Mike Harris

Mike Harris is a Partner in Dentons' Tax group, based in Edmonton. His practice focuses on Tax Law, specifically corporate and personal tax planning and reorganization, as well as tax litigation, compliance and dispute resolution.

Mike is recognised for his natural ability to take the complexity out of his clients' tax situations, and offer them practical advice and real-world solutions. He advises clients on corporate reorganizations, including share and asset rollovers, butterfly transactions among related parties, stock dividends, share redemptions, debt assignments and assumptions, and debt-to-equity conversions. Mike regularly assists clients with GST issues, including the sale of real property and applicability to amounts paid as settlements.

In addition, Mike advises on employment benefit issues and salary deferral arrangements. He guides international clients on "Canadianizing" share plans, specifically for US entities wishing to provide plans to Canadian employees, and other Canada-US outbound and inbound investment issues.

Born and raised in Edmonton, Mike has longstanding connections within the city's business and legal communities. He imparts his knowledge to tax students at CPA Alberta.

His experience includes advising Lions Gate Entertainment Corp. and Lionsgate Studios Corp. in connection with Lionsgate's separation of its traditional studios business and the streaming and media business of Starz Entertainment by way of British Columbia plan of arrangement; representing Ideaspark Labs Inc. in the sale of all of its shares to a subsidiary of Embracer Group AB; advising in relation to the $55 million acquisition of a retail cannabis business; advising in relation to the reorganization of a $500 million real estate portfolio; and advising in relation to the redomiciliation of an international corporation to Canada.

He holds an LLB from the University of Alberta (2010) and a Bachelor of Science from the University of Alberta (2005). He is Co-Chair of the Canadian Bar Association – Taxation Section and a former Secretary of the Edmonton Oilers Community Foundation, and is an Instructor at CPA Alberta.