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TALL H NG e hails from Five Islands, a small community over- looking the Bay of Fundy on the coast of Nova Scotia; an idyllic setting where most of the town's 300 or so residents lead a relatively simple life. Yet Purdy Crawford, fueled with drive and ambition, early on in his career decidedly ensured his life would be anything but simple. After graduating from Mount Allison University and then Dalhousie Law School in 1955, he took his new bride, Beatrice, to Cambridge, Mass., where he attended Harvard University to get his masters in law. He was just 24. At Harvard, Crawford was taken under wing by the late Archibald Cox, who would go on to earn a reputation as an advocate of the public interest after serving five months as Watergate special prosecutor — a position from which he was ultimately fired in 1973 by then-pres- ident Richard Nixon in what came to be known as the Saturday Night Massacre. Following graduation, Crawford opted to launch his career in Toronto. "When we came to Toronto, we didn't know anybody." But that would quickly change. He had articled under the direction of fellow Nova Scotian, Roland Ritchie, who was appointed to the Supreme Court of Canada in 1959, and landed a job as an associate at what is now Osler Hoskin & Harcourt LLP shortly before Dalhousie schoolmate Bertha Wilson joined the Purdy Crawford takes on the tough assignments, making him a hero to some and avillain to others. firm. During his first 10 years at Oslers, he would receive tutelage from head of the firm — and a descendent of its found- ing family — Hal Mockridge. "In those days, we didn't refer to people as mentors but looking back, it's obvious he fit that category," remembers Crawford. "He was not a business lawyer, but just a really good lawyer. We were generalists then. But he was understanding of my weak- nesses and pointed them out to me from time to time and later, I became the ben- eficiary of a lot of his clients." And so an esteemed, if controversial, career had begun. With his beginnings in the profession rooted in corporate and business law, Crawford set out to estab- lish more practical expertise by studying investing and getting into the market. He also would get involved at a governance level to attain first-hand experience by sitting on numerous corporate boards — even on companies he represented as a lawyer, which was an acceptable practice 30 years ago. By 1962, Crawford became a partner at Oslers and in 1970, he achieved senior partnership. He was also a guest lecturer or instructor at Toronto's esteemed post- secondary institutions including Osgoode Hall Law School, York University, and the University of Toronto, and was becom- ing known to various levels of govern- ment, agencies, and organizations for his willingness to participate on commit- tees responsible for reviewing legislation, such as developing Ontario's Securities Act in the 1960s. That experience would eventually lead to his overseeing of the recent restructuring effort of $35 billion worth of asset-backed commercial paper (ABCP) that froze up on the market in Canada two years ago, leaving thousands of investors, many of them elderly, empty-handed. Since, he has been commissioned by the federal govern- ment to oversee a proposal for establishing a single securities regulator in Canada, and has been called on by the province of Ontario to head a mandated review of the Ontario Securities Commission. But back when he was still making his name, the cumulative number of obliga- tions, from boards of directorships to charitable organizations to government committees, that Crawford had taken on would likely make many lawyers shud- der. At home, he had six young children to dedicate time to along with his growing list of activities outside of his practice. In 1985, he made a critical move, initi- ating a bid to become president and chief operating officer of Imasco Ltd., where he would inevitably ascend to chief execu- tive officer through succession. Having been on Imasco's board of directors for 11 years, he knew the company well, and its CEO at the time, Paul Paré, had plans to retire. "Every lawyer who understands anything about business would never have left to run an in-house legal depart- ment," says Crawford of his decision. And while he admits it "wasn't an easy leave" from Oslers, his responsibilities www. C ANADIAN Law ye rmag.com NO VEMBER / DECEMBER 2009 29