Canadian Lawyer InHouse

february 2015 40 INHOUSE P ro f e s s i o n a l P ro f i l e SecOnD SnaPShOT '' '' was the card's main issuer for more than two decades, but couldn't agree on a deal with Aimia to extend the partnership, which was set to expire on Dec. 31, 2013. In June 2013 Aimia signed a 10-year pact with Toronto-Dominion Bank to make it the primary card issuer. CIBC, under a right of fi rst refusal, had to equal or better TD's offer in order to keep the Aeroplan account. This bank rivalry triggered an intense multi-party negotiation that culminated in a classic Canadian compromise in September 2013. TD paid $162.5 million to CIBC for about 550,000 cardholder accounts, while CIBC retained 630,000 accounts — those of cardholders who held other CIBC products. Both banks got the right to market the Aeroplan program. Greenberg was a key player, and the only lawyer on the Aimia negotiating team. She and her colleagues negotiated the division of the loyalty portfolio, struck commercial partnerships with both banks, and put together agreements with Air Canada to support these new partnerships. Normally based in Montreal, Greenberg had to spend a year working in Toronto, becoming, she quips, the "favourite guest" of the Shangri-La Hotel. "It was diffi cult being away from my family and staying focused while we were negotiating such long hours." Greenberg wasn't always convinced law was the right career for her. Although she comes from a "family full of lawyers and judges," including her father, Benjamin Greenberg, a former Quebec Superior Court judge, she "disappointed" her family by choosing initially to work in marketing. She worked for two years as director of marketing for Neuco Image Group, a private-label health and beauty fi rm. "It was a gratifying role," she says, "but it didn't have the job satisfaction I was seeking. I realized that law was what I would be good at." So, at age 29, she returned to McGill University to study law, articling with what is now Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg LLP. As an associate with the fi rm for almost fi ve years, her practice included: securities law, IT outsourcing, privacy law, and mergers and acquisitions. "My marketing career taught me to be creative, results-oriented, and nimble," recalls Greenberg. "Law school taught me to think critically, analyze issues from all angles, and pay attention to detail. Private practice taught me to put myself in the client's shoes and apply the principles I learned in law school, but in a business- oriented manner — always asking myself what would the CEO want and need to know to inform their decision." But private practice didn't satisfy her fully either. Davies was a "great training ground," but she wanted the opportunity to combine all of these various skills to help infl uence the best decisions for the business. "I was missing the feeling of total accountability," she says. She did contract work for three years for owner-managed small businesses before Air Canada called in 2006 and offered her a contract job. (A colleague of Greenberg's from her Davies days had moved in-house with the airline and approached her.) The contract work soon became a full-time job as a commercial counsel at what she calls Air Canada's "mini-law fi rm." The airline's legal department also han- dled matters for the carrier's subsidiaries. Greenberg did most of her work for the fre- quent-fl yer program Aeroplan, negotiating partnerships, drafting agreements, and even using her marketing savvy. "I had that moment where everything clicked," she says. "The marketing back- ground that I had, combined with law, came together. I was fi nally able to get job satis- faction because I was operating more like a business person with a legal background." t h e l aw y e r deborah greenberg t h e c o m pa n y aimia inc. (montreal) (formerly groupe aeroplan inc.) • Vice president and general counsel, aimia, Canada (since 2011) • assistant general counsel and general manager of legal services, aeroplan Canada inc. (2009-2011) • Senior legal counsel, aeroplan (2008-09) • legal counsel — contract, air Canada (2006-07) • legal counsel — contract, marine group (2006) • Student and associate, davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg llP (1997-2004) • law degree from mcgill university (1999) SnaPShOT SnaPShOT (formerly groupe aeroplan inc.) • Vice president and general counsel, • assistant general counsel and general manager of legal services, aeroplan law school taught me to think critically, analyze issues from all angles, and pay attention to detail.

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