Financial services lawyer Bahar Hafizi joins Gowling WLG as partner

12 July 2017

Gowling WLG is pleased to announce that experienced legal professional Bahar Hafizi has joined the firm as a partner in the Financial Institutions & Services Group. Hafizi is based in the firm's Vancouver office.

Prior to joining Gowling WLG, Hafizi spent 11 years as a financial services lawyer at Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP before moving to the boutique firm of McCullough O'Connor & Irwin LLP, where her work focused primarily on debt and non-public financings.

Admitted to the British Columbia Bar in 2001, Hafizi has a strong background in financing and lending work, with an emphasis on real estate lending, project finance, asset-based lending and other corporate banking facilities. She acts for a number of Canadian chartered banks and other Canadian and U.S. financial institutions, as well as corporate borrowers - particularly in the mining and natural resources sectors.

"Bahar delivers practical, effective legal advice through a combination of in-depth experience and a sophisticated understanding of the domestic and international financial markets," said Peter Lukasiewicz, CEO of Gowling WLG Canada. "Her sharp skills and extensive network will prove highly beneficial to our team - and, more importantly, our banking clients."

Outside of her legal practice, Hafizi has sat on the board of the West Vancouver Community Centre Society and on the Board of Governors of the Business Council of British Columbia's Emerging Leaders. She received a 2011 Lexpert Zenith Award for her pro bono work with the Vancouver Hospice Society.

Hafizi's arrival to Gowling WLG's Vancouver office marks another strategic step in the firm's growth, as her impressive lending and financing expertise will pair well with the incoming Lando team's strength in the Vancouver real estate space.

As a global law firm, Gowling WLG leverages its national reach and diverse international network to provide practical insight into the Canadian marketplace. With hands-on national and international experience, and an in-depth understanding of the competitive financial services landscape, Gowling WLG's Financial Institutions & Services Group offers a comprehensive range of legal services to help businesses succeed.