Here are Vancouver’s best mining lawyers based on the results of Lexpert’s extensive yearly peer review. Find out who else made our list of most recommended lawyers and law firms via are practice area rankings.
In our survey, mining law encompasses all legal issues relating to the mineral exploration, development, production and reclamation cycle, from raw grass roots exploration through to the fabrication and sale of finished metal products, and mine closure and reclamation.
Most frequently recommended mining lawyers
Khaled S. Abdel-Barr
Law firm: Lawson Lundell LLP
Year called to the Bar: 1996 (BC); 2012 (NU); 2016 (YK); 2016 (NWT)
Khaled S. Abdel-Barr is a partner at Lawson Lundell LLP. He specializes in mining law, providing legal support for mineral exploration activities and mine development and operations. Abdel-Barr advises on acquisitions and dispositions of mines and mining projects both domestically and around the world, mine financing and on a broad range of mining-related matters. These include the negotiation of earn-in, joint venture, strategic alliance, royalty and streaming agreements and mineral title review. Abdel-Barr is recognized as one of the best mining lawyers in Canada. He also practises corporate and commercial law, advising clients on a broad range of domestic and cross-border transactions and in many different industries, including share and asset acquisitions and divestitures, debt and equity financings and corporate structuring and reorganizations.
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Brian E. Abraham
Law firm: Dentons Canada LLP
Year called to the Bar: 1971 (BC); 1980 (YT)
Brian E. Abraham is a partner at Dentons Canada LLP. He devotes his practice to all phases of mining from exploration, development and production through to reclamation. Abraham provides advice on all forms of title reviews, options, leases, purchase and joint-venture agreements during the early phases of mineral exploration and permitting. He also advises on socioeconomic, engineering, consulting, construction, operator, equity and debt financing, smelter and processing and reclamation agreements. Abraham acts domestically and internationally for junior, mid-sized and major explorers, developers and producers, engineering, mining and geological consultants, individuals, prospectors, organizations, syndicates and public and private financiers. He has also participated in background studies for mineral legislation in British Columbia and other Canadian jurisdictions and has advised foreign governments regarding the preparation and implementation of mining legislation. Abraham advises clients and prepares opinions on complex legal mineral titles issues in BC, and litigation involving title matters, right-to-mine, valuation, expropriation matters and Aboriginal issues. He is considered among Canada’s top mining lawyers.
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Gordon R. Chambers
Law firm: Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP
Year called to the Bar: 1987
Gordon R. Chambers is a partner at Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP. He advises clients on all aspects of securities law, including mergers and acquisitions, public and private offerings of securities, continuous disclosure and other ongoing regulatory requirements applicable to public companies. Chambers also advises special committees of boards of directors and assists in proxy contests. He acts for a wide range of clients in diverse industries, with a focus on mining companies, including dual-listed issuers. Chambers is recognized as among the leading mining lawyers in the country.
Read more about Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP on stakeholder engagement
Peter J. O’Callaghan
Law firm: Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP
Year called to the Bar: 1985
Peter J. O’Callaghan is the managing partner at Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP. His practice encompasses all types of mergers and acquisitions and corporate finance transactions, including public and private equity financings, takeover and issuer bids, independent counsel to investment dealers and boards of directors and all regulatory and stock exchange compliance work. O’Callaghan also has extensive experience in share and asset acquisitions and divestitures, shareholders’ and joint venture agreements. He has acted for issuers and underwriters in many mining transactions in Canada, the US, South America, Africa, China and Australia. O’Callaghan is consistently ranked as among the best mining lawyers in the country.
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Fred R. Pletcher
Law firm: Borden Ladner Gervais LLP (BLG)
Year called to the Bar: 1993
Fred R. Pletcher is a partner and the national leader of Borden Ladner Gervais LLP’s mining group. He advises clients on all aspects of mergers and acquisitions, corporate finance, commercial transactions, corporate governance, continuous disclosure and shareholder activism, with a focus on the mining industry. Pletcher also boasts considerable experience with Canadian and international mining joint ventures, project development and construction, tenure issues, royalties and commodity sales. His clients include public and private companies, boards of directors, special committees, underwriters, investment funds and real estate investment trusts. Pletcher is recognized as one of the top mining lawyers in Canada.
