Sibold Steve

Education

Queen's University, BA, 1973, with first class honours Queen's University, LLB, 1976 University of California, Berkeley (USA), LLM, 2008 

Bar Admissions

Alberta, 1977

Stephen P. Sibold KC

Partner and General Counsel Emeritus

T: 403.298.3666 / E: sibolds@bennettjones.com

Calgary


In addition to serving as General Counsel Emeritus of Bennett Jones, Steve Sibold provides strategic advice to clients on corporate governance, corporate and securities law issues. Steve previously served as General Counsel of Bennett Jones from 2008 to 2022.

During 2007-2008, Steve attended the University of California, Berkeley School of Law as a Fulbright Scholar. While at Berkeley, Steve's research focused on Canada's regulatory response to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002.

Steve returned to Bennett Jones in 2006 after ten years in the private and public sectors. From 1996 to 2000, he served as senior vice-president and general counsel of Canadian Airlines Corporation and from 2000 to 2005, as chair and CEO of the Alberta Securities Commission (ASC).

During his term as chair of the ASC, Steve also served from 2003 to 2005 as chair of the Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA), the council of the provincial and territorial securities regulators in Canada.

While CSA chair, Steve also served on the Council of Governors of the Canadian Public Accountability Board, a national body which oversees the audits of Canadian public issuers.

In 2000, Steve was appointed Queen's Counsel and in 2005, he received an Outstanding Service Award from the North American Securities Administrators Association recognizing his distinguished service and significant contributions to investor protection in Alberta and throughout North America.

In 2006, Steve received his ICD.D designation as an Institute of Corporate Directors (Canada), Institute-certified Director. Steve is a member of the UC Berkeley Law School International Advisory Council and formerly served as a director of the Canadian Winter Sport Institute (WinSport Canada). He is a former Adjunct Professor of Law at the University of Calgary where he taught courses in securities law and corporate governance for ten years.

Select Experience

  • ATCO Ltd., in its acquisition of Western Australia Gas Networks for $1 billion
  • Shell Canada Limited, in its approximately $8.7-billion acquisition by Shell Investments Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Royal Dutch Shell plc

