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O P I N I O N BY JIM MIDDLEMISS BACK PAGE Go west, law firms, go west the country's top law firms, has finally taken that advice and opened a Calgary office. It surely won't be the last. Why? Opportunity. Billions in foreign L investment are flowing into the West to develop shale gas and oilsands projects. Chinese, Korean, French, Norwegian, Middle Eastern, Malaysian, and Thai investors have taken a stake and Calgary is benefiting. Most of the world's major investment banks have set up shop and Scotia Capital recently relocated its global energy practice to Calgary from New York. The city is emerging as one of the world's top energy centres, along with places like Houston, London, and Beijing. There is a buzz in the city, which is building new light rail transit, with com- munities and office towers springing up overnight. Edmonton, too, is doing fine. Contrast Alberta to Ontario, shocking- ly now a have-not province under Dalton McGuinty's Liberals. There isn't the same vibe. As a Calgary transplant, who moved to Ontario 22 years ago, I find it sad to see how this once great province has declined economically and how one of the country's most important cities, Toronto, stagnates compared to Calgary. No wonder Torys has entered the for- mer hometown of the firm's managing partner, Les Viner. "There was a plan," says Viner, noting the firm needed to focus on New York and build a China and India strategy. Now, it's Calgary's turn. Torys quickly ramped up to 16 lawyers, egendary U.S. newspaper editor Horace Greeley wrote in 1850: "Go west, young man, and grow up with the country." Torys LLP, one of around a core of former Blake Cassels & Graydon LLP lawyers: Scott Cochlan, Ron Deyholos, Kevin Fougere, and Janan Paskaran. They were joined by Harold Huber from McCarthy Tétrault LLP, Macleod Dixon lawyer Neville Jugnauth, considered one of the big pickups, and Tony Cioni, former in-house counsel at Husky Energy. Deyholos has done his rounds in Calgary, including a stint with Huber at Donahue Ernst & Young earlier this decade, when accounting firms were swallowing up legal practices. That was before Enron blew the model apart. Moves into Calgary by law firms are met with wild rumors and speculation on how much is being paid to land tal- ent. Torys is no exception. One rumour is Torys paid $2.4 million to bag Deyholos, an inordinate amount even for a Calgary lawyer. Another is that it is paying Calgary associates at a Toronto-level salary. There were also rumours of signing bonuses for associates that joined. Torys brass and the lawyers who joined the firm deny the rumours. What they say is Torys is paying Calgary market rates, confirmed by one recruiter. "We don't change the marketplace and we didn't change the marketplace," insists Viner. "We don't pay outside our own scale and we didn't do it here." Deyholos and Cochlan say it was the opportunity to start an office for a major legal brand that attracted people, not money. Don't kid yourself, though, Torys' scale is not like many firms, so in a sense it's probably fair to say there is upward pres- sure on salaries in Calgary. As well, one recruiter says when it comes to partners, Torys needed to provide some type of income guarantee for a period of time. "You don't have partners move away from Blakes or one of the other major firms in town without that," says the recruiter. A number of Calgary firms apparently took defensive measures and offered cer- tain associates — mostly securities types 58 A U GUST 2011 www. CANADIAN Lawyermag.com — $25,000 bonuses to ignore recruiters' overtures. Apparently, it was a hush-hush thing that associates shouldn't talk about, but being associates, word spread quickly and now noses at some firms are out of joint. Compensation can be so divisive. Torys' arrival means that of the top 30 law firms in Canada according to size, 19 now have offices in Calgary, compared to 21 for Toronto. The next closest city is Montreal with 17. Noticeable by their absence are Goodmans LLP and Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg LLP, but both are rumoured to be Calgary-bound. Dale Lastman, co-chairman of Goodmans, says "we have chosen not to go that route at this stage. We get a lot of referral work and we do some work direct- ly." Shawn McReynolds, managing partner of the Davies Toronto office, says of mov- ing to Calgary, "We pay attention to what our competitors do. It's something we look at from time to time, but it's not something we determined that we will do." Calgary isn't the only western province on the radar screen. Miller Thomson's December merger with Saskatchewan's Balfour Moss has spurred at least one national firm to look for opportunities in that province. Expect to see law firms in other Prairie provinces align with nation- al law firms. The mobility rules mean Toronto or Calgary lawyers can practise in those provinces so if you can't beat them, you might as well join them. Also, now that Ogilvy Renault has become part of international law firm Norton Rose Group, it will make for- eign firms even more anxious to be part of a growing energy centre. Greeley's words 160 years ago are just as pertinent today as they were then: "Go west, law firms, go west." Jim Middlemiss is a Toronto lawyer and co-owner of WebNews Management Corp. He can be reached at jmiddlemiss@ webnewsmanagement.com. SCOTT PAGE