Chris is a partner in the Competition, Antitrust & Foreign Investment Group and joined Cassels Brock after practising competition law with another major Toronto-based firm. Chris has considerable experience advising clients on all aspects of competition law, including mergers and acquisitions, criminal matters, abuse of dominance, misleading advertising, as well as pricing and distribution issues. Additionally, Chris advises clients regarding foreign and cultural investment review.
In addition to his transactional and regulatory practice, Chris has an extensive competition litigation practice and acts for clients involved in matters before the Competition Tribunal, trans-border criminal investigations/prosecutions, as well as defendants and institutional plaintiffs in class actions brought in respect of price-fixing cartels.
Some of the highlights of Chris's career in competition law include:
· Advising clients in various abuse of dominance cases, including Interac, Waste Management, and the motion pictures theatres inquiry
· Representing clients before the Competition Tribunal and Courts in connection with reviewable matters, criminal prosecutions, challenges to production orders in Canada and abroad, as well as class actions. This has often involved working with counsel in other jurisdictions to develop and coordinate international strategy
· Providing counsel to clients in connection with responding to numerous section 11 orders and section 15 "dawn raids" on clients - this process often involved an active co-ordination with lawyers in the US, EU and other jurisdictions to respond to multinational investigations
· Working on numerous multinational legal teams to coordinate merger filings and submissions in respect of all sorts or types of transactions, from simple transactions to complex, contentious ones - recent transactions include acting for Pfizer on its US$68 billion acquisition of Wyeth, acting as international coordinating counsel to Goldcorp in its US$21.3 billion combination with Glamis Gold, representing Lundin Mining in its US$3 billion plan of arrangement with EuroZinc Mining, acting as international coordinating counsel to Goldcorp in its US$1.6 billion acquisition of mining assets from Barrick Gold, among others
· Working, on an ongoing basis, with a number of major corporations and industry associations to ensure that their activities comply with the Competition Act
· Acted for a major manufacturer/distributor of heavy equipment in its novel resolution of an inquiry under criminal provisions of the Competition Act - this involved no finding or admission of fault and the payment of voluntary customer rebates
In addition to his practice, Chris regularly writes and speaks in Canada and abroad on all aspects of competition. Chris also served as an adjunct professor at the University of Western Ontario Law School and as a guest lecturer at the Osgoode Hall Law School LL.M. program, where he taught competition law. Additionally, Chris is the current chair of the CBA Competition Law Section's Private Actions committee and was the Canadian representative to the International Bar Association's working group on European private enforcement of competition law.
Chris is recognized internationally as a leading Canadian competition lawyer by Chambers Global and Global Competition Review (the GCR 100). He was also selected as one of Lexpert's Rising Stars: Leading Lawyers Under 40 in 2010.
Achievements
· Chambers Global 2012 (Competition/Antitrust)
· Who's Who Legal: Canada 2011 (Competition)
· 2011 Lexpert Guide to the Leading US/Canada Cross-Border Corporate Lawyers in Canada (Canadian Corporate Lawyer to Watch)
· Chambers Global 2011 (Competition/Antitrust)
· Global Competition Review (the GCR 100) - Highly Recommended
· Lexpert's Rising Stars: Leading Lawyers Under 40 (2010)
· Who's Who Legal: Canada 2010 (Competition)
· Chambers Global 2010 (Competition/Antitrust)
· Chambers Global 2009 (Competition/Antitrust)
· Competition Handbook 2007/2008
· Chambers Global 2008 (Competition/Antitrust)
· Chambers Global 2007 (Competition/Antitrust)
· Chambers Global 2006 (Competition/Antitrust)
Associations
· American Bar Association (Anti-trust Section)
· Canadian Bar Association (National Competition Law Section)
· International Bar Association
· Ontario Bar Association
Articles
Where Client Satisfaction Is Absolute Priority: Chris Hersh Pens Article for InterContinental Finance, 11/30/2011
Seeming Improvements in the Bureau's Merger Review Procedures Likely to Cause More Work for Merging Parties, 11/02/2010
Living Next to the Elephant: Lessons From Canadian Private Competition Law Enforcement, 06/07/2008
Books
Chris Hersh and Imran Ahmad Co-author Canada Chapter for The International Comparative Legal Guide to: Competition Litigation 2012, 11/24/2011
Newsletter Articles
Untruth in Advertising: Competition Bureau Cracks Down on Misleading Advertising, 11/22/2011
Newsletters
Cassels Brock Represents Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. in Its Approximately $1.08 Billion Acquisition of Enobia Pharma Corp., 02/28/2012
Cassels Brock Represents Tonbridge Power Inc. in Its Sale of All Outstanding Common Shares to Enbridge Inc., 11/30/2011
Cassels Brock Represents The Vendors As Leisureworld Completes Acquisition, Offering And Debt Financing, 05/16/2011
Colabor to Expand Its Presence in Ontario with Take-over Bid for the SKOR Food Group, 03/23/2011
QUADRA and FNX Merge to Create New Leading Intermediate Copper Producer, 06/14/2010
Westaim Completes JEVCO Acquisition, 04/05/2010
New Gold Completes US$1.6 Billion Business Combination with Metallica Resources and Peak Gold, 06/30/2008
Transactions
Cassels Brock Represents Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. in Its Approximately $1.08 Billion Acquisition of Enobia Pharma Corp., 02/28/2012
Cassels Brock Represents Tonbridge Power Inc. in Its Sale of All Outstanding Common Shares to Enbridge Inc., 11/30/2011
Cassels Brock Represents The Vendors As Leisureworld Completes Acquisition, Offering And Debt Financing, 05/16/2011
Colabor to Expand Its Presence in Ontario with Take-over Bid for the SKOR Food Group, 03/23/2011
Franco-Nevada Acquires Gold Wheaton for $830 Million in Friendly Business Combination, 03/14/2011
QUADRA and FNX Merge to Create New Leading Intermediate Copper Producer, 06/14/2010
Westaim Completes JEVCO Acquisition, 04/05/2010
New Gold Completes US$1.6 Billion Business Combination with Metallica Resources and Peak Gold, 06/30/2008
In The News
03/16/2012, Cassels Brock Recognized In Chambers Global 2012
03/05/2012, Chris Hersh Recognized in the 12th Annual GCR 100
10/03/2011, Chris Hersh and Imran Ahmad Contribute to the International Comparative Legal Guide to Competition Litigation 2012 Edition
09/29/2011, 15 Cassels Brock Lawyers Recognized by Who's Who Legal: Canada 2011
07/29/2011, Politics, Protectionism and Pragmatism - Understanding the Canadian Foreign Investment Review Process
07/21/2011, Cassels Brock Partners Listed in the Lexpert Guide to the Leading US/Canada Cross-border Corporate Lawyers in Canada for 2011
03/22/2011, Cassels Brock Recognized in Chambers Global 2011
11/25/2010, Chris Hersh Recognized as one of Lexpert's Rising Stars: Leading Lawyers Under 40
11/05/2010, Chris Hersh Quoted on Industry Canada's Foreign Investment Review Process by The Globe and Mail
07/27/2010, 14 Cassels Brock Lawyers Recognized by Who's Who Legal: Canada 2010
05/19/2010, Chris Hersh Comments on Guidelines for Competition Act's New Cartel Provisions
05/12/2010, National Post Highlights Competition Group's Bulletin on GST Refunds for Advance Ruling Certificates
Presentations
Vertical Restraints, Pricing and Distribution: How Far Can Your Clients Go?