Recent Recognitions

  • LexisNexis Martindale-Hubbell
    BV Distinguished Peer Review Rating

Recent Insights, News & Events

  • Stephen Sibold on Social Media and Securities Regulation
    In The News / August 17, 2018
    Stephen Sibold comments in the Calgary Herald on social media and balancing the rights of freedom of speech in business while protecting investors. He says the challenge is the mode and speed of communication and the bigger platform social media provides. “Practically, the rules of the game have changed and I think it’s something securities regulators are trying to grapple with,” he says.
  • Cooperative Capital Markets System Publishes Revised Draft Legislation and Draft Regulations
    Updates / September 01, 2015
    On August 25, 2015, the participating jurisdictions of the proposed Cooperative Capital Markets System (the Cooperative System) published for comment a revised consultation draft of the uniform provincial/territorial Capital Markets Act (CMA) and draft initial regulations. The comment period is open until December 23, 2015. Additional draft initial regulations will be published for comment in the coming months, including a harmonized set of prospectus exemptions and a fee regulation.
  • Stephen Sibold Quoted in Lawyers Weekly
    In The News / June 18, 2010
    In "Law Firm General Counsel a Rarity," written by Elaine Wiltshire for the Lawyers Weekly, Stephen Sibold comments on the growing need for a general counsel position within larger Canadian law firms.
  • Assessing Canada's Regulatory Response to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 - July 2009
    Articles / July 27, 2009
    This article discusses the unique characteristics of the Canadian capital market and argues that the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 was an inappropriate model for Canadian securities regulators to follow in designing Canada's corporate governance regime. "Assessing Canada's Regulatory Response to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002: Lessons for Canadian Policy Makers"; (2009) 46 Alta. L. Rev. 769.
  • Stephen Sibold Quoted in The Lawyers Weekly
    In The News / September 05, 2008
    In "The firm as client: in-house counsel is now a full-time position," Stephen Sibold discusses his new role as general counsel of the firm. Bennett Jones is only one of four law firms in Canada to have created this position.
  • Hugh MacKinnon comments on appointing Steve Sibold as in-house counsel in Lexpert magazine
    In The News / September 01, 2008
    In Julius Melnitzer's article "Legal help for law firms," Hugh MacKinnon comments on the firm's recent appointment of Stephen Sibold to general counsel of the firm. The article appears in the September issue of Lexpert magazine.
  • Steve Sibold Appointed General Counsel of Firm
    Announcements / July 23, 2008
    Bennett Jones LLP is pleased to announce that Stephen Sibold, Q.C., has been appointed General Counsel of the firm.
  • Emerging Issues in Corporate Governance - November 2007
    Updates / November 12, 2007
    Corporate governance remains a dynamic and evolving area of law and practice. Over the past year, a number of issues have emerged that warrant consideration by directors and management. In this second annual report, we highlight three of the more significant emerging issues in corporate governance in Canada.
  • Want U.S.-style Regulation? Make it Part of the Criminal Code
    Updates / August 20, 2007
    Published in the Globe and Mail's Report on Business, Stephen Sibold's article highlights the differences between regulatory and criminal law in Canada and discusses the treatment of capital markets misconducts as criminal matters.
  • CSA Publishes Proposed New Certification Rule (NI 52-109)
    Updates / July 11, 2007
    On March 30, 2007, the Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) released for comment the much anticipated replacement to MI 52-109 – Certification of Disclosure in Issuers' Annual and Interim Filings. As published, the new rule would require management to evaluate an issuer's internal control over financial reporting (ICFR) and provide MD&A disclosure concerning the effectiveness of ICFR based on that evaluation.
  • Bennett Jones Lawyer Appointed Prestigious Fulbright Scholar
    Announcements / June 26, 2007
    Bennett Jones lawyer Stephen Sibold, Q.C., has been named a 2007-2008 Canada-U.S. Fulbright Scholar, a prestigious title reserved for a select few in Canada and the United States.  As a Fulbright Scholar, Mr. Sibold will be pursuing graduate studies in corporate governance and securities regulation at the Boalt Hall School of Law at the University of California, Berkeley, where he will be assessing Canada's regulatory response to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) of 2002.  
  • CSA Proposes New Executive Compensation Disclosure Requirements
    Updates / May 15, 2007
    On March 29, 2007, the Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) published for comment its newly proposed executive compensation form and related amendments to National Instrument 51-102 -Continuous Disclosure Obligations (NI 51-102). The CSA anticipates that the new executive compensation disclosure rules will be in effect at the end of 2007 and issuers will be required to comply with the form for financial years ending on or after December 31, 2007.
  • ASC Annual Continuous Disclosure Review Program
    Updates / March 20, 2007
    Last month, the Alberta Securities Commission (ASC) released the report on its 16th annual continuous disclosure (CD) review program, which involved examination by ASC staff of CD documents filed by Alberta reporting issuers (RIs). A stated objective of the program is to improve the completeness, quality and timeliness of disclosure.
  • Report on the ISS-2007 Canadian Proxy Voting Guidelines
    Updates / February 15, 2007
    In anticipation of the upcoming annual meeting season, this article addresses some of the Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) recommendations with respect to general voting guidelines concerning items frequently put before securityholders at annual meetings.
  • Directors' Duties in Canada, 3rd ed.
    Updates / December 01, 2006
    The following members of the corporate governance group were involved in the writing of various chapters of Directors' Duties in Canada, 3rd ed., by Barry Reiter (CCH Canadian). Heather Forester was the book's editor.
  • Emerging Issues in Corporate Governance - November 2006
    Updates / November 30, 2006
    Corporate governance remains a dynamic and evolving area of law and practice. Over the past year, a number of new issues have emerged that warrant consideration by directors and senior management. In this article we highlight a number of the more significant emerging issues in corporate governance in Canada.
  • CSA Drops Proposed Internal Control Rule
    Updates / March 10, 2006
    On March 10, 2006, the Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) announced that, after extensive review and consultation and in view of the delays and the debate underway in the United States over the rules implementing Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, the CSA will not proceed with its proposed internal control rule (MI 52-111 – Reporting on Internal Control over Financial Reporting).