There is an intrinsic, timeless value to be found in knowing exactly who and what you are.
For the team at MEP Business Counsel (Michael, Evrensel & Pawar LLP), this core tenet has been in place since the firm’s establishment 10 years ago.
This foundational principle also serves as a blueprint for the firm’s next 10 years and beyond to ensure it remains a highly responsive, nimble and practical business law firm that loves business, not just business law.
“We continually explore complimentary practice areas in order to broaden our value add to our clients, but will never stray from our core focus,” explains Rosalyn Hogg, partner and management committee member. “We have no desire to be everything to everyone or become a firm of 100 lawyers, because doing so would compromise our flexible business model and erode many of the advantages we offer to our clients.”
MEP Business Counsel was spun out of a large national firm that closed in 2014 – it opened quite quickly and cemented a collective underdog mentality. Since then, the firm has consistently been ranked as one of the Top 10 Corporate Law Boutiques nationally by Canadian Lawyer Magazine – no small feat considering the sheer volume of other corporate law firms across Canada.
“We have come a long way in 10 years, but strive to retain that drive and instill it across the board at the firm,” says Jesse Ahuja, partner and management committee member. “All our lawyers have large national or international firm experience. That pedigree, paired with our focused boutique platform, is the not-so-secret sauce that sets us apart.”
MEP Business Counsel’s business law group is industry agnostic: though they work with all types of businesses from start-ups to established, international conglomerates, their sweet spot is found while working with growth-stage companies looking to expand and grow, particularly through acquisitions.
Its entertainment law group, meanwhile, is unparalleled in its knowledge and in the quality of services provided to clients, with a client roster that includes many major film and television production companies and studios. Arthur Evrensel, a founding partner of the firm and the head of the entertainment law group, has been instrumental in building the film and television industry in British Columbia for decades.
The firm’s 10th anniversary also brings to bear a commitment to evolve – and to that end, a new era is ushered in with the addition of new partners in Hogg and Jack Finn. These two additional partners also now make up the firm’s management committee alongside Ahuja, a partner who has been with MEP since the beginning, to ensure that all decisions the firm is making are rooted in experience, but coupled with fresh perspectives and ideas. The firm’s new management committee takes over stewardship of the firm from Marshall Pawar who was the managing partner of the firm for the last 10 years, and who remains the head of the corporate law practice group.
“By adding two partners, by deepening our bench, we will be able to bring even greater focus to what have always been our key priorities: client-centred legal advice and business-first solutions for our clients,” Finn explains.
MEP has also recently added new senior counsel, Matthew Wansink, to its business law group and promoted senior counsel, Jennifer MacGregor-Greer, as the firm’s Knowledge Management Chair. Wansink’s robust practice focuses on mergers and acquisitions, corporate finance and commercial real estate transactions across more than 15 years with clients from a multitude of industries. The expansion of MacGregor-Greer’s role further reflects MEP’s continued commitment to advancing the professional development of its lawyers and staff and is in keeping with the firm’s objectives to provide top tier legal service that is rooted in current market trends and evolving practices.
In looking ahead to the next decade and beyond, Hogg encapsulates the MEP approach: to be mindful of who the firm is, who it serves and how it will continually adapt.
“To remain efficient and competitive, we are constantly assessing whether our current processes and technologies need to be revised or upgraded,” Hogg says. “At its core, our fundamental approach to firm growth has been, and will always remain, doing excellent work for interesting clients.”
