A time of transition - Part 1

Significant changes have hit the legal economy in Manitoba and Saskatchewan and out-of-province interest is not abating.

A lot has changed since Canadian Lawyer last surveyed top Prairie firms in 2013. This time around, the historical definition of what constitutes a regional firm in the Prairies was updated to allow the inclusion of MLT Aikins LLP and Miller Thomson LLP, both of which have offices in more than one province in Canada. Much as the survey has been updated to keep up with the times, so has the region on which it’s reporting. The Prairies have seen: a significant merger, with MacPherson Leslie & Tyerman LLP and Aikins MacAulay & Thorvaldson LLP joining forces at the beginning of the year; a pick-up in infrastructure spend; rising competition from alternative service providers; and — especially in Saskatchewan — strong population growth.

“Our market has remained very stable — work is solid,” says Glen Peters, managing partner at Fillmore Riley LLP in Winnipeg. “We’re quite isolated geographically, but it’s a fairly diversified economy.”

Don Wilson, managing partner of MLT Aikins, says it’s no secret these are not the strongest of times in the Prairie provinces, but he adds that commodities are by definition cyclical.

While there’s been “a bit of a dip” from a legal services perspective, newer areas such as intellectual property, IT, privacy, working with first nations and insolvency have seen a rapid expansion.

“These are a lot of specialties that traditionally might have been serviced in the Prairies from outside of the Prairies, but we have tremendous capability in these areas that we’ve grown over the years. We’re much more recession-proof than we used to be — these are part of the reasons why, because of branching into some of these other areas,” Wilson says.

Jeff Grubb, Miller Thomson’s office managing partner in Saskatchewan, says that despite the fact resource prices have been down for the last few years, the “fundamentals in Saskatchewan are still very strong.”

Along with a growth in infrastructure, general construction and the health sector work, more businesses are getting into the supply and processing areas of agriculture, Grubb says.

“Even on the oil and gas side, we’re starting to see companies increasing their capital spend and so it looks like that’s turning the corner as well,” he adds.

McKercher LLP partner David Stack says there’s been an upswing in commercial litigation for his firm, which usually occurs when the economy softens a bit, and an increase in immigration work as the population keeps growing. McKercher is also finding strength in its environmental law and there’s a bit of a buzz around renewable energy lately as well, he adds.  

“The economy is the major challenge — maybe it’s affecting the quantity of commercial and corporate transactions but not necessarily the quality,” he says. “Saskatchewan is very much open for business and our commercial and corporate lawyers are attracting some very significant work.”

Stack adds that, unlike other regions, “we’re not really feeling the pressure to reduce our complement of lawyers. To the contrary, one of our challenges continues to be that we would love to attract a few strong mid-range associates. It’s been one of our continual struggles over the last few years.”

Grubb echoes this, saying “everybody is busy and we’re growing, and finding lawyers to serve that growth is a challenge. We have been fortunate to have some lawyers come back to Saskatchewan from other provinces, but it still remains a challenge.”

Keith LaBossiere, CEO and managing partner of Thompson Dorfman Sweatman LLP, says a growing trend he’s noticed is out-of-province clients.

“With technology these days and how much we do online, over the phone or otherwise, it doesn’t matter where you’re located,” he says. “If you can do the same kind of product or better product at a much cheaper price, it makes a lot of sense to people to do it that way.”

LaBossiere also notes that downtown Winnipeg is undergoing “a renaissance” with new builds and renovations, and his firm will be moving into True North Square next year: It’s a $400-million-plus project he calls a “once-in-a-generation-type development.” As founding partner in the office tower, TDS will be taking the top three floors.

“It’s a significant move because many of the larger law firms have been situated at the corner of Portage and Main for many, many years and this is a move away from that. Really what it’s doing is it’s strengthening downtown in its entirety,” he says.

But for the Prairies overall, the MLT Aikins merger has been an important milestone.

“This is the first time there’s a multijurisdictional firm of any size operating in the province, so it will start to change the local dynamics a little bit,” says Peters.

“As a firm goes into another jurisdiction, that will impact prior referral agency and affiliation relationships and it can create both legal and business conflicts. There will most certainly be some shaking out of some of those relationships now, and it’s started already.”

Despite the challenges it might pose, Peters says, more importantly, it also creates some “significant opportunities,” calling the aftermath of the merger an exciting time for everybody.

Every firm has had to weigh the pros and cons of national versus regional, and while Fillmore Riley hasn’t headed down the national road yet, “we always have to evaluate what’s best for our client base and for our own firm profitability and culture,” says Peters.

Kent Davidson, chair of Miller Thomson LLP, says his firm has been “decidedly” pan-Canadian and it hasn’t developed any “manifest destiny” to expand to other jurisdictions. The MLT Aikins merger “validates to some degree the approach we’ve always taken to our own growth and plans,” he says.

