Jennifer Bishop and Francesco Gucciardo Appointed to IBA Leadership Roles

Congratulations to Jennifer Bishop and Francesco Gucciardo on their new roles with the International Bar Association.

Jennifer has been appointed Chair of the Women Lawyers' Committee. This committee offers a forum for its members from all over the world to engage, network and share knowledge of topics of global significance to women lawyers. Francesco has been appointed Co-Chair of the Taxes Committee, which encourages interface between international tax specialists and promotes networking among tax lawyers to assist them in better serving their clients.

Jennifer is Co-Chair of the firm’s Mergers & Acquisitions Group and founder and Co-Chair of the Sports, Media & Entertainment Group. She has a corporate practice that focuses on all areas of business law, including mergers and acquisitions, corporate governance, reorganizations, complex commercial matters and ongoing general corporate advice in a variety of sectors including sports, hospitality, manufacturing, technology, real estate and financial services. Jennifer provides strategic advice on a wide array of domestic, cross border and international matters, and is called upon frequently to speak internationally on matters relating to corporate law and governance, leadership and gender equity.

Francesco is a member of the firm’s Executive Committee and a member of the Tax and Mergers & Acquisitions Groups. His practice focuses on corporate transactions for both public and private companies in the domestic and international sphere. Francesco has extensive experience in areas of corporate mergers, acquisitions, reorganizations and divestitures, divisive reorganizations, structured finance, income funds, REITs, structuring Canadian inbound investment, private equity investment, structuring executive compensation plans, partnership agreements and joint ventures. A prolific writer and speaker, he regularly addresses various audiences regarding cross-border and domestic tax issues.

Both appointments take effect as of January 1, 2024.

We also congratulate retired partner Martin Kovnats, who was honoured with a Lifetime Achievement Award by the International Bar Association’s Professional Ethics Committee. Martin is a past Chair of this committee, which seeks to promote the high standards of professional conduct and ethics on a global basis.