One of the major concerns for Canadian businesses interested in establishing a presence in the United States is the paradox they face — while the United States is one of the world’s largest and most open economies, it is governed by a myriad of laws and regulations. K&L Gates has extensive experience advising Canadian clients in international and cross-border transactions from the firm’s United States locations, as well as through offices in Asia, the United Kingdom, Europe, and the Middle East.
The firm currently serves as trusted U.S. legal counsel to a variety of public and private Canadian companies operating in the United States and advises Canadian clients in the mergers and acquisitions, securities, joint ventures, technology and intellectual property, litigation, private equity, cross-border debt and leasing, energy, and labor and employment sectors.
K&L Gates also regularly represents U.S.-based clients in acquisitions and numerous other types of transactions and activities in Canada. The firm’s international and cross-border clients represent an impressive range of industries, including computer software, biotechnology, mechanical and electronic products manufacturing, food processing, chemical distribution, medical technologies, nuclear energy technologies, marine technologies, commercial aircraft, garments, aerospace, retail, and telecommunications.
K&L Gates advises some of the world’s most prominent information technology companies as well as a diverse group of clients of varying sizes in a broad range of industries to address laws and public policies governing national and global commerce, business structures, technology uses, and creative expression.
K&L Gates has significant experience in U.S. and foreign technology export and import compliance regulations, negotiating and drafting international distribution and technology transfer agreements, protecting intellectual property rights in foreign markets, and establishing foreign subsidiaries and joint ventures.
K&L Gates has assisted U.S. and Canadian clients with real estate, land use, permitting, and environmental compliance matters in the United States and other countries, including infrastructure projects that cross national and international boundaries, such as pipelines and fiber optic cables.
The firm has assisted companies in obtaining approvals and negotiating agreements with international joint boundary governmental authorities, sovereign tribes/indigenous nations, and non-governmental organizations (NGOs).
K&L Gates represents a wide range of Canadian clients in the acquisition, development, and financing of electric generating and other energy and utilities projects in the United States, as well as in the ongoing management and operation of such assets. The firm advises on the entire range of legal and regulatory issues relating to energy projects, including federal, state, and local project siting; permitting and approvals matters; real property and land use matters; contracting and tax matters; and interconnection and transmission matters. K&L Gates lawyers also counsel various Canadian energy clients on U.S. wholesale and retail power purchase and sales transactions, natural gas and derivatives transactions, renewable energy projects and green tagging, mergers and acquisitions transactions, energy venture capital transactions, commercial transactions, tax matters, and federal, state, and local regulatory issues and proceedings, including proceedings before the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
K&L Gates regularly advises Canadian clients on equity offerings in the United States, including public offerings registered with the SEC and offerings conducted under exemptions from registration with the SEC, Rule 144A transactions.
In addition, the firm advises Canadian clients on their initial or continued listing on U.S. securities exchanges, including corporate governance compliance, and routinely structures innovative solutions to securities and tax law issues in cross-border transactions.