Walid Hejazi, Professor – Rotman School of Management

Canada’s Evolution From Host to Home Economy: Canada’s Foreign Investment Relationship with the World

For much of its history, Canada was predominantly a host country for foreign direct investment, with far more investment in Canada than Canadian investment abroad.  This changed in 1997 when Canada officially transitioned to a net supplier of direct investment to the world.  Canada’s outward FDI is also increasingly diversified.  This presentation will shed light on the developments underlying these trends.

Stephen Azzi, Associate Professor, Carleton University

The Servant of Two Masters: Canadian Foreign Investment Policy since 1957

Canadian policy on foreign ownership has been pulled in different directions by often-conflicting impulses to foster economic growth and to respond to anti-American sentiment. As a result, Canada’s approach to foreign investors has been murky: too often, the objectives were not clearly-stated, the policy was based on conjecture rather than evidence, and legislation was not enforced in a transparent way.  Stephen Azzi is author of Walter Gordon and the Rise of Canadian Nationalism (McGill–Queen’s University Press, 1999) and Reconcilable Differences: A History of Canada–US Relations (Oxford University Press, 2015.

Lawrence Herman, Herman & Associates and C.D. Howe Institute

Global Trade Negotiations and Agreements in Canada’s History

Lawrence will examine Canada’s history in global trade negotiations and the establishment of trade treaties.  By highlighting important agreements, he will show how Canada’s strategies and tactics have been developed and implemented over time.  Lawrence has practiced international trade and investment law and policy both inside government and in the private sector for over 45 years. He was a member of Canada’s mission to the UN and the GATT in the 1970s and in law practice has acted as counsel for Canada in the International Court of Justice and has advocated cases before the Canadian International Trade Tribunal (CITT), NAFTA panels and Canadian courts. He advises governments, State agencies and international organizations. Mr. Herman is on the executive of the Canada-US Law Institute and a Senior Fellow of the C. D. Howe Institute in Toronto.