A story in the National Post reports that “a rogue African arms deal” was the catalyst behind the recent collapse of high-profile Canadian law firm Heenan Blaikie:
The stunning collapse of Heenan Blaikie LLP, once one of Canada’s largest and most prestigious law firms, stemmed from a “loss of trust” in management over international business activities including dubious forays into Africa, where former partner Jacques Bouchard and former prime minister Jean Chrétien lobbied governments on behalf of clients, former Heenan partners and associates say.
Founded in Montreal in 1973, Heenan grew from 18 lawyers to more than 500, in offices across Canada and in Paris, where it established a beachhead in 2009. It was considered a rock-solid full-service firm — and a favourite of the Canadian establishment — until a crisis of confidence caused its foundations to crack. Lawyers began leaving, first in a trickle, then in droves, and the whole enterprise came crashing down this month.
The story notes that the crisis in confidence over the controversial operations of the firm’s Paris-based affiliate office exacerbated tensions between the Montreal and Toronto offices over profit sharing and firm direction. This ultimately culminated in a vote to terminate the partnership, leaving hundreds of lawyers and staff scrambling to find new positions elsewhere. Parallel reports in the Globe and Mail noted that the firm was unable to maintain its internal cohesion after founding partner Roy Heenan retired as chairman in 2012 and that the collapse should serve as a wake-up call to large firms struggling to adapt to rapidly changing market conditions.
