Howard MacKichan, KC
Senior Partner
Norton Rose Fulbright Canada LLP
Related services and key industries
Biography
Practising extensively in the area of debt capital markets, Howard MacKichan's primary focus is on private placements by US and Canadian institutional investors in the Canadian and American capital markets. Funds have been placed in Canadian and US dollars, Euros and pounds sterling. Mr. MacKichan has been a fellow of the American College of Investment Counsel since 1992, one of only a few Canadian members, and was a member of the committee developing the ACIC's model form agreements. He has strong relationships with the North American life insurance companies and their investment advisors active in this area.
Mr. MacKichan also represents a broad range of financial institutions and major and intermediate corporations in their capital markets transactions, including large syndicated loans, bridge finance, second-lien structures, first-out structures, project finance, structured finance, club deals and complex intercreditor agreements, from structuring to closing.
In addition, with his strong restructuring team, Howard has led the successful workout and restructuring of several intermediate exploration and production companies on behalf of their cross-border institutional noteholders.
Whether acting for borrowers, issuers, lenders or investors, Mr. MacKichan's practical and commercial approach, coupled with the technical know-how drawn from many years of practice in the cross-border arena, drives the successful completion of complex financing transactions.
Professional experience
Collapse allM.B.A., University of Alberta/University of Calgary, 2003
LL.B., Dalhousie University, 1982
B.Sc., Dalhousie University, 1979
- Alberta 1983
Mr. MacKichan’s institutional clients include Prudential Insurance, Legal & General, New York Life, MetLife, AIG, Nuveen, Manufacturers Life, Sun Life, BNP Paribas, Macquarie, Barings, Apollo, Blackrock, Alberta Treasury Branches and Mizuho Corporate Bank. His corporate finance clients have included EPCOR Utilities, Canadian Pacific Railway, Canpotex, Superior Plus and Keyera Energy.
In addition, he has:
- Successfully completed over 120 large private placements in the past three decades on behalf of major institutional investors and private capital firms in the United States and Canada, representing over $20 billion placed. He currently represents a large number of insurance company investors and their investment advisors active in this area
- Represented major institutional investors and public corporations in connection with their leading-edge multi-million and multi-billion dollar project finance transactions, structuring and advising through to completion their corporate finance and long-term bond placement deals in Canada and the United States.
- Acquired a wide variety of industry finance experience, including in the oil and gas sector, oil sands, oilfield services, upstream and midstream facilities, American hospital and healthcare systems, transportation, airline and rail finance, airport infrastructure, forestry, mining and metals, electricity, co-generation, pulp and paper, and agriculture
- Acted on behalf of government corporations and major pension funds with respect to derivatives transactions, recommending and preparing legislative and trust fund amendments, and negotiating master agreements and credit support documents
- Acted on behalf of natural gas and crude oil marketing companies in setting up commodity swap programs with their customers, and on behalf of banks and other financial institutions in their master agreements with Canadian counterparties
- Acted on behalf of institutional investors with respect to complex restructuring negotiations and covenant relief packages.
- Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory, 2011-2024: recommended in Banking & Financial Institutions
- Best Lawyers in Canada: Banking and Finance Law, Corporate Law, 2010-2024; Asset-Based Lending Practice, 2024
- Chambers Global, “The World’s Leading Lawyers for Business,” in Banking and Finance
- Fellow, American College of Investment Counsel (since 1992), Trustee of the College from 2008 to 2011, member of its Transaction Process Management Committee (responsible for development of model forms) and Membership Committee
- Canadian editor, American College of Investment Counsel Newsletter
- “Borrowing and Private Debt Financing,” Carswell Alberta Corporations Manual, 1993
- King's Counsel
- Law Society of Alberta
- American College of Investment Counsel