Marc-Olivier Plante
Marc-Olivier Plante
Biography
Marc-Olivier Plante has extensive experience as a legal and tax advisor. He advises private companies, public companies, investment funds, public bodies, registered charities, and other businesses on their operations, particularly with regard to investments, mergers and acquisitions, restructurings, divestitures, and compensation, as well as corporate governance.
Marc-Olivier also advises high-net-worth families on their investment and asset holding structures and develops tax and estate planning strategies, including intergenerational transfers through trusts and post-mortem planning. Thanks to his mastery of the complex issues related to family dynamics and the transfer of control in estate planning, he adopts a proactive, client-centred approach, making him a major asset for his clients.
Marc-Olivier has acquired particular experience in acquiring and holding real estate assets in Canada and elsewhere in the world, among other things, through limited partnerships and trusts to facilitate capital mobilization and minimize the tax and estate implications of such operations. He has also advised several businesses and individuals on tax audits and large-scale voluntary disclosures.
Before joining the firm, Marc-Olivier was a law clerk at the Tax Court of Canada (2015-2016) and then worked for a national accounting firm in the areas of reorganization and estate planning. Since 2022, he has been teaching reorganization and estate planning in the Master of Taxation program at the Université de Sherbrooke.
Professional experience
Representative experience
Representative experience
Marc-Olivier has acted as legal and tax advisor in the following matters:
- Canadian National Railway Company in its takeover bid for the acquisition of Kansas City Southern in a transaction valued at US $33.7 billion
- Underwriters/brokers, in domestic and cross-border equity and debt offerings for various issuers, including the Province of Quebec, Hydro-Québec, National Bank of Canada and Fédération des caisses populaires Desjardins
- Quebecor Inc., Quebecor Media Inc. and Videotron Ltd., in connection with various merger and acquisition transactions and various domestic and cross-border equity and debt offerings
- Club Piscine Plus Québec C.P.P.Q. Inc., Pioneer Distribution Inc. and Pool Supplies Canada Inc., in the sale of all of their issued and outstanding shares to Fulcrum Capital Partners
- Germain Lamonde, founder and controlling shareholder of EXFO Inc., in the successful take-private transaction of EXFO Inc. for US $6.25 per share and a total transaction value of CA $600 million
- Thrust Capital Partners, in creating a private equity fund focused on the aerospace sector
- A consortium formed by CMI Investments Inc. (Marcel Dutil family), Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec and Fonds de solidarité des travailleurs du Québec (F.T.Q.), in connection with the acquisition of all of Canam Group's Canadian operations as well as certain assets in the United States and overseas for an enterprise value of over $840 million
- BlueFocus Intelligent Communications Group, a Chinese public company, with the sale of a majority stake in its international marketing and advertising agency group, including Cossette, Eleven, Citizen Relations, We Are Social and Fuseproject, to a joint venture composed of CVC Capital Partners and Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec, and the rebranding of this group as Plus Company
- A major player in the occupational health and safety sector with numerous merger and acquisition transactions
- Negotiating several settlements on behalf of insurers regarding claims related to assessments issued by tax authorities
Rankings and recognitions
Rankings and recognitions
- Best Lawyers in Canada: Tax Law, Trusts and Estates, 2026
- APFF scholarship, 2016
- Fraser Milner Casgrain Scholarship, 2010
Education
Education
- M. Fisc., Université de Sherbrooke, 2015
- M.B.A., Université de Sherbrooke, 2013
- LL.B., Université de Sherbrooke, 2013
Admissions
Admissions
- Quebec 2015
Publications
Publications
- "US Estate Tax Planning May Trigger the EIFEL Rules for a Canadian Corporate Group," Canadian Tax Focus, vol. 15, no 4, November 4, 2025.
- "The Vefghi Holding case: Are you 'connected’"? legal update, Norton Rose Fulbright, October 8, 2025.
- "Tax proposals target tax planning strategies that use private corporations," April 2018.
- "Le dépouillement de surplus en contexte de liquidation, cessation et réorganisation d'entreprise," Vol 36, No 4 Revue de planification fiscale et financière, 2017.
Speaking engagements
Speaking engagements
- "Tips and pitfalls to avoid in tax reorganization and in a transactional context," Canadian Tax Foundation conference, October 23, 2025.
Memberships and activities
Memberships and activities
- Canadian Bar Association
- Association de planification fiscale et financière (tax and financial planning association)
- Canada Tax Foundation
- Lecturer, Faculty of Law of the Université de Sherbrooke
Languages
Languages
- English
- French
Insights and news
Insights