“I think it’s certainly an attractive movement for anyone who is serving the large national clients. I wouldn’t be surprised to see an enhanced interest in the market insofar as national firms are concerned.”

LaBossiere agrees, saying the merger is “an indication there’s a lot going on in the Prairie provinces and, ultimately, I think it’s going to be good for all of us in this region.”

How we did it
Canadian Lawyer asked lawyers, in-house counsel and clients from across Canada to vote on the top full-service regional firms in the Prairies. They were asked to rank their top 5 firms in both Manitoba and Saskatchewan from a preliminary list, with a chance to nominate a firm that was not included on the list. Respondents’ rankings were based on firms’ regional service coverage, client base, notable mandates, service excellence and legal expertise. To be considered in the vote, firms were required to have at least one office based in the Prairies and offer a wide range of legal services. The final lists were determined through a points system, with the top 5 firms for Manitoba and the top 5 firms for Saskatchewan listed alphabetically.

MANITOBA

Fillmore Riley LLP (Winnipeg)
fillmoreriley.com

Total lawyers: 70

Offices (with # of lawyers): Winnipeg (70)

Core practice areas: banking and finance, business law, insurance, litigation, real estate and commercial development and tax and wealth management

Key clients: Royal Bank of Canada, Public Utilities Board of Manitoba, Richardson International Limited, MacDon Industries, The Great-West Life Assurance Company, 24-7 Intouch Inc. and lead Manitoba counsel for multiple major insurance companies

Notable mandates: acted as counsel for Fresh Hemp Foods Ltd. (Manitoba Harvest) and its shareholders in connection with its sale to Compass Diversified Holdings for a total purchase price of $132.5 million; acted as counsel for Slate Asset Management with respect to the sale of its retail and industrial portfolios, representing some 25 commercial properties located throughout Manitoba including regional shopping centres, strip malls, business centres and single-use tenant premises; counsel for 24-7 Intouch Inc. in connection with the acquisition of a minority interest in 24-7 Intouch by Trilantic Capital Management L.P.; assisted as Manitoba counsel to TRG Capital Corp., the private capital division of British Columbia-based The Regency Group, in the acquisition of Manitoba-based Melet Plastics Inc. (a leading provider of engineered plastics solutions) and North Dakota-based Ambutech Inc. (a business engaged in the design, manufacture and distribution of mobility canes for the visually impaired around the world); acted for the vendors in the sale of 100 per cent of the shares of Knifeless Technologies to 3M Canada

Star alumni: Madam Justice Shelley C. Fitzpatrick, Supreme Court of British Columbia; Justice David Kroft, Manitoba Court of Queen’s Bench; Master Shayne Berthaudin, Manitoba Court of Queen’s Bench; retired justice Susan Devine, Provincial Court of Manitoba; retired Manitoba Court of Queen’s Bench justices Gerald Jewers and George Lockwood; retired Manitoba Court of Appeal Justice Alan Philp; Steven Kroft, CEO, Conviron; Jean-Marc Ruest, vice president, corporate affairs and general counsel, Richardson International

Affiliations: TAGLaw and the Risk Management Counsel of Canada

The firm: established in 1883 as Richards & Coutlee, the firm is now named after two long-time members of the Manitoba bar, W.P. Fillmore and H.J. Riley. Originally founded on the core practice areas of banking, financial and insurance law, the firm has grown to full-service status, with expertise in areas of law relevant to its local and international client base.
One respondent mentioned that the firm provides “full service in more practice areas than other firms, ISO certification for better quality customer service, high volunteerism in legal profession [and an] innovative brand.” Another said that they “enjoy working with their lawyers. Very competent, very fair with cost, very professional.”

MLT Aikins LLP (formerly Aikins MacAulay & Thorvaldson LLP) (Winnipeg)
mltaikins.com

Total lawyers: More than 235

Offices (with # of lawyers): Winnipeg (95), Regina (45), Saskatoon (41), Calgary (25), Edmonton (19), Vancouver (12)

Core practice areas: corporate and commercial, litigation, labour and employment, securities, intellectual property and taxation; key sectors include transportation, science and technology, agribusiness, energy, mining, real estate, infrastructure, aboriginal, banking and insurance

Key clients: Canadian Medical Protective Association, Exchange Income Corp., Artis REIT, Parrish and Heimbecker, Ltd., Manitoba Hydro, ARxIUM Inc., HyLife Ltd., Lanesborough Reit, Manitoba Telecom Services Inc., WGI Westman Group Inc., True North Sports & Entertainment Ltd., Harvard Developments Inc., Greystone Managed Investments Inc., Cameco Corp., AREVA Resources Canada Inc., The Mosaic Co., Saskatchewan Power Corp.

