Canadian Lawyer InHouse

SEPTEMBER 2015 30 INHOUSE SEPTEMBER 2015 INHOUSE H arpreet K. Sidhu may be the youngest lawyer to become a general counsel. Just months after being called to the bar in Canada, she became Pethealth Inc.'s fi rst general counsel, corporate secretary, and privacy offi cer at the age of 25. She has been in-house now for two years. In early 2013, as a recent graduate of the University of Buckingham School of Law in England, Sidhu was working in a legal role at Pethealth when it was still a publicly traded company on the Toronto Stock Exchange. Within three months of her call to the bar, she was promoted to the role of corporate counsel and was in the job for about 18 months until November 2014 when Fairfax Financial Holdings acquired the company. After the acquisition, she was promoted to general counsel, corporate secretary, and privacy offi cer. Pethealth provides pet insurance services to the companion animal market and micro-chipping for lost pet recovery services. "Harpreet embraced the position and created the legal department," says Callie Bjurstrom, partner with Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP in Oakville, Ont., who was one of three people who nominated her for the award of Tomorrow's Leader in the small- department category. Sidhu is responsible for general contracts, employ- ment matters, intellectual property management, litigation, corporate governance, and compliance. She oversees legal operations in Canada, the United States, and the United Kingdom. "The acquisition was defi nitely a learning experi- ence for me," says Sidhu. "I got to work alongside many prominent lawyers and business executives who were involved in the project. In an acquisi- tion this large, I experienced a wide variety of laws entrenched within the acquisition. From trade- marks to patents to tax law to vendor agreements — it was defi nitely an eye-opener to me in terms of what the acquisition world looks like." Since the acquisition, she has led the company in another fi ve acquisitions and says there are "several more" in the pipeline. "My secret to success is a combination of persistence, hard work, commitment, and meeting the right people in my career to mentor and guide me," she says. "I've had my fair share of struggles and challenges, but persistence and hard work got me to the end of the road." Sidhu credits her articling principal, Yuvraj Chhina of Fortis Law Practise, for guiding her along the way. Chhina also nominated her for the Innovatio award. "Since taking over as corporate counsel for Pethealth, she has streamlined the legal process within the corporation, which was hereto an outside law fi rm project," says Chhina. "Harpreet has shown through her perseverance and persistence that she is self-driven and motivat- ed to overcome any challenge that presents itself," he says. Bjurstrom says Sidhu handled the changes brought on by the acquisition in "a very professional manner" and quickly demonstrated her value to the new management team. "She provides Pethealth's new management team with practical solutions to legal and business problems in a thoughtful manner." In her spare time, Sidhu works with Law Help Ontario operated by Pro Bono Law Ontario, providing pro bono legal assistance to low-income Ontarians. She is also active providing legal assistance and as an advocate for women in the South Asian Community who suffer from depression and domestic divorce challenges. She is the secretary of the Section Executive of the Canadian Corporate Counsel Association, Ontario Chapter for the 2014/2015 term and serves as a member on the City of Brampton's audit committee. "Harpreet is highly engaged in her community and is Young lawyer's rise to GC came during acquisition of company "My secret to success is a combination of persistence, hard work, commitment, and meeting the right people in my career to mentor and guide me." HARPREET K. SIDHU, Pethealth Inc. SANDRA STRANGMORE

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