Mr. Ronald Robertson

This oral history interview provides a comprehensive overview of Ronald Robertson’s distinguished legal career spanning over five decades. Robertson discusses his early education at Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar, followed by his articling and long tenure at Faskens (later Fasken Martineau), where he became a leading expert in bankruptcy and insolvency law. The interview covers his involvement in significant commercial cases including major corporate restructurings and his work on amendments to the Bankruptcy Act.

Robertson’s career highlights include his service as Director (1988-1991) and later Chair (1999-2006) of the Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation (CDIC), where he played a crucial role in Canada’s financial regulatory framework. He discusses major cases such as Olympia & York Development and Algoma Steel, which helped shape Canadian insolvency law. The interview also covers the evolution of Faskens from a smaller Toronto firm to a major national practice, including mergers and expansion.

The transcript provides valuable insights into the transformation of the Canadian legal profession over half a century, including the development of specialty practice areas, changes in client relationships, and the increasing complexity of commercial law. Robertson’s perspective as both a practitioner and regulator offers unique insights into the intersection of private practice and public policy in Canadian financial and insolvency law.

This description was written by AI and may contain some inaccuracies.