now employs four partners and five fee earners. It has also hired two new partners: Jacques Bernier in May 2011 and John Owen in January 2012; both were partners of Bennett Jones. Christopher Raybould, Baker & McKenzie's economist in charge of transfer pricing advisory work, is well-respected by peers and clients alike. "Chris Raybould is thorough, professional, and delivers on time," said one client.

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