Notable mandates: Aikins (legacy): lead counsel to Artis REIT in connection with the purchase and sale of more than $600 million worth of property in Canada and the U.S. in 2016. Currently co-lead counsel, alongside Stikeman Elliott LLP, to Manitoba Telecom Services Inc. in its acquisition by BCE Inc. (transaction valued at $3.9 billion). Lead counsel to the Canadian Wheat Board in connection with its $500-million “commercialization” transaction. Acted as external counsel for Tundra Energy Marketing Ltd. in the acquisition of the Enbridge South Prairie Region Pipeline System from Enbridge Income Fund for $ 1.075 billion.

MLT (legacy): successfully fended off a class action certification motion against Canadian National Railway over alleged overcharging for grain carriage; acted for Federated Co-operatives Ltd. in its $138-million acquisition of oil company Triwest Exploration Inc.; Saskatchewan counsel to Wal-Mart Canada Realty Inc. and SmartCentres Realty Inc. on the $200-million sale of shopping centres to Great-West Life Assurance Co. and London Life Insurance Co.; represented Northern Property REIT in $70-million purchase of Nunavut properties; advised Saskatchewan Power Corp. on its $1.24-billion Boundary Dam Integrated Carbon Capture and Storage Demonstration Project.

Star alumni: Sir James Aikins, founder and first president of the Canadian Bar Association, Lieutenant-Governor of Manitoba; Murdoch A. MacPherson, Q.C., member of the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan; G.S. Thorvaldson, Q.C., senator, member of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba; Brian Dickson, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Canada; Marshall Rothstein, Justice of the SCC; Eleanor Dawson, Federal Court of Appeal Justice; Donald K. MacPherson, Chief Justice of the Court of Queen’s Bench of Saskatchewan; John Klebuc, Chief Justice of Saskatchewan; Robert Richards, Chief Justice of Saskatchewan; Georgina Jackson, Justice of the Court of Appeal of Saskatchewan

Affiliations:  None

The firm: MLT Aikins LLP is a full-service law firm with a presence across Western Canada. Based out of six key centres across the four western provinces, it’s the only law firm to have offices in Winnipeg, Regina, Saskatoon, Calgary, Edmonton and Vancouver. As one of the 30 largest law firms in Canada, it is the result of the merger of MacPherson Leslie & Tyerman LLP (MLT) and Aikins MacAulay & Thorvaldson LLP (Aikins), whose histories date back to 1920 and 1879, respectively.

“Superb lawyers, top quality service, competitive price, Western Canadian reach,” said one respondent, with another citing its “depth of expertise in all areas of practice.”

Pitblado LLP (Winnipeg)
pitblado.com

Total lawyers: 62

Offices (with # of lawyers): Two offices in Manitoba: Winnipeg (62) and one rural office

Core practice areas: corporate and commercial, litigation, labour and employment, taxation, banking, aboriginal law, commercial real estate and leasing/commercial leasing 

Representative clients: Pitblado enjoys the confidence of major banks, credit unions, insurers, financial service providers, pharmaceutical companies, manufacturers, contractors, health authorities, and boards

Star alumni: Manitoba Court of Queen's Bench Justice Candace Grammond; Manitoba Court of Queen's Bench Justice Robert Dewar; Manitoba Court of Queen's Bench Associate Chief Justice Marianne Rivoalen; Former Manitoba Court of Queen's Bench Justice Ted Glowacki; Former Manitoba Court of Queen's Bench Justice R.D. Guy; Former Manitoba Court of Queen's Bench Justice John Scollin; Former Manitoba Court of Appeal Justice and Premier of Manitoba Sterling Lyon; Former Manitoba Court of Appeal Justice Kerr Twaddle; Former Senator Duncan Jessiman; His Worship Mayor Brian Bowman, City of Winnipeg; Assistant Deputy Minister, Manitoba Health, Seniors, and Active Living, Beth Beaupre; Chairman of the board and President and CEO of Onex Corp., Gerald Schwartz; Former Chairman of the board of the Global Media Network and visionary of the new Canadian Museum for Human Rights, Israel Asper; Former General Counsel and Senior Vice President of Canwest Global Communications Corp., Richard Leipsic

Affiliations: Meritas

Notable mandates: Recently obtained $10.7 million trial judgment on behalf of vendors of insurance brokerage. This complex commercial litigation concerned the rectification of a share purchase agreement and attracted 'Case of the Year' recognition from Benchmark Canada; Provided advice on matters related to the law of Manitoba with respect to the City of Winnipeg's Southwest Rapid Transitway and Pembina Highway Underpass, a $467 million Public-Private Partnership project; Acted on behalf of Manitoba Blue Cross (MBC) on an $80 million dollar project creating a shared, SAP-based, claims processing solution serving MBC and a government medical payment system. Representation entailed negotiating a series of agreements with the government, system-builder, consultants, and service providers from conception through blueprint, build, and sustainment.