Darrell W. Podowski
Law firm: Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP
Year called to the Bar: 1993
Darrell W. Podowski is a partner at Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP’s Vancouver office. He advises clients on securities law matters, corporate finance, mergers and acquisitions and commercial transaction law. Podowski focuses on the mining industry in Canada and internationally, with expertise in Latin America. He is considered among the leading mining lawyers in Canada. Podowski was previously in-house counsel to Teck Resources Ltd, a major international mining company, practised law offshore in Bermuda and, prior to his law career, practiced as an oil and gas exploration geophysicist with Dome Petroleum Ltd and Amoco Canada Petroleum Corp. He also holds a bachelor of science degree in geophysics.
Roger R. Taplin
Law firm: McCarthy Tétrault LLP
Year called to the Bar: 2003 (BC); 1997 (South Africa)
Roger R. Taplin is a partner at McCarthy Tétrault LLP’s Vancouver office and co-leader of its global mining group. He devotes his practice to mergers and acquisitions and securities, particularly in the mining sector. Taplin is recognized as one of Canada’s best mining lawyers. As a corporate mid-market lawyer, he advises on significant mining M&A transactions, including friendly and hostile takeover bids, business combinations, share or asset sales and joint ventures. He also acts for issuers and underwriters on public and private securities offerings and other financings. Taplin provides general securities regulatory and corporate advice to public companies. He has acted for mining clients and banks in relation to sizeable mining projects in numerous international jurisdictions.
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Bob J. Wooder
Law firm: Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP
Year called to the Bar: 1995
Bob J. Wooder is a partner at Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP’s capital markets group. He specializes in corporate finance and mergers and acquisitions. Wooder advises public and private companies and financial institutions. He has extensive expertise in advising on takeover and issuer bids, private equity financings and M&A. Wooder also acts as independent counsel to boards of directors. He is consistently ranked as one of the country’s leading mining lawyers.
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Consistently recommended mining lawyers
Cameron G. Belsher
Law firm: McCarthy Tétrault LLP
Year called to the Bar: 1988
Cameron G. Belsher is a partner at McCarthy Tétrault LLP’s Toronto and Vancouver offices. He devotes his practice to corporate finance and mergers and acquisitions. Belsher’s recent experience includes acting as lead counsel on substantial debt restructurings, cross-border and domestic M&A involving public and private companies, proxy contests, initial public offerings, public and private equity and debt financings and joint ventures. He also represents pension fund and private equity clients. Belsher is considered among the top mining lawyers in Canada.
Andrew J. Gabrielson
Law firm: Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP
Year called to the Bar: 2005 (BC); 1994 (Western Australia)
Andrew J. Gabrielson is a partner Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP in Vancouver. He devotes his practice to corporate and commercial law, with a focus on the mining and construction industries. He is also a member of the firm’s mining group. Gabrielson is recognized as among Canada’s top mining lawyers. He advises major and junior mining companies on a wide range of transactions relating to mineral exploration, mine development and commercial mining operations. Gabrielson has particular expertise in the drafting and negotiation of option, exploration, farm-in, earn-in, joint venture, purchase and sale, royalty, off-take, ore and concentrate sale, tolling and other mining-related commercial agreements. He also prepares and negotiates major mining agreements for the development and ongoing operation of mines, including mine construction, major procurement, long-term maintenance and operational agreements. As a former partner of a major national Australian law firm and having practised in Western Australia predominately in mining and resources, Gabrielson is highly sought after for his expertise.
Jennifer Traub
Law firm: Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP
Year called to the Bar: 2000 (ON); 2012 (BC)
Jennifer Traub serves as partner at Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP. She oversaw the firm’s expansion into British Columbia with the opening of its Vancouver office in 2012. Traub recently sat on the firm’s executive committee for three years and is currently a member of the firm’s corporate responsibility committee and chair of the mining group. She is considered among the best mining lawyers in Canada. Traub represents both issuers and investment dealers in connection with public and private securities offerings, mergers and acquisitions and other financing transactions. She has extensive experience in the resource sector and has played an integral role in managing some of the largest and most complex corporate finance and M&A deals in the mining industry in Canada. Traub regularly advises public companies regarding general corporate and securities law matters, including continuous disclosure, corporate governance and Canadian stock exchange issues.