For a variety of reasons, seasoned
lawyers are leaving big firms to strike out on their own or join a more
niche practice. By Kathryn Leger
TRICKS L
ast December, when the mandatory retirement policy at Stikeman Elliott LLP finally kicked in
for Mortimer
Freiheit after 43 years with the firm, the Montreal litigator had a clear flight path ahead. Rather than retire or stay on in another capacity following his obliga- tory withdrawal from the equity part- nership at the firm, Freiheit is throwing energy behind a new legal venture, a
boutique firm called Freiheit Legal Inc. The new firm is growing on the solo practice started
by David Freiheit, his youngest son and one of four of five children who are lawyers, and is in full expansion mode. Four new lawyers, including the elder Freiheit, have signed on in the past couple of months and initi- ated a business plan to target artists and entrepreneurs
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