Alex Gorka
Jul 9, 2021
Much of the business world is returning to normal now that pandemic restrictions are easing. In an interview with Lucy Saddleton of Canadian Lawyer, Osler’s Alex Gorka, a partner in Osler’s Corporate Group, comments on the surge in M&A activity in 2021.
“There is no question that we are currently in a robust M&A environment with high deal volumes across all sectors,” says Alex. “While there is still some uncertainty regarding COVID, it is less uncertain than it was a year ago, and folks have grown more accustomed to conducting their business within that risk environment.”
Alex says he has seen increased M&A activity across almost all sectors, with technology, commodities and mining industries being particularly active. During the pandemic, personal meetings have typically been replaced by online and video meetings. Alex suggests general counsel adopt creative strategies to compensate for the lack of in-person meetings and on-the-ground diligence, which can help move a deal forward.
“If you can’t do boots-on-the-ground diligence, for example, we have seen folks getting drones to do inspections of real estate assets,” he says. “There are creative solutions that in-house counsel can help to devise, given that they are familiar with the business and the resources available to them.”
Alex expects deal volumes to continue for the foreseeable future.
For more information, read author Lucy Saddleton’s full article, “Canadian market still ripe for M&A,” posted on canadianlawyermag.com on June 29, 2021.