CANADA LAW AND PRACTICE Contributed by: Kevin West, Andrea Hill, Priya Ratti and Meryam Kellow, SkyLaw
• Canada introduced employee ownership trusts as a new tool making it easier for employees to own businesses. • Canadian regulators continue to be wary of certain foreign states and actors. The list of sanctioned entities and persons grew to include individuals connected to the Gaza war and human rights abuses in Guatemala and Sudan. • Canada announced CAD2.4 billion in new federal funding towards its national AI strat- egy in April 2024. With the prorogation of Parliament and government elections looming in 2025, the viability of existing government initiatives and Canada’s leadership position on AI remain uncertain. 1.3 Key Industries Automotive, Steel and Aluminium Currently the industries that are hardest hit by the US tariff war are the automotive industry and the steel and aluminium industries. The automotive industry in Canada over the past 30 years became inextricably linked with the United States. Automotive parts manufactured in Canada would cross the border up to eight times before final assembly. The tariffs imposed by the United States this year, and the coun- termeasures imposed by Canada, are expected to permanently break this arrangement. Canada will be developing a framework for auto produc- ers that incentivises production and investment in Canada. Similarly, the steel and aluminium industries have been singled out for tariffs and reciprocal tariffs. In 2024, roughly equivalent amounts of steel and iron crossed the border in each direc- tion while more than three times the amount of aluminium flows from Canada to the USA.
These industries and the industries that support them will be suffering significant losses of rev - enue and employment. Mining Approximately half of all publicly traded mining companies in the world are listed on a Canadian stock exchange. In 2024, the mining and met - als sector led materials M&A activity by sheer number of transactions and fell only behind the telecommunications sector in deal value. Nota- ble deals included South Africa’s Gold Fields’ USD1.39 billion acquisition of Osisko Mining, and First Majestic’s USD970 million acquisition of Gatos Silver. Canadian mining companies continue to face unique challenges such as increased govern - ment scrutiny on foreign investment, geopolitical risks, and environmental hurdles. Canada is a key producer of copper, nickel, cobalt, lithium, graphite and vanadium. As global demand increases for critical minerals used in batteries and other clean technology, Canada continues to look for ways to invest in, and pro- tect, these key resources. A notable headline in the sector includes Noble Mineral Exploration and Canada Nickel’s announcement of the plan to consolidate their interests. Oil and Gas The oil and gas sector accounts for approximate - ly 3% of Canada’s real gross domestic product. Canada is the world’s fourth-largest producer of oil and fifth-largest producer of natural gas and Canadian refineries can process nearly 1.9 mil - lion barrels of crude oil per day.
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