Melinda Kondrat

Experience

• 

  McCarthy Tétrault

  Jun 1995 - Oct 1997

  Articling Student and Litigation Lawyer
• 

  Burstall Winger LLP

  Nov 1997 - Mar 2007

  Commercial and Litigation Lawyer

  - Responsible for operating and growing Book of Business and areas of practice; practice areas consisted of 70% litigation/30% commercial and encompassed insurance defense, major construction project litigation, construction law, EPC support, professional negligence, employment/labour law, privacy law, energy law, oil and gas, trusts, and general corporate matters

• 

  TOTAL E&P CANADA LTD

  Aug 2007 - Jul 2009

  Team Lead (Contracts)

  - Appointed Manager of the Contracts Area in Procurement: established the foundation and structure by recruiting, training, and supervising a team of 5 (Contracts Specialists and Contracts Administrators), as well as developed detailed procurement processes and templates for tender packages, materials, services, and technical agreements

• 

  Statoil Canada Ltd.

  Aug 2009 - Sept 2012

  Senior Legal Counsel, Corporate Secretary

  - Appointed Corporate Secretary of Statoil Canada Ltd., Leismer Aerodrome Limited and Becancour Magnesium Properties Inc., member of Senior Leadership Team and advisor to President; Co-Manager of Canada Legal- Provided general support and legal advice: Finance and Tax, BD and Divestitures, Corporate Compliance and Ethics, Corporate Governance, HR, Regulatory, Corporate Social Responsibility (Stakeholder Relations), Procurement (Supply Chain), Commercial (JV and strategic agreements), R&D, Intellectual Property, HSE, Pipelines and Infrastructure, Litigation, Construction/Projects, Communications and Office Services (Facilities) Show less

• 

  Ferus Inc.

  Dec 2012 - Nov 2014

  General Counsel and Corporate Secretary

  - Appointed a principal member of the Executive Team and Leadership Team which were responsible for the overall business strategy and increased success of the CO2 and N2 supply business and the natural gas fuels business- Designated portfolio included legal, insurance, regulatory affairs and corporate governance for Ferus Inc. and all related entities (Canada and US), Ferus LP, Ferus Natural Gas Fuels Inc., Ferus Natural Gas Fuels LP, Ferus Natural Gas Fuels (CNG), LLC, Eagle LNG Partners LLC, and Pure CO2- Provided general support and legal advice: Finance and Tax, Insurance, Business Development, Corporate Compliance and Ethics, Corporate Governance, HR, Regulatory, Procurement (Supply Chain), Commercial (JV and strategic agreements), Intellectual Property, HSE, Litigation, Construction/Projects, Communications and Office Services (Facilities)- Advised and directed the Board of Directors/Managers and management at Ferus; served as the key liaison for major transactions and files, and fulfilled the role of Corporate Secretary- Served as the dedicated Manager of the Legal Team (1 Assistant, 2 Lawyers) and managed Ferus’ external counsel Show less

• 

  TransAlta

  May 2015 - Jan 2016

  Senior Legal Counsel

  - Selected as the key legal resource for the Commercial Team, providing legal support on all facets of a two-stage tendering process (valued at $1B), as well as advice and support on all legal matters for the company and affiliates, including best tendering practices for the issuance of bids, review of contracts and associated documents, support for reporting to senior management and compliance with policies and directives, contractual matters, and resolution of issues

• 

  BC Hydro

  Apr 2016 - Aug 2017

  Senior Solicitor and Legal Counsel

  - Provided expertise and legal advice for the Site C Dam Construction Team on construction matters including procurement and tendering, claims management, preparation of contracts, negotiation assistance, and contract management- Served as the primary legal support on responses to Site C Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy requests, with an approach of maintaining a balance of compliance while protecting business interests- Chosen as a key member of the Negotiating Team responsible for resolving multiple complicated claims under budgetary and time constraints- Designated primary legal support for the Category Management Team, providing training on tendering laws, formalizing the bid process, and standardizing contract and sourcing templates across the organization Show less

• 

  Westport Fuel Systems

  Sept 2017 - now

  Senior Legal Counsel and Privacy Officer

  - Served as the Lead Counsel and Project Manager on major global transactions and corporate initiatives, spanning reorganizations/ restructuring, JV, M&A; expertly negotiating and closing high-value transactions supporting business growth and organizational simplification (cost and efficiency optimization, enhanced ROI, and streamlined processes)- Appointed Global Senior Legal Counsel, as well as Lead Senior Legal Counsel, dedicated to the Light Duty Business Unit for Europe, South America, and India operations, maintaining responsibility for legal and compliance oversight- Appointed as ESG Champion for North America and ESG legal resource for the Light Duty Business Unit- Established the organization’s first Sanctions Team and served as the Sanctions Lead, analyzing risk and providing realtime advice on sanctioned entities (financial institutions, suppliers, customers and end users); developed streamlined compliance processes for the EU, Canada, and the US, minimizing risk and supporting legally compliant business operations while regularly updating executives and the BOD- Served as the Corporate Privacy Officer for global operations from 2017-2022, guiding privacy compliance and training in North America and GDPR compliance for all European entities (Italy, Netherlands, Sweden, Poland)- Facilitated and led the global anti-corruption and bribery compliance and training (implemented across the Westport group of companies) which encompassed the development of materials and course curriculum and completion of risk sensitivity analysis of key individuals- Provided general legal support and provision of legal advice for head office (Vancouver) and all subsidiaries/ operations (Italy, Sweden, the Netherlands, Poland, India, China, US, Argentina) including contract review, negotiation and agreement drafting, litigation management and dispute resolution, risk management, regulatory compliance, privacy, HR/employment, corporate governance, and intellectual property Show less