Adam McLeod

Adam is an owner and partner at Hawthorne, Piggott & Company, a small full-service firm in the Greater Vancouver area.   As a solicitor, his primary practice areas include corporate/commercial matters, estates and wills, real estate (including both commercial and residential tenancy maters).  Adam believes in using a realistic and results-oriented approach to solve clients’ legal matters, and approaching those matters efficiently and collaboratively.

CORPORATE AND COMMERCIAL

• Purchase/Sale of Businesses/Companies
• Reorganizations and Tax Planning
• Succession Planning
• Share Transfers
• s.85/s.86 Rollovers and Share Exchanges
• s.51/s.73 Share Transfers
• Corporate Governance
• Non-Profit/Charitable Governance and Planning
• Dividends and Redemptions
• Trusts
• Shareholder disputes
• Shotgun Clauses (compulsory sales)

With over a decade of experience in business matters, Adam is able to deal with nearly any type of business matter.

In particular, Adam enjoys working on complex commercial transactions, and doing his best to simplify things for his clients.  He can also assist with any number of trust or tax matters, and has a great deal of experience with all type of rollovers and reorganizations.  Adam is also able to assist with shareholder disputes.  With an extensive background in business transactions, he can assist with any transaction.

ESTATES AND WILLS

• Grants of Probate (or Administration)
• Resealing foreign wills/ Grants of Probate into BC
• Estate planning
• Cross-border planning
• Estate disputes
• Trusts
• Executor/Trustee Services

Ideally, estates begin with good planning, built on clear goals and good advice.  Situations and families can be complicated, and sometimes people just aren’t sure what to do.  With over a decade of experience and having assisted with countless estates, Adam can provide reliable and clear advice on estate matters before and after death.

With a strong business background, Adam is particularly able to assist clients with privately held businesses build solid estate plans.  Minimizing taxes, making things easier for beneficiaries, and generally making this more efficient for all involved.  With extensive experience dealing with complex estates (disputes, corporate holdings, trusts, multi-jurisdictions, etc) he can help both will-makers and beneficiaries navigate these issues.  Adam also has experience dealing with extremely complex and acrimonious estates, and takes pride in being able to move even the most difficult estate forward.

EXECUTOR AND TRUSTEE SERVICES

Adam is an experienced estate executor and can assist you with the planning of your estate, and give you the peace of mind that your estate will be managed efficiently, responsibly and fairly.  Alternatively, Adam can also assist beneficiaries who simply wish to avoid the confusion, frustration and stress of being an executor themselves.

REAL ESTATE

• Commercial Purchases/Sale
• Residential Purchase/Sale
• Refinancing
• Mortgages
• Private Lending/Loans
• Residential Tenancy Disputes (landlords and tenants)

ABOUT ADAM

Adam grew up in Burnaby and attended the University of British Columbia where he received a B.A. in History and International relations, and was a member of the UBC varsity track team. He studied law at the University of Saskatchewan, and completed the CLASSIC intensive clinical law program.

In his “other career” Adam is a senior officer in the Canadian Army reserve, where he serves as an Armoured Reconnaissance officer.  He is a graduate of the Joint Command and Staff Programme (JCSP), and the Canadian Army Operations Course (AOC).  Adam is a recipient of the South-West Asia Service Medal (Afghanistan Bar), the Special Service Medal (Expedition Bar), the Canadian Forces Decoration (with bar), and the Commander-in-Chief Unit Commendation (Task Force Orion), along with numerous other commendations and qualifications. Adam is the recipient of the King Charles III Coronation Medal, which was awarded for his community service. Adam is also an Aide-de-Camp to the Lieutenant-Governor of British Columbia.

An avid volunteer, Adam serves on numerous nonprofit boards, and is passionate about leadership development and veteran’s advocacy. When not working, Adam can usually be found eating good food with friends (or working it off in the gym), watching sci-fi, skiing rather badly, or making endless renovations.