Catherine Lapointe

Expertise

Business, Commercial and Corporate Law

• Business Start-Ups
• Corporate Finance
• Corporate Reorganization
• Cross-Border Transactions
• Employee Incentive Plans
• Equity Financing
• Management Buyout
• Mergers and Acquisitions
• Transfer of Family Businesses
• Venture Capital Financing

Strategic Teams

• Business and Technology
• Business Transfers
• Corporate Governance and Compliance
• Mergers and Acquisitions
• Venture Capital

Professional background

Catherine Lapointe, a partner at BCF, has been with our firm since 1995. She has more than 25 years of experience in business law. She is co-leader of the firm's Corporate Governance and Compliance strategic team. She is also a member of the Business and Technology, Venture Capital, Mergers and Acquisitions and Business Transfers teams.

Most of Ms. Lapointe’s practice focuses on mergers and acquisitions as well as equity and quasi-equity financing. She also handles tax and corporate reorganizations, and the drafting and negotiation of various strategic agreements (e.g., service contracts, profit-sharing plans, limited partnership agreements, etc.).

Ms. Lapointe often advises purchasers or investors, whether they are individuals (employees or third parties), SMBs or larger corporations. She also frequently counsels clients with respect to market consolidation strategies.

Since she started practicing law, Ms. Lapointe has been involved in several major venture capital, development and financing files,as well as in the creation of fund mainly with respect to investors (institutional investors, financial institutions, private investors), but also for businesses.

Although her client base is mainly located in Quebec, Ms. Lapointe has had the opportunity to work on matters elsewhere in Canada, as well as in France and in the United States.

Publications

• "L’absence de relève pour votre entreprise : connaissez-vous bien vos alternatives ?" (with Anne-Marie Dupras and Martin Guestier), Colloque Planification successorale, relève d’entreprise, Montreal 2007.
• "L’achat d’une société par ses cadres," (with Anne-Marie Dupras and Martin Guestier), Congrès 2006, Association de planification fiscale et financière, Montreal, 2006.
• "L'achat d'une société par ses cadres," Il faut savoir, BCF, 2006.
• "Étude de cas : Achat d'une entreprise," (with Richard Gagné, Jean-Luc Fréchette and Marie-Andrée Côté), Congrès 2003, Association de planification fiscale et financière, Montreal, 2003.
• "Convention entre actionnaires et stratégies de transferts d'entreprises," (with Nathalie Gagnon), Colloque Fiscalité de la PME, Association de planification fiscale et financière, Montreal, 2003.
• "Panel : capital de risque," (with Danielle Milette, Richard Bourget and Pierre Pharand), Congrès 1998, Association de planification fiscale et financière, Montreal, 1998.

Involvement

• President of the Comité de gouvernance de la Société de développement des entreprises culturelles (SODEC).

• Member of the Conseil d'administration et du Comité de financement de la Société de développement des entreprises culturelles(SODEC).

• Member of the Conseil d’administration de Arion orchestre baroque.

• Member of Comité de planification stratégique de Arion orchestre baroque.

Previous involvement:

• Director and president of Réseau financier Montréal

• Director of BCF, the Rotary Club of Montreal and Montréal Baroque.

Professional affiliations

• Association of Barreau du Québec
• Lawyers Without Borders Canada
• Canadian Venture Capital Association (CVCA)
• Canadian Corporate Counsel Association (CCCA)
• Canadian Bar Association
• Rotary Club of Montréal
• The Montreal Counsel of Foreign Relations (CORIM)
• Association of Quebec Women in Finance (AFFQ)
• Héritage Montréal
• Réseau Capital

Conferences

• "Amorçage et démarrage : aspects juridiques et financement" Capital Innovation, Septembre 19, 2011.
• "La relève vue par les vendeurs" (in collaboration), Opération relève, Rivière-du-Loup, May 5, 2011.
• "La relève vue par les repreneurs," (in collaboration), Opération relève, Dorval, February 23, 2011.
• "La relève vue par les vendeurs," (in collaboration), Opération relève, Dorval, February 23, 2011.
• "Quelques aspects juridiques des acquisitions," (in collaboration), Vision PDG, Association québécoise des technologies, Mont-Tremblant, February 17, 2011.
• Co-presenter of "Panel sur la gouvernance et la gestion de risque," Colloque Transfert familial : gouvernance et gestion de risques. Finances. Émotion. Pérennité, BCF third annual symposium, November 4, 2009.
• Co-presenter of "Panel sur le financement dans un contexte d’acquisition par les cadres," Colloque L’acquisition d’une entreprise par ses cadres, BCF second annual symposium, September 17, 2008.
• "La croissance par acquisition : quelques aspects juridiques des acquisitions," Conference on the challenges of growth, Secor-Taktik, May 10, 2006.
• "Aspects légaux et fiscaux : est-il difficile de réussir à céder l’entreprise…," (in collaboration with Jean-Louis Couturier and Nicole Robert), Colloque Relève et transmission d’entreprise, Chambre de commerce et d’industrie de l’Est de l’île de Montréal, March 29, 2006.
• Moderator of the panel Due Diligence in BioTech : Understanding what Business Intelligence is needed when Targeting and Investing in Biotech, Conférence BioPharma Business Intelligence 2, November 8, 2002.
• Participation at various conferences of the Association de planification fiscale et financière.