Conclusion

AuthorChristopher Nicholls
Pages414-415
414
CH AP TER 10
CONCLUSION
Almost two decades ago, one commentator described mergers and
acquisitions as “undoubtedly among the most sign ificant macro-
economic phenomena of the industriali zed West during the la st twenty
ye a rs .”1 Those words, of course, were written b efore the burst of merger
and acquisition activity in Canada and around the world in 2007, and
the subsequent internationa l financial system crisis.
The story, nevertheless, has become a familia r one. Businesses con-
tinue to respond to the pressure s of competition and globaliz ation. The
power of institutional and activ ist shareholders has grown. And as con-
ditions have coalesced once again to encourage and faci litate business
consolidations of ever-increasing size, we have seen the re-emergence
of a volatile but growing M & A market.
M & A transforms businesses, impacts t he capital markets, tests
well-worn legal doctrines and regulatory practices, and creates ch al-
lenging opportunities for law yers, regulators, and business leaders. In
smaller countries such a s Canada, where foreign ownership of lead-
ing firms i s a perennial political concer n, M & A activity raises broader
economic and political questions as well.
Investment bankers, fund managers, and other financia l players
sometimes consider law a tire some obstacle, and law yers a form of dead-
weight loss. (I still recall from a capital m arkets class at the Harvard
1 Yedidia Z Stern, “A General Mode l for Corporate Acquisition Law” (2001) The
Journal of Corporati on Law 675 at 676.

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