West Edmonton Mall is Refinanced

West Edmonton Mall, has been refinanced. The property mortgage-backed securities offering provided investors with an opportunity to acquire co-ownership in the debt on the mall. The deal closed on June 26, 2003 and its value is $335 million.

The mall owners, the Ghermezian family of Edmonton, were represented by Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP in Toronto, with a team led by Jon Levin on the financing, and including Wally Palmer, Eric Belli-Bivar, Bill Bies and Donald Milner; and by Field LLP in Edmonton acting as local counsel, with a team that included Don Neeland and Teresa Tomkinson on title issues.

Column Financial Canada, a wholly owned subsidiary of Credit Suisse First Boston LLC, was represented by McCarthy Tétrault LLP, in respect of the financing, with a team that included, Bill McCullough, Tzen-Yi Goh, Hannah Graff, Wendy Gwyn Phierry, Harry Underwood and Barbara Boake in Toronto, and Stephen Livergant, Olivia Colic and Greg Liakopoulos (financing) in Calgary. Marc MacMullin, Simon Fitzpatrick, Mark Rasile, Dean Masse, Jeff Johnstone, Tara Rosenblatt and Jim Morand of McCarthy Tétrault (tax) represented Column Canada on the securitization transaction.

Lawyer(s)

Barbara J. Boake Mark Rasile William J. Bies William D. McCullough Stephen Livergant Gregory A. Liakopoulos Walter J. Palmer Donald E. Milner Olivia Colic Marc J. MacMullin Jon Levin Teresa M. Tomkinson Harry C.G. Underwood Tara R. Rosenblatt James G. Morand Eric C. Belli-Bivar Tzen-Yi Goh Simon R. Fitzpatrick Donald K. Neeland Dean C. Masse