Good fortune has come from such unlikely patches as the prairies and pension land. Torys' deal maven Patricia Koval, with her partner Paul Kennedy, is the lead adviser to the Public Sector Pension Investment Board on its C$2.8-billion agreement to acquire Retirement Residences REIT.
Torys is also the adviser behind Saskatchewan Wheat Pool's takeover bid for rival grain marketer Agricore United to create a combined company with a market capitalization of C$1.2-billion. Legal observers predict this race will be long and messy because Agricore is private and is not governed by the Canada Business Corporations Act. Jamie Scarlett is leading the deal, assisted by Tony DeMarinis and Patrice Walch-Watson.