Canadian insurance giant Manulife Financial is to promote its general counsel for Canada, Stephen Sigurdson, to the role of senior executive vice president, corporate affairs and general counsel for the company globally in the place of its existing GC Jean-Paul Bisnaire, who is retiring in December.

Sigurdson, who will succeed Bisnaire in the role effective May 1, is a member of Manulife's overall management committee and the Canadian management team, where he oversees government relations, industry relations and compliance.

Sigurdson joined Manulife in 2010 from Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt in Toronto, where he was a partner, chair of the business law department and prior to that, a managing partner. He also spent four years in New York as head of Osler's office there, and is a member of the New York bar.

He relocated temporarily to Hong Kong in early 2011 with Manulife and served as interim general counsel for Asia whilst juggling Canadian responsibilities.

The role was taken over by Steven Yeo in October of that year, with Yeo remaining the senior vice president and general counsel for Asia, based in Hong Kong and reporting to the global GC.

Retiring Bisnaire meanwhile has worked for Manulife for 10 years.

Prior to joining the company, he was one of Canada's senior securities lawyers and partner practicing in M&A and corporate finance at Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg, and a member of the firm's management committee.

At Manulife he has been responsible for a number of key functions, including internal audit, industry, regulatory and government affairs, compliance, branding and communications and technology.

He played a big part in Manulife's acquisition of US insurance company John Hancock, which was, at the time, the largest cross-border transaction in Canadian business history.

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