Export Development Canada successfully concludes program to disburse billions owed to Canadian companies under Canada-US Softwood Lumber Agreement

In April, 2007, Export Development Canada ('EDC') successfully concluded its management of the softwood lumber Deposit Refund Mechanism. EDC designed a fast-tracked refund process, so that once the Canada-US Softwood Lumber Agreement was in effect on October 12, 2006, the first payments started to flow to producers and sawmills within three weeks. Payments were arranged through the largest Canada Account financing transaction ever undertaken - $3.1 billion. The Deposit Refund Mechanism was designed to be able to conclude purchases from as many as 1,574 companies entitled to refunds within eight weeks of the October 12 starting date. Fasken Martineau was retained by EDC to act on its behalf in connection with the implementation of the payment to importers of record owed refunds of these duties. The team was comprised of Roxanne McCormick, Donald Milner, Sarah Gingrich and Catherine Fraser in the Toronto office, Xeno Martis, Angela Onesi and Félix Gutierrez in the Montréal office, Richard Peters and Cory Exner in the Calgary office and Don Weaver, Brent Lewis and KC Miu in the Vancouver office, with the assistance of many other lawyers, students and paralegals.