Jake Bullen

Partner

 | Toronto

Jason (Jake) Bullen* is a partner with Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP, where he serves as Co‑Chair of the firm’s Private Equity Group. He joined the firm’s Business Law Group following his call to the Ontario Bar in 1999, building a practice focused on mergers and acquisitions, financings, corporate reorganizations, strategic advisory matters, and complex commercial agreements, often involving significant cross‑border components. Recognized for his ability to lead large deal teams and navigate multifaceted transactions, he provides clients with seamless, business‑focused legal solutions.

Jake advises private equity funds; large Canadian, US, and international corporations; family offices; and emerging companies across diverse industries, including retail, consumer goods, food and beverage, manufacturing, financial services, technology, AI, fintech, sports and cleantech. He guides clients through high-stakes corporate transactions, multi‑jurisdictional structuring, material litigation matters (from the business law perspective), and corporate governance matters.

Jake leverages two significant secondments to provide value-added, commercially-minded advice to clients: he served as interim Associate General Counsel of Canadian Tire and completed a secondment with Rogers Communications. He also sits on the Board, and serves as Co-Chair of the Private Equity Committee, for ACG Toronto and he is a member of McGill University’s National Advancement Board.

Jake is recognized as a leader in M&A, PE/Leveraged Buyouts and Corporate Commercial Law by Chambers Canada, Chambers Global, Best Lawyers, Lexpert, IFLR1000, Legal500 and Lexology Index. He regularly speaks, writes, and participates in industry and professional programs addressing private equity, transactional best practices, corporate governance, and emerging trends in M&A.

*Services provided through a Professional Corporation

  • Best Lawyers in Canada (Leveraged Buyouts and Private Equity Law)
  • Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory (Corporate Mid-Market | Private Equity)
  • Chambers Canada (Private Equity)
  • Chambers Global (Private Equity)
  • IFLR1000 (M&A, Capital Markets)
  • Legal500 Canada (Private Equity) (Key Practitioner)
  • Legal Lean Sigma™, Yellow Belt
  • Lexology Index: Canada (Mergers & Acquisitions; Sports & Entertainment)
  • Lexology Index: M&A and Corporate Governance (M&A)
  • Lexology Index: Sports & Gaming (Sports)
  • Lexpert Special Edition, Technology
  • Osgoode Hall, Negotiating and Drafting IT Agreements Certificate
  • University of Toronto, Business Essentials for Lawyers Program
  • “High value; low ego.” – Client Testimonial
  • “He is an excellent lawyer and good quarterback for complex transactions.” – Chambers Canada (Private Equity)
  • “Client-centered, responsive, knowledgeable and consistently dependable.” – Client Testimonial
  • “A favourite lawyer… Jake is aggressive and gets the job done.” – Client Testimonial
  • “Amazing lawyer, leader and negotiator. Positive attitude, win win driven.” – Client Testimonial
  • “Smart and well-versed … a sounding board to discuss ideas with [and] a team player. He brings in other lawyers from the firm if they can add value [and as] a supporter of our business, always introduces us to people if he feels we can add value to them. This is a rare thing … Jake is the next generation of lawyers.” – Client Testimonial
  • “Absolutely tirelessly committed to this engagement with a firm grip on the issues, both known and unknown, as well as the points important to the … partners, and unconditionally resolute in a demanding and sometimes challenging expedition to a successful close.” – Client Testimonial
  • Special Olympics Canada, former member of Board of Directors; Finance, Risk & Audit Committee; and Recruitment Task Forces
  • Toronto Lords Basketball Association, Former Member, Advisory Committee
  • LL.B., Western University, 1997
  • B.A. (Hons), McGill University, 1993
  • Ontario, 1999
  • American Bar Association, M&A, Private Equity & Venture Capital, and International Business Law Committees
  • Association for Corporate Growth
    Canadian Venture Capital & Private Equity Association, Board Member
  • Canadian Bar Association
  • Law Society of Ontario, Business Law Advisory Working Group
  • Ontario Bar Association
  • Sports Lawyers Association