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On June 28, 2012, Canada's Commissioner of Competition,
Melanie Aitken, announced her decision
to leave her post, effective September 21, 2012.
Commissioner Aitken was appointed to a five-year term in August
2009, having replaced the previous Commissioner, Sheridan Scott, as
Interim Commissioner just prior to the enactment of significant amendments to the Competition Act in
March, 2009.
Ms. Aitken held the role of Assistant Deputy Commissioner in the
Mergers Branch from 2005 to 2007, and was appointed head of the
Mergers Branch at the end of that term. Prior to joining the
Bureau, Ms. Aitken had been a commercial litigation partner with
two Canadian law firms, with a secondment to the Federal Department
of Justice as Senior Counsel from 2001 to 2003.
Announcement of the Commissioner's departure follows closely
on the June 20, 2012 appointment
of litigator Kelley McKinnon as Senior Deputy Commissioner in
charge of the Mergers Branch, replacing
Paul Collins, head of Stikeman Elliott's
Competition and Foreign Investment Group, who had just finished a
two-year executive interchange in that role. Mr. Collins
oversaw several initiatives, including revisions to the Merger
Enforcement Guidelines and updated mergers process guidance, while
over-seeing a sharp increase in complex, strategic mergers during
that time.
The Bureau has also announced the promotion of Associate Deputy
Commissioner Ann Wallwork to a new Associate Deputy Commissioner
position. Ms. Wallwork will remain Assistant Deputy Commissioner of
Division "A" of the Mergers Branch, in addition to
assuming responsibility for the management of the Bureau's
Toronto Mergers Office and serving as acting Senior Deputy
Commissioner in the event of an absence on the part of Ms.
McKinnon. Melissa Fisher and Anthony Durocher were confirmed
as Assistant Deputy Commissioners of Divisions "B" and
"C", respectively.
No announcements have been made with respect to a potential
successor to Commissioner Aitken.
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