Gateway Casinos Income Fund Completes IPO

Burnaby, B.C.-based Gateway Casinos Income Fund, one of the largest casino operators in Western Canada, completed a $106 million initial public offering of trust units through a syndicate of underwriters led by Scotia Capital Inc., and including BMO Nesbitt Burns Inc., RBC Dominion Securities Inc. and National Bank Financial Inc. The net proceeds of the offering, together with the proceeds from a concurrent private placement of $158 million of trust units and funds drawn under a new credit facility, were used to acquire the casino and related assets of six casinos in B.C. and Alberta. The deal closed on November 28, 2002.

Farris, Vaughan, Wills & Murphy represented the fund, with a team led by Cameron Belsher and including Gordon Love, Christopher Gora, Ranj Sangra and Lisa Skakun. Bruce Sinclair and Robert Kopstein of Borden Ladner Gervais LLP provided special tax counsel to the fund.

McCarthy Tétrault LLP represented the underwriters, with a team that included Richard Balfour, Byran Gibson, Michael Urbani, Joyce Lee and Darren Watt (corporate finance) and Jerald Wortsman (tax). David Bain and James Sutcliffe of Bull, Housser & Tupper represented Bank of Montreal, and Dennis Parolin of Parolin & Company in Vancouver represented Gateway, with respect to the credit facility.