DECEmBEr 2014
38
INHOUSE
As the only in-house lawyer for
the company in Canada, Piasentin
says using the services of a boutique
firm gives him access to lawyers
who are current on the latest in
immigration law and can provide
quick service. "Because of the
minefield that is immigration — if
you screw it up even once and get
on [the government's] list as being a
company that is not complying with
immigration requirements it creates
a lot of headaches."
Piasentin says Sierra Wireless
has been increasingly cognizant of
that risk and has tried to stay "on
side" whenever the company is doing
anything involving immigration.
"Some of the bigger firms we work
with do have the immigration people
we could rely on but we've chosen
to go to a couple of immigration
boutiques — here in Canada and one
in the U.S. — that have provided
us with the requisite advice for
immigration issues."
The costs are probably a little
lower, Piasentin concedes, but that's
not the primary reason he chooses
to use them. "They still charge a
reasonable amount for the work they
are doing but the main reason we go
that route is because it is such a highly
specialized area. Especially with
the visas we need for our resources
crossing the border, we tend to have
the same kind of applications going
before the immigration authorities.
The firm we use has an intimate
knowledge of the temporary foreign
worker program in Canada."
But not all of the external legal
work from Sierra Wireless goes to
boutiques. For example, employment
''
''
Often if it is not a Bay Street-based firm a boutique
is spending a lot less in overhead costs. You save
some money and you're not losing skill. In many
cases they were in larger firms or became part of a
specialized group.
FErNANDO GArCIA, Nissan Canada
Dedication, knowledge and creativity. Henein Hutchison draws its power from experience and its
talent from a team of rising stars. The firm's associate ranks include three clerks of the Supreme
Court of Canada and one clerk of the Court of Appeal for Ontario. Experience and depth.
More experience. More defence. | www.hhllp.ca
E N O U G H TA L E N T TO F I L L A R O O M .
HeneinHutchison_IH_Dec_14.indd 1 2014-11-17 10:21 AM
