“Norton Rose Fulbright has extremely competent team members with varied strengths and diverse expertise. The team is always available, very prepared and responsive to client requests.”  Client Testimonial

Our team

Our team is led by Senior Partner François Fontaine, Ad.E., who brings more than three decades of experience representing some of the largest companies in high-stakes white-collar matters involving crisis management, fraud, anti-corruption, business ethics compliance, and more. François and Charles-Antoine Péladeau were the lead counsel representing SNC-Lavalin Inc. (now AtkinsRealis) in the successful negotiations securing Canada’s first court-approved deferred prosecution agreement that resulted in the stay in charges in return for certain conditions. The team includes Stephen Nattrass and Frédéric Plamondon, both widely recognized as leading lawyers in this highly specialized, tactical and strategic field and who are foundational to our practice. Stephen focuses on assisting clients with various regulatory issues, including business ethics, anti-corruption, anti-trust and competition. He conducts multi-jurisdictional internal investigations and advises on economic sanctions, international trade issues and procurement. Frédéric is a highly experienced lawyer, who has been involved in some of the most complex and high-profile internal investigations in Canada. He advises and assists corporations, public issuers, and executives as well as other firms and professionals on a wide range of topics, including investigations, financial crime matters and asset recovery and evidence preservation, such as Mareva, Anton Piller and Norwich injunctions.

View our entire team complement for a full list of specialties and areas where our lawyers can help your company.

“Our highly experienced and versatile team advises clients across jurisdictions, supporting companies often facing white-collar issues that transcend borders. We have the knowledge, talent and experience to help these multi-national players navigate legal challenges in the countries where they operate.”  François Fontaine

Our approach

Companies are often faced with a multitude of issues, including an increasingly complex, multi-national and international legal framework. Our team is at the forefront of this rapidly evolving area of law. We offer clients a full suite of services and support.

• ‘One-stop’ connected international service –We provide risk assessments, development of policies and compliance programs, internal investigations and we assist with external investigations and prosecutions by national and international regulatory authorities and litigation defence services. We also provide structuring and due diligence for international business transactions. Our one-team approach and international reach mean our clients get full support across all jurisdictions globally.
• Shaping leading case law – Our practice has resulted in the leading case law and legal precedent in Canada on fundamental issues in white-collar litigation, including Canada’s first court-approved deferred prosecution agreement. The team has acted in some of the most significant white-collar litigation in Canada’s history. We help our clients avoid potential fines, imprisonment and debarment from participating in future government tenders by complying with set laws. We also assist our clients with asset recovery proceedings, including extraordinary remedies such as Anton Piller, Mareva and Norwich injunctions.
• Comprehensive approach to multi-jurisdictional investigation – Our multi-disciplinary and international team has conducted complex, high-stakes, multi-jurisdictional investigations and defended cross-border enforcement actions in Canada, the United States, South America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Africa and the Middle East. While mitigating reputational risks, we provide on-the-ground services worldwide on a large range of issues, including investigating potential financial crimes and corporate wrongdoings.
• Reputation management and risk mitigation – We advise on reputation management and risk mitigation, following best standards by identifying risky practices and providing solutions to eliminate them. We assist in developing policy and audit procedures and provide training to ensure they are put into practice. Should a situation arise requiring risk evaluation, our experienced team can also conduct an internal investigation to manage the situation proactively.
• Complete tool kit to navigate procurement and due diligence – We provide valuable advice on procurement and due diligence. We advise clients competing for government contracts and contracts funded by development banks to minimize their risk of disqualification from participation in these tenders. Our team assists businesses in identifying and managing actual and potential conflicts of interest, avoiding any illegal use of confidential information and complying with lobbying legislation. We also perform due diligence on M&A transactions and assist with reviewing and evaluating representations and warranties on anti-money laundering and anti-terrorist financing, anti-corruption and sanctions.
• Integrated approach to sanctions and export controls – International sanctions regimes are complex and often respond to volatile political landscapes. Our global sanctions and export controls lawyers are well positioned to help clients adapt to these fast-evolving domestic, regional and international frameworks. We offer companies, financial institutions and senior executives a ‘one-stop’ global service covering multi-jurisdictional export controls and sanctions regimes (including Canadian, US, UK, EU, and Australian as well as embargoes, counter-measures, and anti-boycott regulations.