Profile

Ralph specializes in regulatory, liability, risk management and compliance matters, together with all aspects of environmental, commercial and regulatory dispute resolution and advocacy. He acts as lead counsel in the management and resolution of complex commercial and regulatory disputes across a broad spectrum of law, including corporate, environmental, first nations, tax evasion, contract, white-collar fraud and breach of fiduciary duty, at both trial and appeal levels.

He regularly advises mining, pulp and paper, property developers, energy, utility and manufacturing clients on environmental matters including issues arising in corporate securities, financing and mergers and acquisition transactions and on a full range of regulatory matters including impact assessment, disclosure and reporting, site assessment and decommissioning, Aboriginal consultation and accommodation issues, the conduct of environmental due diligence, audits, risk management and the formulation of internal due diligence and reporting practices and remedial and clean-up plans.

Ralph has acted as Settlement Counsel in contaminated land multi-party litigation, is Associate Member of The Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (U.K.) and has been Court-appointed Independent Counsel in complex litigation. He is co-author of the leading Canadian text on tax evasion.

He acts as defence counsel in regulatory and quasicriminal prosecutions under a wide range of federal and provincial regulatory statutes. Ralph has appeared at trial and on appeal matters before the Environmental Review Tribunal, Information and Privacy Commissioner, Health Services Appeal Board, Tax Court of Canada, Federal Court of Canada, Ontario Provincial Court, Ontario Superior Court of Justice and the Court of Appeal for Ontario.

Ralph is fluent in Spanish and heads the Firm’s Mexico and Latin America Practice Group. He is also a member of the firm’s Class Actions and International Trade and Business practice groups.

Representative Work

Environmental and Energy

• Counsel to Canadian public mining company on federal environmental assessment issues arising from re-opening of gold mine
• Environmental, regulatory and country risk counsel to Northgate Minerals in bid for competitor and subsequent sale to AuRico Gold involving gold and silver mines in Mexico
• Co-counsel to Asea, Brown, Bovari (ABB) in connection with environmental matters relating to manufacturing operations, PCB storage and divestitures
• Counsel to Domtar Inc. in connection with landfill closure, environmental enforcement proceedings, environmental assessments, audits, approvals, control orders, risk management and environmental audit work
• Environmental and litigation counsel to international lending consortium in connection with financing of electric power generating station
• Environmental counsel to buyer on purchase of electrical utility
• Aboriginal duty to consult and environmental counsel to Renewable Energy Systems Canada, one of the winners in Ontario’s renewable energy supply contract bid process, in connection with wind farm development
• Represented Ministry of the Environment provincial officer at Walkerton Inquiry into deaths by contaminated town water supply
• Represented U.S.-based lenders in environmental aspects of financing of pulp and paper and steel mills with wide-scale environmental impacts
• Environmental compliance advice to a variety of companies such as IBM, Pratt & Whitney, Bank of Montreal, BP Canada, Schlumberger and Eaton Corporation
• Environmental counsel to a large Canadian oil and gas distribution client regarding Ontario pipeline relocation
• Environmental counsel in wind farm and water treatment plant portfolio acquisitions
• Advising a variety of clients in connection with the remediation and disposition of contaminated lands, including warranty, clean up, risk assessment, and other contract and tort claims
• Acting as counsel on soil contamination claims, including contaminated development properties, service stations, industrial land and brownfield developments
• Advising IBM Inc., Eaton-Yale, and Logitech Inc. in connection with environmental regulated product issues
• Advising Hyundai Auto Canada in federal emission standards case
• Advising Toyota North America in connection with environmental export/import compliance issues
• Environmental Counsel to Goldcorp Inc. in a variety of environmental regulation and litigation issues including provincial prosecutions arising from mine expansion at Red Lake, Ontario
• Counsel for Domtar Inc. in prosecutions under the federal Fisheries Act arising from waterway pollution
• Counsel to Salvation Army in a variety of contaminated land cases
• Counsel to Chicago-based client in resolution of multi-million dollar litigation against Dow Chemical arising from the largest PCB contaminated area in the province involving clean-up costs in the range of $20 to $90 million
• Acted as defence counsel for large Canadian mining company in resolution of environmental prosecution on the eve of public announcement of large acquisition on the part of the client
• Defended regulatory proceedings at trial and appellate levels on behalf of Domtar
• Acted in litigation against Ministry of the Environment arising from improper registration on title of notice certificate in connection with industrial clean-up site
• Advised U.S. investment bank in negotiating with Ministry of Environment in connection with purchase and re-start of chemical plant out of insolvency
• Represented waste disposal transfer station client in environmental appeal by adjacent land owners including Environmental Bill of Rights issues
• Advised international computer companies on blue box, e-waste, recycling and the management of toxic substances
• Ontario environmental counsel to Pratt & Whitney Canada

