Legal news and trends for Canadian in-house counsel and c-suite executives
Issue link: https://digital.canadianlawyermag.com/i/50881
skeptical of the value of allowing these alliances, which they feel will lead to the erosion of services and competition." Though too small a market to influ- ence the outcome of these consolida- tion wars, Canada is nonetheless being caught up in the firefights flaring up as a result of increased global competi- tion between network carriers. The most notable example was in March when Air Canada president Calvin Rovinescu accused Dubai-based Emirates airline of predatory tactics for lobbying aggres- sively — to the point of tying in Canadian access to military air bases in the Middle East — in an effort to expand its services to Calgary and Vancouver. "Simply put, the market between Canada and the UAE has not developed to the point where more capacity is warranted. Period. Full stop," Rovinescu said in a speech to the Vancouver Board of Trade. "There are already more air- line seats being flown between Dubai and Canada than there are people to fill them." Air Canada's boss also accused the United Arab Emirates airline of telling "fairy tales" about the potential for 2,800 jobs and $500 million in rev- enues for Western Canada as a result of increased access — a request that is being supported by the mayor of Calgary, among others. A Transport Canada e-mail reply to an interview request from InHouse on this issue said, "[T]he Government of Canada greatly values the near-daily flights to Canada [to Toronto] from the two airlines of the [UAE]. [However] there is currently no shortage of seats to meet the demand." The e-mail also said the government "is committed to its Blue Sky policy, which is promoting choice for consumers and providing new growth opportunities for Canadian airlines, airports, the tourism sector, and the economy." Like lawyers who do consultative and representative work for major airlines and other national and inter- national groups, legal practitioners who represent small- and medium-sized companies say their clients are chafing under the aviation industry's rigid rules. "There is no flexibility in the level of scrutiny applied between a big airline ntitled-5 1 and a small outfit that has one or two helicopters that are doing heli-skiing," says Aaron Singer, a partner in the busi- ness law group at Clark Wilson LLP in Vancouver. Singer offers regulatory advice to avi- ation operators, many of them rugged individualists and entrepreneurial for- mer pilots who fly bush and float planes into and around British Columbia's rug- ged interior and picturesque islands. He says the rules that inhibit their ability to find financing from friends, custom- ers, and acquaintances in the U.S. or elsewhere undermine their ability to survive in a risky business that costs many times more than other businesses — and puts a proud Canadian tradi- tion in jeopardy. "The rules need to be revisited [and] not applied blindly," he says. "Underlying circumstances need to be considered." IH INHOUSE 5th Annual AUGUST ISSUE ... COMING IN THE INHOUSE/ACC ROUNDTABLE This year our experts tackle: Project management, Value billing, Technology, Risk management, Cross-border relationships Sponsored by For more information contact InHouse editorial director Gail J. Cohen at gcohen@clbmedia.ca INHOUSE JUNE 2010 • 41 5/6/10 4:25:44 PM