Lawyers in Canada: Davis LLP - Legal Advisors Since 1892

Home > Lawyers > M. Sandra Appel > 

M. Sandra Appel
Partner

Save or Print as PDF Email This Page

Biography

Sandra Appel is a partner at Davis LLP and a member of the firm's Corporate/Commercial and Japan Practice Groups. She has almost three decades of experience in advising on corporate and commercial matters including corporate governance and shareholder relations, secured financings, restructuring of businesses and distribution and franchising arrangements in a wide variety of industries including electronics, hospitality, automotive, building materials, photographic supplies and machine tools and tooling.

Ms. Appel has focussed on providing general counsel services to many significant Canadian companies and Canadian subsidiaries of international companies based principally in the United States and Japan. In the past decade, she has developed significant expertise in advising foreign companies on the acquisition or establishment of Canadian businesses. In this regard, she provides strategic advice in structuring the transaction and directing dealings with Canadian federal and provincial authorities, working closely with representatives of the foreign companies including their in-house counsel, outside counsel and banking and financial advisors.

Ms. Appel managed the Toronto office of Davis LLP for four years and in this capacity participated on a number of firm committees and assisted in the growth of this office.

Professional Experience

Among the current and recent engagements in which Ms. Appel was lead counsel are:

• Acting for Japanese suppliers coming to Canada to establish businesses here to support the Toyota facilities in Ontario.
• Acting for a North American supplier of building materials in establishing an online financing program for its distributors and customers.
• Representing Harman International Industries, Incorporated, a large U.S.-based international, publicly-traded company in the acquisition of a Canadian software company for a purchase price of US$154 million; the transaction included some pre-transaction tax restructuring, significant due diligence and the post-closing integration of the new business into its ultimate parent.
• Representing a major Hong Kong company in the sale of a hotel in Toronto to the University of Toronto for use as a student residence; the transaction involved significant real estate, tax and employment issues arising from the change in use of the building.
• Representing a North American supplier of building materials in its financing by a mezzanine lender with an option to convert the security to shares and the concurrent use of the funds to purchase the shares of a number of retiring shareholders including the negotiation of the new shareholders' agreement.
• Acting for a U.S.-based distributor of bibliographic materials and management systems to acquire and establish businesses in Canada including filings with Heritage Canada, Investment Canada and other matters relating to establishing a business in Canada.
• Acting for a Japanese-based software developer of video products in establishing a business in Canada including filing with Investment Canada and managing the ongoing employment and financing of this business.
• Directing the acquisition by a U.S.-based company of two Canadian companies involved in the document records storage and retrieval business and the subsequent investment in one of these businesses by a Canadian labour-sponsored investment fund on three separate occasions concurrently with investment in the U.S. entity by similar funds in the U.S. and the coordination of the cross-border documentation to enable the U.S. and Canadian-based investors to exchange shares in the subsidiaries and parent. Subsequently assisting U.S. counsel in the divestiture of the U.S. parent and its Canadian subsidiary to a large California-based publicly-traded technology company pursuant to a plan of acquisition and merger.

Publications & Seminars

• Speaker at an Ontario Bar Association Continuing Legal Education Program on distribution law, 2003.
• Speaker at Davis LLP Japan Practice Group Conference: M&A Opportunities in Canada, November, 2008.
• Speaker at Second Annual Women in Law Conference, FCI-CWI (Career Women Interaction), Toronto, November, 2008.

Volunteer Work

• Board of United Synagogue Days Schools, 1996-2000, Chair of the personnel committee, 1997-2001
• Personnel committee of Community Hebrew Academy of Toronto, since 2001

Education

• LL.M., Osgoode Hall, York University, 1984
• LL.B., University of Western Ontario, 1974
• B.A., University of Toronto, 1971

Place and Year of Call

• Ontario, 1976

Save or Print as PDF Email This Page Back To Top