The most widely read magazine for Canadian lawyers
Issue link: https://digital.canadianlawyermag.com/i/50819
THE CRÈME DE LA CRÈME Lavery de Billy takes top spot in Canadian Lawyer's ranking of the top 10 Quebec regional law firms. By Robert Todd dent foothold. One of those firms is BCF LLP, C and its managing partner, Mario Charpentier, says any regional firm in Quebec hoping to survive must keep a close eye on its clients' inter- ests. He believes strong rapport with entrepreneurs and CEOs of mid- market companies is the key to his firm's survival in the face of heavy competition from large firms. "We can attract those clients, and we win our battles on this ground," he says. Cain Lamarre Casgrain Wells LLP president André Gauthier says his firm has honed in on clients' desire to use legal-service providers that are close to home. With offices in 15 cities and towns throughout the province, his firm has blanketed the Quebec map. "That's what we're selling to clients: wherever you are, we're available," says Gauthier. "The first relationship that [brings] a cli- ent into an office is the availability of lawyers to serve them. You must be available, or clients will leave you." Gauthier suggests that, while clients may point to high fees for a sudden exodus, the unavailability of service prompts most departures. Spiegel Sohmer Avocats manag- ing partner Robert Raich agrees that 36 JULY 2010 www. C ANADIAN Law ye rmag.com anadian Lawyer's lat- est top firm survey takes us to Quebec, where regional, full- service firms have established a confi- lawyers in Quebec firms must keep client service top of mind. He says lawyers at his firm are sternly advised to respond to all inquiries within a day, and generally pride themselves on offering "super service." Of course one way smaller firms have always survived is by joining forces. Quebec's regional firm land- scape witnessed such a move earlier this year, when Lapointe Rosenstein and Marchand Melançon Forget joined forces on Jan. 1 to create the 88-lawyer strong Lapointe Rosenstein Marchand Melançon LLP. That move, says Norman Rishikof, a member of the new firm's executive committee, came after Lapointe Rosenstein faced a barrage of takeover offers from large nationals. He says both predecessor firms resisted such overtures, opting to keep their own identities intact. "One of the reasons we did this merger, which to some extent was a merger of equals, was to be able to perpetuate who each of the merged How we did it Canada to vote on Quebec's top full-service, regional firms. They were asked to rank their top 10 firms from a preliminary list, with a chance to nominate a firm that was not included on the list. Respondents' rankings were based on firms' regional service coverage, client base, nota- ble mandates, service excellence, and legal expertise. To be considered in the vote, firms were required to have offices primarily in the province of Quebec and offer a wide range of legal services. The final rankings were determined through a points system, in which firms were rewarded on a sliding scale for the number of first to 10th place votes received. C asked lawyers and in-house counsel from across firms is," says Rishikof. When it comes to the all-impor- tant recruitment of top talent, many of the Quebec regional firms are keen to highlight the flexible work environment they offer. Robinson Sheppard Shapiro LLP managing partner Charles Flam says he believes students are increasingly looking for an alternative to the big-firm cul- ture. "When you recruit amongst the best law students, they've heard some horror stories about what happens at the national firms," says Flam. At the other end of the spec- trum, Flam says his firm has landed the services of several older lawyers who were forced to flee large firms due to mandatory retirement poli- cies. "They want to continue their practice, and come here and I've had some of them say to me, 'Where have you been all of my life?'" With Lavery de Billy in top spot, here are this year's rankings for the top 10 full-service Quebec regional firms. anadian Lawyer