Brett Stewart photo
Brett Stewart photo
Brett Stewart photo

Brett Stewart is a highly experienced business law practitioner, known for her expertise in mergers and acquisitions and private equity investments. She assists domestic and foreign clients with negotiated transactions, including acquisitions, private equity financings, asset and share sales, complex corporate reorganizations, private placements, venture capital financings and management buyouts.

Advising clients on corporate governance issues, Brett also assists with day-to-day corporate and commercial matters, including the review and preparation of complex agreements. She represents clients in a number of sectors, including food, beverage and agribusiness, venture capital, and aerospace and defence.

Brett is the chair of the American Bar Association’s Private Equity and Venture Capital Committee.  She is a leader of McMillan’s Cross-Border Transactions group and the firm’s Private Equity & Venture Capital practice.

Brett was recognized by Lexpert Magazine as a rising star / leading lawyer in Canada under 40 years of age, and as a corporate lawyer to watch in the Lexpert Guide to the Leading US/Canada Cross-Border Corporate Lawyers in Canada. As an adjunct professor for Osgoode Hall Law School, she taught a course on business associations.



Representative Matters

  • Acted as Canadian counsel on a share purchase and leaseback of a real estate portfolio for a net lease REIT for a purchase price if $145M
  • Acted for large engineering firm in acquisition and disposition of a series of engineering concerns
  • Acted as Canadian counsel for a U.S. private equity fund in the acquisition of a publicly traded U.S. company with a Canadian subsidiary for a purchase price of approximately $525 million
  • Acted for Canadian generic drug manufacturer in series of acquisitions of Canadian wholesale drug distributors
  • Acted as counsel to Regimen Equity Partners in completion of equity investment in a Montreal manufacturer.
  • Acted for US private equity fund in series of Canadian based acquisition transactions
  • Represented closely-held, family-owned company in a series of food industry transactions
  • Represented the Ontario Emerging Technology Fund in venture capital investments in Investment in B5 Media Inc., Morega Systems Inc. Investment, Shoplogix Inc., Covarity, Peraso Technologies Inc., Verold Inc., and Affinium Pharmaceuticals
  • Acted as Canadian counsel for a U.S. private equity fund in the acquisition of a business line from a S&P 500 company for a purchase price of $500 million
  • Advising a real estate investment bank in connection with a series of real estate acquisition transactions
  • Negotiated critical services agreement with a value in excess of $100 million for Vancouver Olympic Games
  • Acted for Canadian private equity fund in series of acquisitions of closely held, family-owned manufacturing entities
  • Acted for international shipping company in acquisition of truck line
  • Represented regional municipality in consolidation of municipal bus services to regional services
  • Acted for Canadian/US closely-held shipping concern in the disposition of its assets
  • Worked on corporate team representing Brookfield on corporate matters relative to Brookfield’s intraconsortium documents for the acquisition of O&Y REIT, involving real estate assets valued in excess of $2.1 billion

Speaking Engagements

Drafting Critical Boilerplate Provisions, Speaker, CBA Skilled Lawyer Series 2018, Toronto, Ontario

March 2018

CVCA Insights, Toronto, Ontario

September 2015

Raising Capital: Equity Financing, Canadian Bar Association, Skilled Lawyer Series II

November 2011

News


Rankings & Recognition

  • Recognized in the 2024 Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory as a Repeatedly Recommended Lawyer in the areas of Corporate Mid-Market and Private Equity
  • Recognized in the 2023 Lexpert Special Edition on Finance and M&A as one of Canada’s Leading Finance and M&A Lawyers
  • Recognized in the 2023 Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory as a Repeatedly Recommended Lawyer in the area of Corporate Mid-Market
  • Recognized in the 2022 Lexpert Special Edition on Finance and M&A as one of Canada’s Leading Finance and M&A Lawyers
  • Recognized in the 2022 Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory as a Repeatedly Recommended Lawyer in the area of Corporate Mid-Market
  • Recognized by IFLR1000 Financial and Corporate Guide 2022 as a Rising Star in Investment Funds and Banking
  • Recognized in the 2020 Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory as a Repeatedly Recommended lawyer in the area of Corporate Mid-Market
  • Recognized by IFLR1000 Financial and Corporate Guide 2020 as a Rising Star in Investment Funds and Banking
  • Recognized by the 2019 Lexpert Guide to the US/Canada Cross-Border Lawyers in Canada as a leading Canadian lawyer in cross-border practices
  • Recognized by IFLR1000 Financial and Corporate Guide 2019 as a Rising Star in Investment Funds and Banking
  • Ranked by Lexpert Guide (2018) as a leading US/Canada Cross-Border Lawyer in Canada
  • Recognized in IFLR1000 Financial and Corporate Guide 2018 as a rising star in the areas of Investment Funds and Banking
  • Ranked in Lexpert Guide to the Leading US/Canada Cross-Border Corporate Lawyers in Canada 2015 as a Corporate Lawyer to Watch in the area of Corporate Commercial Law
  • Named one of Lexpert’s Rising Stars: Leading Lawyers Under 40, 2014

Directorships & Affiliations

  • Canadian Bar Association
  • Women in Private Equity, Executive Committee member
  • Canadian Venture Capital Association
  • American Bar Association
  • Association of Capital Growth

Education & Admissions

2005
Called to the Ontario bar
2004
JDUniversity of Toronto
2001
B.Sc. (Honours)Queen's University

Publications

Insights (1 Posts)View More

Featured Insight

Getting the Deal Through (Canada Chapter) – Private Equity 2019 – Transactions

A wide range of private equity transactions is common in Canada, including going-private transactions, private investments in public companies and private company buyouts.

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May 2, 2019

Deals & Cases (6 Posts)

Featured Insight

Pritzker Group acquires Kenco Logistics

On October 6, 2022, Pritzker Group Private Capital (“Pritzker Group”) announced its acquisition of Kenco Logistics (“Kenco”), one of North America’s leading third-party logistics (“3PL”) providers and preferred supply chain partner to market-leading customers across the United States.

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Oct 6, 2022
Featured Insight

IBM sells Watson Health to Francisco Partners

On January 21 2022, International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) (“IBM”) reached a deal to sell the healthcare and data analytics assets from its Watson Health business to Francisco Partners

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Jan 21, 2022
Featured Insight

C.H. Guenther & Son acquires Baldinger and Sons Bakeries

On January 19, 2022, C.H. Guenther & Son (“CHG”) completed its acquisition of Baldinger and Sons Bakeries, a leading family-owned bakery suppliers servicing some of the most prominent food service brands in North America.

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Jan 19, 2022
Featured Insight

Dynamic Paint Products enters into a US$70M Credit Agreement

McMillan LLP represented Dynamic in Canada with a Toronto-based team comprising Todd Miller, Brett Stewart, Michelle Boodhoo and Anthony Pallota.

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Apr 2, 2019
Featured Insight

Leading internally-managed net lease REIT announces $145 Million agreement for sale-leaseback of 15 properties

Robert Antenore, Brett Stewart and Carl Irvine of McMillan LLP acted as Canadian lead counsel for a net lease REIT on the purchase and leaseback of a portfolio of eleven industrial and office facilities in the U.S. and Canada, and additional properties in Mexico.

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Dec 21, 2016
Featured Insight

G3 Global Grain Group buys majority stake in G3 Canada Limited (formerly The Canadian Wheat Board)

G3 Global Grain Group buys majority stake in G3 Canada Limited (formerly The Canadian Wheat Board)

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Jul 30, 2015