Canadian Lawyer InHouse

"The company continues to grow and develop and that creates a great place for opportunity. My objective for next year is to continue to be a part of that and creating strategic opportunities we can leverage." Korbak arrived at Morneau Shepell 10 years ago after her first in-house position at financial services firm Midland Walwyn. Her training for merger and acquisition work and other commercial contract law she did after law school came from four years as a corporate-commercial lawyer at Morris Rose Ledgett LLP. It was while doing deals as external counsel that she discovered she wanted to play a bigger role in commercial business. "It was about wanting to be a bigger part of something other than papering a deal others had decided to do," she says. While the intrigue of big business deals was keeping her professionally challenged, she knew she eventually also wanted to have children. "At the time, I didn't have any burning desire to have kids at all, but the one thing that bothered me was seeing senior lawyers in the of- fice late at night with two nannies — the day nanny and the night nanny. That was something I was just not going to do." However, the long hours spent at the firm gave her the solid foundation to handle challenging transactions in-house. She says going in-house was not about a cut in hours but more about maintaining control and having a predictable schedule as she considered starting a family with her husband, who is also a lawyer. In 1997, she went in-house to Midland Walwyn, which was acquired by Merrill Lynch in 1998. She wasn't there very long when Merrill Lynch decided to sell the Canadian retail business. It was purchased by CIBC in 2001 — a much larger entity than Korbak was interested in working for, and at the same time she was five months pregnant and knew she did not want to work for a large department at a banking institution. "It was a 50-lawyer in-house department and I knew I preferred a much more collegial atmosphere," she says. So she took a risk and left. "I knew having that freedom was going to help me find the job that was right for me when I was ready, and it would help me keep my priorities straight as opposed to the pressure of coming back and wondering what it was gong to look like. It was a wonderful feeling to have." After her first child was born, Korbak had planned to take 18 months off, but that didn't happen. A job opportunity she felt was exactly what she wanted came up. "As soon as we had a daycare spot I had started looking and found this fabulous opportunity at [then] Morneau Sobeco. It was a privately held company started by Frank Morneau and his son Bill was president," she recalls. The company didn't have a lawyer and it had grown to $100 million in revenue. "It was a really fun opportunity to come in and shape the position." At first, she felt "somewhat underutilized" but was learning a new and different set of skills at the same time. The position certainly wasn't boring. "We went public, doubling our size with acquisitions. It was a great opportunity to stay in the area of transactions I liked doing." A roAd mAp through construction insurAnce lAw nEw publication a GuidE to canadian construction insurancE law R. BRuCE REYnoLDs anD shaRon VoGEL Get a unique plain-language approach to all aspects of construction insurance – from types of policies and risk allocation to material misrepresentation and claims. The authors review the procedures involved in making a claim, including drafting notice letters and complying with relevant time limits. You'll learn how an insurance investigation is handled – and the various methods for dispute resolution. CARSWELL 35980 1/2 island You'll find expert insight and relevant case law on critical construction-related insurance policies: Builder's Risk policies; Commercial General Liability policies; Professional Liability policies; Boiler and Machinery and Contractor's Equipment policies; Pollution Insurance; and Default Insurance. You'll learn the various kinds of insurable and uninsurable construction risks and how these risks are allocated in construction contracts and professional services agreements. 40 • a pr il 2013 INHOUSE ExpEriEncE thE bEnEfits of clEar, concisE construction insurancE ExpErtisE • Get the insurance insight that will help you develop a comprehensive risk management strategy • Gain a solid understanding of the important cases that define construction insurance law • Be prepared to effectively handle construction insurance claims ordEr # 985328-65203 $145 softcover approx. 480 pages January 2013 978-0-7798-5328-1 Shipping and handling are extra. Price subject to change without notice and subject to applicable taxes. AvAilAble Risk-FRee FoR 30 DAys order online: www.carswell.com Call Toll-Free: 1-800-387-5164   in Toronto: 416-609-3800

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