Risk Management

• Crisis management and crisis supervision to major Canadian public company in connection with spill that threatened town drinking water supply
• Preparation of environmental risk management programs for manufacturing and other clients
• Acting for national property management companies as environmental and risk management counsel
• Advised Ontario’s Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO) on case arising from interplay between electricity supply obligations and prevention of harm to the environment
• Providing general advice regarding electromagnetic radiation and other nuisances in connection with transmission lines

Aboriginal

• Aboriginal duty to consult counsel to Renewable Energy Systems Canada, one of the winners in Ontario’s renewable energy supply contract bid process, in connection with development of two wind farms
• Litigation Counsel to Metis Nation of Ontario, Metis Nation of Alberta, Metis Nation of B.C. and Metis Nation of Saskatchewan on national Metis governance issues

Dispute Resolution

• ADR counsel in a variety of insurance, environmental, banking and commercial disputes
• Settlement Counsel in multi-million dollar contaminated land case

White Collar Fraud

• Court-appointed Independent Counsel in Anton Piller injunction proceedings arising from theft of confidential business information
• Counsel to Lite-On, a Taiwanese computer multinational, in multimillion dollar fraud at its Mexican subsidiary
• Counsel to Salvation Army in enforcement of civil fraud judgement arising from multimillion dollar employee defalcation
• Counsel to international hotel chain in employee defalcation case

Publications

• "Foreign Anti-Corruption Laws in the NAFTA Region", co-authored with Henry Chang, North American Free Trade and & Investment Report, January 31, 2012
• "Canadian Energy Law and Policy", Corporate International Magazine, January 2012
• "Smith v Inco Limited - Limitation of Actions an Individual and Not a Common Issue in Class Action", Blaneys on Class Actions, November 22, 2011
• "Canada: New Ontario Law Makes Commercial Mediation More Compelling Option for Settling Disputes", Mondaq Business Briefing, October 3, 2011
• "Class Actions - Court Departs from Established Practice and Requires Defendants to Deliver Statement of Defence Before Certification", Blaneys on Class Actions, August 2011
• "New Ontario Law Makes Mediation More Compelling Option for Settling Disputes", Blaneys on Business, July 2011
• Canada Chapter in PLC Cross-border Environment Handbook 2010/11, published by Practical Law Publishing Limited, co-authored with Janet Bobechko, 2011
• "Opportunities in Renewable Energy Generation in Mexico", in Venture Equity Latin America, January 15, 2011
• "Settlement Counsel - Another Approach to Resolving Disputes", Commercial Litigation Review, November 2010
• "Can You Recover Your Costs?”, in Blaneys on Class Actions, November 2010
• "New Renewable Project Rules Aimed at Simplifying Process", Environment Policy & Law, September 2010
• "Economic Headwinds Increase Prospects of Tax Evasion: Criminal Offence Can Carry Draconian Penalties" in Blaneys on Business, June 2010
• Tax Evasion, 2009 Update (Thomson Reuters), November 2009
• Mexico’s Oil Industry Reform: Opportunities for North American Companies, in North American Free Trade Investment Report (Thomson Reuters) October 2009 and Mexico Tax Law and Business Briefing 2010
• Overview of Canadian Environmental Law, International Law Office, June, 2009
• Canada Chapter, The International Comparative Legal Guide to Environmental Law 2008 and 2009, Global Legal Group, London, UK
• "The Rise of Renewable Energy, A Canadian Perspective", Corporate INT (U.K), January, 2009
• "Mexico’s Anticipated Energy Reform is Now a Reality", North American Free Trade & Investment Report, Vol. 18, No. 20, November 15, 2008, Latin American Law and Business Report, November 30, 2008 and Mexico Tax Law and Business Briefing 2010 (Thomson Reuters)
• "TSX seeks more Mexican listings - Sometimes numbers can tell a story best and that’s certainly the case when it comes to Mexico’s mining industry", Northern Miner, October 2008
• Focus on Environment/Securities: "OSC Raises Bar for Continuing Disclosure," (2008)
• "The Danger of Liability for Cross-Border Pollution", Environmental Science & Engineering Magazine, March 2008
• "U.S. Liability for Cross-Border Pollution is Here to Stay — U.S. Supreme Court Refuses to Hear Pakootas v. Teck Cominco," Focus on Environmental Law, FMC Newsletter, January 2008
• "Environmental liability calls for maximum due diligence", Legal Alert, December 2006
• "U.S. Superfund Law and Cross-border Environmental Liability”, Mondaq (2005)
• "Courts Rule on Canada as a Forum for International Arbitration", International Law Office, September 20, 2005
• "Arbitration vs. Litigation in the International Commercial and Trade Context", American Bar Association, International Law News, Summer 1993, Vol. 32, No. 3; Mondaq (2003)
• Co-author, "Innes, Tax Evasion," (Carswell, 2003)
• "Reinventing Democracy: the Challenge for Liberalism in Canada", Policy Options, Institute for Research on Public Policy, Ottawa, Vol. 15, No. 3, April 1994
• "Development and Social Justice”, Policy Options, Institute for Research on Public Policy, Ottawa, June 1993
• "U.S. Ruling Sets Ominous Precedent for International Law”, The Lawyers Weekly, February 5, 1993
• "NAFTA - A Canadian Perspective, Canada-U.S. Trade”, (Deboo) March 1992, Vol. 5, No. 2
• "Canada-U.S.-Mexico Free Trade”, Canada-U.S. Trade, (Deboo) May 1991, Vol. 4, No. 4
• "Distinct Society Clause Doesn’t Affect Charter”, The Lawyers Weekly, June 1, 1990
• "Objection to Distinct Society Clause Careless Thinking”, Law Times, April 2-8, 1990
• Editor-in-chief, Faculty of Law, Queen’s Law Journal(1988-1989)

