Canadian Lawyer InHouse

april 2014 44 INHOUSE SECOND SNAPSHOT P ro f e s s i o n a l P ro f i l e nei ghbourhood. So you're constantly deal- ing with people, interacting with people; impacting their lives." She can often put a face and a name to the people in a particular neighbourhood likely to be affected by a council decision informed by her team's work. Making a tangible impact is important to Bench, who "got caught up in the whole Trudeau mania" in high school and complet- ed a political science BA at York University before attending Osgoode Hall Law School. Describing what she sees as the main draw for people to work in municipal government, she says: "Usually it's people who want to make a difference. You want to be able to point to a piece of legislation and say: 'I had a say in how that got worded.' "You want to be able to point to a building and say 'I was involved in how that got devel- oped.' You leave your mark on a city in a way you don't really get to in private practice." A career in government also appealed to her interest in policy-making and urban planning. "If I wasn't a lawyer I would've been a planner," she says. Bench launched her career at a fi rm that provided legal services to the City of Etobi- coke, and moved to the regional municipal- ity of Peel after three years as an associate. Eighteen months later, she joined the City of Toronto as a solicitor, working her way through the ranks to become director of municipal law. After a decade in Toronto, in 2001, a headhunter called with an offer she couldn't refuse — to take on her current role in Mississauga. While the job title has stayed the same, the role has expanded dramatically, partly due to Mississauga's population explosion and huge growth plans. There are already 20-per-cent more people living in the city than when Bench started out in the role, and an additional 18-per-cent boost is expected by 2041. "I had four lawyers when I fi rst started, now I've got 14," she says. "We can't keep on top of the work." To avoid having to constantly call on outside counsel, Bench has brought in spe- cialist expertise in areas including informa- tion technology, real estate, development, and tax. The most recent addition to her team is an environmental lawyer — a vital role in a municipality with ambitious plans for high- density urban zones and vastly improved in- frastructure. "We're not dealing with farm- ers' fi elds anymore," Bench points out, when asked whether the business case for taking on extra staff has been a tough sell. While the city's growth has provided plenty of interesting projects to work on as well as the chance to expand her team, she didn't foresee any of this 13 years ago. As a Mississauga resident, her move from Toron- to was partly inspired by the desire for a shorter commute and the chance to be more involved with the extra-curricular activities of her two sons, now aged 17 and 20. Her younger son's passion for competi- tive sprint kayaking also encouraged Bench to volunteer with the Mississauga Canoe Club. She's the club's past commodore, a role that sometimes took up 15 to 20 hours of her time each week. She says: "I've always wanted to be in- volved in more than just work, in giving back to the community. But I also think it helps to balance your perspective, in terms SNAPSHOT SNAPSHOT of municipal law. After a decade in Toronto, in 2001, a headhunter called with an offer she couldn't refuse — to take on her current role in Mississauga. While the job title has stayed the same, the role has expanded dramatically, partly due to Mississauga's population explosion and huge growth plans. There are already 20-per-cent more people living in the city than when Bench started out in the role, and an additional 18-per-cent boost is expected by 2041. "I had four lawyers when I fi rst started, now I've got 14," she says. "We can't keep on top of the work." To avoid having to constantly call on outside counsel, Bench has brought in spe- cialist expertise in areas including informa- tion technology, real estate, development, and tax. The most recent addition to her team is an environmental lawyer — a vital role in a municipality with ambitious plans for high- density urban zones and vastly improved in- frastructure. "We're not dealing with farm- ers' fi elds anymore," Bench points out, when asked whether the business case for taking on extra staff has been a tough sell. While the city's growth has provided plenty of interesting projects to work on as well as the chance to expand her team, she didn't foresee any of this 13 years ago. As a Mississauga resident, her move from Toron- to was partly inspired by the desire for a T h E L AW y E R : mary ellen bench T h E C o M PA N y: city of mississauga • earned an undergrad degree in political science from york university • obtained her jd from osgoode hall law school • articled at reble ritchie representing the city of etobicoke • spent 10 years at Toronto city council, becoming director, municipal law • has been city solicitor at mississauga for 13 years, during a time of rapid growth • past commodore of mississauga canoe club • helped develop canadian corporate counsel association's certification process '' i can be a lawyer one day and be in policy, commenting on different programs or operations, another day, so it's great. ''

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