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"I knew it was controversial. There's no hiding the fact that it's a contact sport, and what you see on TV isn't exactly something that's easy to sell to a government." jurisdiction to sanction MMA. "We have heard from fans across the province and it's clear that MMA is a popular sport Ontarians are following," said Consumer Services Minister John Gerretsen, in unveiling accompanying regulations for the sport. "Now we have the tools in place to help keep competitors safe, while providing an economic boost to communities that want to host professional MMA events." It's safe to say that MMA's potential economic impact played a big part in Chummar's pitch to the province. The windfall surrounding the UFC's first marquee Ontario event — which took place April 30 at Rogers Centre in Toronto — is striking. UFC president Dana White estimated in February that it would add up to about $40 million. The buzz around the event, which featured a headline fight involving Canadian crowd favourite Georges St-Pierre of Quebec, was astonishing. The spectacle quickly surpassed even White's lofty expectations, with tick- ets selling out in minutes. The event set a UFC attendance record with 55,724 spectators and generated more revenue, US$12,075, than any other UFC card. While Chummar would have been the last one to predict that type of response when the UFC came knocking on his door, he no longer bats a lash over the sport's reach. "Mixed martial arts is one of the fastest-growing sports in the world, and the UFC is its largest brand," he remarks. Fans of the sport flocked to Toronto's downtown core for the Rogers Centre event, and the city's hotels, restaurants, bars, taxis, and even hotdog vendors were sure to have cashed in. "It just has a huge trickle effect," says Chummar. "So it's millions and millions of dollars of immediate economic impact. It is hundreds of mil- lions of dollars in the long term, and it's huge tax revenue for the province and federal government." UFC president White estimated the government would rake in $1.5 million from ticket taxes alone. Chummar admits the file was atypical from the perspective of a government relations lawyer. "A lot of my clients come in here and say, 'How can we get government out of our way?'" he says. "Unlike any other client we've had here, this client said, 'How do we get government involved in our business?' That's pretty remarkable." Luckily for Chummar and the UFC, it's generally far easier to get government into your business than out of your hair. It just takes a lot of patience and persistence. Chummar says he spoke with anyone who would listen about the benefits of sanctioning MMA in the province. "This was about regulating an existing internationally accepted sport," he notes. While Chummar has deservedly received much praise for his work in bringing the UFC to Canada's largest city, it's just ntitled-2 1 a small sampling of the significant contribution he's made. He served as a senior member of the team of lawyers that led Toronto's successful bid to host the 2015 Pan American Games; spent five years on the council of the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario; is chairman of the Cinéfranco International Francophone Film Festival of Toronto; and is on the board of directors for the CFL's Grey Cup. To top it off, in 2008, the government of France named him a Person of the Future through a diplomatic program that saw Chummar experience a tour of the country as a guest of the president. Despite these accomplishments, Chummar maintains one of his biggest pleasures comes from helping hundreds of people a year find a job — something he does, just because he can. "I feel very fortunate for the things that I have been able to experience and achieve, receive," he says. "There's just something in me that needs to give back, needs to mentor young people, or help people that are more vulnerable." 2011 Summer Courses in IntellectualProperty Google™, iPod®, BlackBerry®,ebay.com™,Facebook®: household names today,but mere ideas 15 years ago! The new economy has seen the rise of companies, products,websites, all of which have relied heavily on intellectual property rights for their global success. Understanding Patents ............................................July 25-29,2011 Understanding Trade-marks ...................................August 1-5,2011 Managing Trade-mark Disputes .............................August 8-10,2011 CopyrightMaster Class .........................................August 8-10,2011 All courses are held in English atMcGill University. Sign up now! www.mcgill.ca/conted/prodep/intel/ INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY INSTITUTE OF CANADA INSTITUT DE LA PROPRIÉTÉ INTELLECTUELLE DU CANADA www.CANADIAN Lawyermag.com JUNE 2011 25 5/12/11 3:12:22 PM