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November 14, 2011

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PAGE 16 The Inside Story PARIS LAWYER RETURNS TO BLG Craig Chiasson has returned to Borden Ladner Gervais LLP fi ve years after he left to become an arbitrator at Freshfi elds Bruckhaus Deringer LLP. Chiasson becomes an arbi- trator with BLG's international trade and arbitration group. "Craig will be a key addition to our international arbitration team," said Gerry Ghikas, na- tional leader of BLG's inter- national trade and arbitration group. "We are thrilled that he has decided to join us. We are seeing signifi cant growth in our invest- ment treaty practice that began with our strategic acquisition several years ago of Th omas & Partners in 2008. Our interna- tional arbitration counsel prac- tice has always been solid, but we are now seeing a signifi cant increase in demand. We look forward to adding to our team Craig's substantial experience in both commercial and investment treaty arbitrations." Chiasson practises commer- cial and investment treaty dispute resolution. His work includes international arbitration in the energy, mining, telecommunica- tions, and shipping sectors. "I am excited to be able to work with such a highly regarded group," said Chiasson. "I see huge potential for growth in trade and arbitration counsel work, and I look forward to using my experi- ence to benefi t BLG's clients." Chiasson began at BLG in 2001 as a trainee and later moved on to an associate's posi- tion before he moved to Fresh- fi elds in January 2006. Other staffi ng changes at BLG include Cynthia Westaway, who becomes counsel at the Ottawa offi ce after leaving Gowling Laf- leur Henderson LLP; Adam Guy, who becomes an associate in Toronto following an articling position at the fi rm; Isaac Tang, who joins the Toronto offi ce as an associate; and Daniel Girlando, an associate who previously ar- ticled at BLG. GOWLINGS IN TOP 5 FOR M&A G owling Lafl eur Henderson LLP has ranked fi fth for its in- volvement in announced Cana- dian transactions during the fi rst three quarters of the year. Th e fi rm advised on 41 trans- actions in announced mergers- and-acquisitions deals. "It is gratifying that the latest league table rankings recognize Gowlings among the leading players in Canadian M&A," said Stephen Pike, managing partner at Gowlings in Toronto. "We take pride in advising not only on multibillion-dollar mandates but also on many mid- market transactions, assembling multidisciplinary teams from across the fi rm to help exceed our clients' expectations in achieving their domestic and cross-border business objectives." Mergermarket also ranked Gowlings fourth in mid-market Canadian mergers and acquisi- tions. NEW DIRECTOR AT YORK CENTRE Osgoode Hall Law School law professor Jamie Cameron is the new interim director of the York Centre for Public Policy and Law. In her new role, Cameron will work to create public policy and law research related to government agencies, non- governmental organizations, citizen advocacy groups, and non-profi t organizations in Canada and abroad. "We are very fortunate that Jamie has agreed to assume this position and bring her wealth of constitutional, public, and criminal law expertise to the YCPPL as well as her strong network in academia, the bar and bench, the media, and gov- ernment," said Osgoode dean Lorne Sossin. Cameron replaces Osgoode professor Lisa Philipps, who recently became York's associate vice president for research. GILLER WINNER SPEAKS AT LSUC Canadian author and Giller prize winner Joseph Boyden will read excerpts from his work on Louis Riel at the Law Society of Up- per Canada's annual Louis Riel Day event on Nov. 16. A discussion forum on le- gal developments in Métis land claims and hunting and harvesting rights will also take place. It will include a panel on the Manitoba Métis Federation v. Canada case that's set to go before the Supreme Court of Canada on Dec. 13. Th e event begins at 4 p.m. at the LSUC in Toronto. To register, send an e-mail to equityevents@ lsuc.on.ca. For more Inside Story, please visit www.lawtimesnews.com. 'CEMETERY COLLECTOR' ARRESTED MOSCOW — A historian ap- parently had nothing better to do than make mummifi ed hu- man remains into dolls. Th e news comes as Russian police arrested a man described by local media as the "cem- etery collector" for digging up 29 corpses and dressing the remains in female clothing to display around his fl at. Grainy police video im- ages of the man's cramped fl at showed what look like several life-sized female dolls without faces, Reuters reported. "During a search of his fl at and garage, 29 self-made, life-size dolls dressed in the clothes of buried people were found," said a spokesman for police in Nizhny Novgorod, a city 400 kilometres east of Moscow. "It was ascertained that he used mummifi ed human bod- ies from graves to make them." According to Reuters, police described the man as a local historian and an expert in the study of place names. HOW DID THEY MISS 55 BILLION EURO? BERLIN — Maybe German authorities don't want to pro- voke a wrongful dismissal suit by fi ring the people re- sponsible for a multibillion- dollar accounting error. Th at might be why the German government has no plans to sack the bankers November 14, 2011 • Law Times Bizarre Briefs By Viola James or accountants who made a 55-billion-euro bookkeeping blunder that exposed it to ridicule across Europe. According to Reuters, Fi- nance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble said it was "an ex- tremely annoying mistake" for the nationalized mortgage bank Hypo Real Estate and the PwC accountancy fi rm to have let such an error slip through undetected. "I don't believe in look- ing for scapegoats," Schaeuble told a news conference after summoning executives from the bank and the accountancy fi rm to his offi ce. Th e blunder briefl y raised Germany's total debt by more than 55 billion euros. Th e minister conceded the blunder did shake public confi dence but called it a "communica- tions problem" that never re- ally put Germany's fi scal inter- ests at risk, Reuters reported. Schaeuble said the German central bank would take a deep- er look into the accounting mis- takes. "It was all about statistical problems and diff erent meth- ods of accounting," Schaeuble said. "It's an extremely annoy- ing mistake. Th e sum involved of 55 billion euros could con- tribute to deeply shaking the public's faith." Th e German public has long grumbled about the growing size of the euro zone rescue measures, especially after state spending cuts over the last decade led to deep cuts in Germany's comparatively comfortable levels of state sup- port. "Schaeuble hasn't shed any light on the matter," said Th omas Oppermann, fi nance policy expert for the opposi- tion Social Democrats. "Th is was just a continuation of the coverup. It's not on that some- one makes a 55-billion-euro mistake and no one is held responsible for it." CHURCH FOLLOWERS WARNED ABOUT GUNS MILWAUKEE — Should reli- gious leaders really have to tell their followers to keep guns out of church? You wouldn't think so, but according to Reuters, Roman Catholic bishops in Wisconsin are nevertheless urging their pa- rishioners not to bring weapons to church now that a new law permits state residents to carry concealed fi rearms. "Intuitively, we understand that acts of violence, destruc- tion, and murder are antitheti- cal to the message and person of Jesus Christ and have no right- ful place in our society, espe- cially sacred places," the bishops said just before the law went into eff ect. "We ask that all people se- riously consider not carrying weapons into church buildings as a sign of reverence for these sacred spaces," they said. Th e statement, issued by Milwaukee Archbishop Jerome Listecki and four other bishops, said a decision on whether to ban weapons was up to indi- vidual churches. According to Reuters, resi- dents with a permit can carry concealed handguns, electric weapons such as stun guns or Tasers, knives other than switch- blades, and billy clubs. catastrophic impairment panel have catastrophically impaired the managing partner. Better bring out his policy." Recruiting? Post your position on GREAT RATES. GREAT REACH. GREAT RESULTS. Contact Sandy Shutt at sandra.shutt@thomsonreuters.com for details. www.lawtimesnews.com JobsInLaw 1-8 pg 5X.indd 1 2/15/11 4:12:27 PM "Th e recent recommendations of the Financial Services Commission of Ontario's

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