Canadian Lawyer

w w w . C A N A D I A N L a w y e r m a g . c o m S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 5 31 are definitely challenging headwinds in front of us for the next few years." But, interestingly, Porter notes, there are particular industries showing strengths even through the tough times. Over the years, Southern Ontario lost a lot of manufacturing strength, whereas, despite some challenges, opportunities remain for clients in the mining and forestry sector. Part of the challenge in a rapidly changing environment is teaching lawyers to be amenable, says Bobby Sachdeva, manag- ing partner of Pallett Valo LLP in Mississauga, Ont. "One of our strongest areas used to be insolvency; the insolvency market hasn't been great for the last three years. So it's teaching our peo- ple again that you can't just specialize in being an insolvency law- yer," he says. "If you're an insolvency lawyer, you do litigation, and you also do the corporate side of insolvency so that we can move you around like chess pieces to different groups that are busy. It makes it a lot easier for us to adapt to the changing environment." At Fogler, Rubinoff LLP, new opportunities have sometimes arisen in unexpected ways. While securities work has generally been slow, the firm says it acted as counsel for marijuana-infused products company Nutritional High International Inc. in the company's first public offering. It was "certainly something we never would have thought of," says managing partner Michael Appleton. "But it was actually made quite public." The firm has also been involved in matters related to aborigi- nal lands, Appleton says. "It's all areas that when they came up, we somehow managed to get involved. We do manage to create some synergies with the lawyers getting together to create busi- ness in that area." Sachdeva says it's helpful that both partners and associates at his firm have embraced entrepreneurial skills. While the firm doesn't require its younger associates to bring in work from the get-go, he says they're still expected to build networks and create relationships that will bear fruit in the future. "If you're not going to engage in business development, and there's a lot of ways to do business development, if you don't want to engage in it, chances are you don't want to be working with us," he says. In fact, for a firm of its size, hiring and succession planning are the biggest challenges, he says. "We have to be better at hiring than the bigger firms because there's less margin for error. Then you have to keep an eye on where your age levels are. The biggest danger for a firm our size is hollowing out; you end up with a bunch of people who are 55, 60, and over and a bunch of associ- ates who are 30 and under because it's very, very difficult to bring in laterals who are in the 35-to-45 range. "You constantly have to watch where your levels are on your associates and which partners are approaching retirement, who's going to step into their shoes and you can't wait until two years before, you have to look at that five, seven years in advance," Sachdeva says. The top 10 firms on this year's list share a drive to show clients it's possible to marry big-firm expertise with reduced costs and flex- ibility, and they're busy proving it. 1 WEIRFOULDS LLP WEIRFOULDS.COM Total lawyers: 90 Office: Toronto Core practice areas: Litigation; corporate; property; government law Key clients: Public and private corporations; governments, public authorities, and agencies; entrepreneurs; national firms seeking regional representation; non-profit and public interest organizations and individuals Notable mandates: Acted for Soltoro Ltd. in connection with its successful disposition by plan of arrangement to Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd.; co-counsel for Trillium Motor World Ltd. in class action against General Motors of Canada Ltd. and Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP; acted for Canadian Solar Inc. in connection with raising an aggregate of US$50 million in equity and US$100 million in debt financing for acquisition financing and working capital purposes; external counsel to the Regional Municipality of York, providing a wide range of municipal, real estate, expropriation, litigation, and commer- cial law advice and services; counsel to minority shareholder of a Nevis LLC worth more than US$500 million with respect to a claim for relief from unfair prejudice in litigation in Nevis and the Commercial Division of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court in British Virgin Islands, and in contempora- neous related actions in Belize and the United States. Star alumni: Four treasurers of the Law Society of Upper Canada; Supreme Court of Canada Justice Thomas Cromwell; former Ontario chief justice George Gale; former Supreme Court of Canada justice Roy Kellock; former Ontario Court of Appeal justices James Carthy and Allan McNiece Austin; Ontario Superior Court justices Joan Lax and Paul Perell. Affiliations: SCG Legal Firm history: Since 1860, WeirFoulds LLP has provided strategic, cost-effective, and innovative legal advice to its clients. Since its founding, the firm says it has thrived by becoming "a true part- ner" to its clients' businesses. "You've got to be able to demonstrate to the client why it is that they're using you," says managing part- ner Michael Statham, adding one of the firm's biggest priorities is "being empathetic and putting ourselves in the shoes of the client." One survey respondent wrote the lawyers at WeirFoulds possess "stellar attention to detail, questioning proposed struc- turing for clients rather than simply replicating template legal docs." Another, who was particularly impressed with the firm's real estate and corporate commercial expertise, said lawyers made themselves available "on a moment's notice" to answer questions. "They are patient and explain everything in detail so there is no misunderstandings. And they're the nicest people — even under pressure they are professional and composed," the respondent wrote.

• Cover