The Stel Salaried Pensioners Organization wishes to
thank The Hamilton Spectator for permission to post the following article by
Reporter Tara Perkins
published in
the April 8, 2006 edition
TORONTO (CP) - Tough-talking Justice James Farley, one of
Canada's most prominent judges, shed a few tears in court Wednesday after about
two dozen lawyers gathered for a roast to mark his retirement. You'll forgive
me if I don't shake hands with you because I'm saving them for golf, Farley,
65, said after receiving a standing ovation in the courtroom.
Farley became an Ontario Superior Court justice in 1989 and
was instrumental in the development of the commercial court list, which handles
many of the country's thorny corporate matters.
The colourful judge has presided over numerous high-profile
bankruptcy cases and restructurings, including those of Air Canada (TSX:ACE),
Eaton's and Stelco Inc. (TSX:STE).
He delayed his retirement until the big steelmaker's
two-year case was closed. It wrapped up last Friday and Farley will sit on the
court bench for the last time this Friday before officially beginning his
retirement in May.
We're going to be sad. An era will have passed, Stelco
lawyer Michael Barrack said. It's been a great ride.
The lawyers involved in Stelco's restructuring booked the
fake court hearing in front of Farley to hold Wednesday's playful roast.
Farley's daughter-in-law and seven-year-old grandson, Adam, appeared along with
him.
Lawyers teased the judge about his messy handwritten
rulings, his late-night phone calls and his scolding ways.
We have made a couple of people partners in our litigation
department solely on the basis they can read your writing, said one.
David Roebuck, of law firm Heenan Blaikie, said he always
smiled and nodded in a vain attempt to pretend he understood the numerous
historical and literary analogies Farley would bring up in court. But Farley,
as usual, had the last laugh.
I have been reminded that there are quite a number of you
... who have come to court and have not fully appreciated, or appreciated at
all, what I was talking about, the judge said. That's reciprocal.
David Byers, who was away on vacation Wednesday, had a colleague
read a statement recalling Byers's good and bad times in front of Farley.
The high was the time Farley called him an exemplar. The low
was the time the judge threatened him with an amateur testicular amputation for
changing a newspaper ad that Farley had approved.
I am completely overwhelmed by today, and I've been
overwhelmed by the response to my announcement about my retirement, Farley said
at the end of the hour-a-half roast.
And I know that a fair percentage of you here just want to
make sure I am gone.
The judge offered his congratulations to Stelco for
completing its restructuring.
Congratulations to all of you, and most sincerely to (former
Stelco CEO) Courtney Pratt, Farley said. He walked into the Coliseum. He didn't
know that, not only were the lions playing, but the tigers were playing and
every other type of animal was playing. Particularly, the snakes.
Pratt, known for his human resources skills, took the helm
of Stelco weeks before it filed for bankruptcy-court protection. The Hamilton-based
steelmaker had a fractious relationship with its union and was looking to cut
back on labour costs during its restructuring.
But soaring steel prices may have caught Pratt off-guard.
The company began earning profits and stopped seeking concessions from the
United Steelworkers.
When Stelco exited court protection last weekend, with Pratt
now chairman, it issued new shares in the company at $5.50 apiece to its new
financiers and to creditors. Incoming CEO Rodney Mott personally bought one
million shares.
The stock rose more than 300 per cent in the first two days
of trading this week, making instant multimillion-dollar profits for those who
obtained shares before they hit the Toronto Stock Exchange.
On Wednesday, Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty defended the
province's decision to lend Stelco $150 million for its restructuring. The loan
could be 75 per cent forgiven if Stelco tackles its pension deficit in the next
decade.
We've worked long and hard with all the players and we're
really pleased with the result, McGuinty said, adding that the company's future
now lies in the hands of the shareholders and others who might have a direct
interest in the fortune of Stelco.
But no, we have no regrets whatsoever with respect to the
support we provided.