There has been a lot of ink spilled over the fresh demise of Heenan Blaikie LLP. The legal landscape of downtown Toronto has been recently altered, as a well-known and prestigious mid-size firm unraveled before our very eyes. Every agonizing blow narrated, almost in real-time, by newspapers and legal blogs across Canada.
For many of us in law school, this is the first time that we have borne witness to such an implosion. For many of us, Bay Street firms are monolithic surveyors of the downtown core; steadfast and unwavering they stand guard on the Toronto grid. There is an understanding, a presumption even, that although the legal landscape will be fine tuned here and there, the main players will always be there. They will always get the big clients and have an OCI booth when the fall rolls around.There are changes of course: a big partner makes a newsworthy move; the names on the doors occasionally vary through the addition of a well-known surname, and sometimes big firms get bigger (read: Canadian law firm Fraser Milner Casgrain LLP merged with two international law firms, Salans LLP and SNR Denton, to create Dentons in March 2013). However, the seemingly self-destructive collapse of Heenan Blaikie, the biggest firm to do so in Toronto, is rather unique and rather sad. The rapidity of it all left many in the legal field incredulous and confused, with many questions left unanswered.
Is there a lesson here? Is the search for career security futile? Is law really just politics with a few more books? The fall of one firm cannot begin to provide the answers to these questions, but it does provide reason to pause and reflect. The dissolution of Heenan Blaikie will not markedly change what it means to be a Bay Street lawyer and it will not change Bay Street. Rest assured, there are still many firms, bigger and smaller, out there who are still hiring, who will still practice in the same way they always have, and whose largest concern at the moment is who to poach and who to pull from the wreckage.
Lesson: Life goes on, with out without you (or Heenan Blaikie).
This month’s current events should suggest to us that you, they, the legal industry, Bay Street, and Toronto, are not untouchable. No one is outside or above politics, change, trends, (dis)loyalty, and competition. It is incredibly dangerous to ever get lulled into a false sense of security, or worse yet, complacency. Many lawyers who were part of the great exodus of February 2014 remarked that in fact, things were good, things were turning around, and there was a general sense of optimism in the air. Overall, the firm was very profitable; this was not your typical business breakdown story of bankruptcy, fraud, and missing funds. Yet, within a month, sweeping departures of senior and mid-level partners from various outposts hit the firm hard. Blow by blow, it all came tumbling down at an alarming speed, and under very unceremonious circumstances, a partner’s meeting was held, and it was over as soon as it had begun.
Lesson: No one is safe, and nothing is forever.
As law students, with a minimum of two degrees and an unlimited maximum (because if you made it in law school, there’s a good chance you’re intellect-hungry and a professional student), we are not immune from unemployment and we are not guaranteed a long-term career anywhere. Education is not a golden ticket to a stable and secure future. Your J.D. is not a failsafe from the real world. If you came into this (legal) world with the idea that you would be assured a cushy job in an ivory downtown tower, then hopefully the Heenan Blaikie dissolution has readjusted and reset your perspective from rosy to reality.
Lesson: Even the mighty fall; us mere mortals are likely to as well.
Pessimistic? Maybe. Realistic? Absolutely.
The only thing we can be sure, or certain, about is that change will happen. Not all change is as dramatic as the subject matter of this editorial. But, change nonetheless is the only constant that can be confidently relied upon in this life. You can either hide from it, curled up in the fetal position under your desk, or be ready for it. The choice is yours. The legal industry is becoming increasingly mobile, and your own mobility is rooted in your transferable skills, growing wealth of knowledge, applicable experience, and relevant exposure to various areas of law. It is your choice and, one would posit, your prerogative to prepare yourself for a world where firms fall, great articling students don’t get hired back, associates get fired without committing any grave errors, and senior partners unexpectedly jump ship from time to time.
Lesson: Get ready, buckle up, we’re just getting started kids.