Media

• CBC Radio "Ontario Today" call-in show, November 2011
• Featured Author, 61st Annual Conference, Canadian Tax Foundation, November 2009

Quoted in:

• Preyma Report Press Release, G20 Research Group, October 18, 2010
• “NAFTA’s Third Amigo”, Canadian Business magazine, June 15, 2009
• “Mining & Exploration” on the Money & Mining Conference in Mexico and the synergies between Mexico and Canada, October 27, 2008
• "The Northern Miner" on TSX-listing opportunities for Mexican mining companies seeking capital, October 13, 2008
• "TSX seeks more Mexican listings - Sometimes numbers can tell a story best and that’s certainly the case when it comes to Mexico’s mining industry", Northern Miner, October 2008
• "Busca bolsa de valores de Toronto atraer a 30 empresas mineras", El Financiero, Mexico City, June 24, 2008
• "Interesa a la TSX industria minera nacional", La Cronica de Hoy, Mexico City, June 10, 2008
• "Interesa a la bolsa de valores canadienses, el sector minero mexicano", El Periodico de Mexico, Junio 10, 2008
• "Busca a mexicanas la Bolsa de Toronto", Reforma, June 23, 2008

Speaking Engagements

• "Accessing Canadian Capital for Mining Development" in Mexico-Canada Mining Task - Canadian Financing and Development for the Mexican Mining Industry, Mexico City, November 2011
• "Mitigating Trade Risk", Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters Program, May 27, 2011
• "Key Legal Issues When Selling to the Canadian Retail Market", Seminar for Trade Commissioners and Peruvian Trade Mission, Trade Facilitation Office Canada, October 18, 2010 and May 9, 2011
• "Developing an Environmental Stewardship Program", Canadian Office Products Association Environmental Symposium, April 7, 2011
• Oil Sands/Clean Technology Opportunities, Ontario Ministry of Economic Development and Trade and Alberta Ministry of Energy, Panel Participant, September 21, 2010
• Mining and Money - Alternative Access to Capital Markets, Mexican Stock Exchange, Mexico City, May 2010
• Legal Aspects of the Canada-Mexico Supply Chain, Mexico in the Global Value Chain Conference, Toronto, May 2010
• Risk Management and Civil Litigation, Insurance Bureau of Canada, March 2010
• Green Labelling in Canada and the US, Canadian Office Products Association, January 2010
• "Mining and Money" Conference, Mexico City, June 2008
• Doing Business in Mexico, The International Economic Forum on the Americas, Montreal, June 2007
• Environmental Liability of Directors, Officers and Employees, Management Best Practices, Mining Rocks, Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum Mining Industry Conference and Exhibition, Toronto, April 26, 2005
• Corporate Disclosure: Site Owners Liabilities under the Law, Dealing with Industrial Contaminated Land, 12th Annual Canadian Environmental Conference & Trade Show (CANECT), Toronto, May 13, 2004
• Environmental Due Diligence for Supervisors and Managers, Environmental Management, Compliance and Best Available Technologies, 7th Annual Environmental Compliance and Due Diligence Conference, Workshops and Technologies Exposition, Toronto, April 8, 1999
• A variety of environmental and risk management training seminars and workshops for major corporate clients

Teaching Roles

• Substitute Instructor, Law Society of Upper Canada Bar Admission Course (Civil Litigation)
• A variety of environmental and risk management training seminars and workshops for major corporate clients