My Patricia Fourcand, Stéphanie Tremblay, Emily Kissel and Michaël Plante. Source: FOURCAND website (FTKP Avocats
After just over 20 years as an associate lawyer at Miller Thomson, lawyer Me Patricia Fourcand chooses to launch his own family law firm named FOURCAND (FTKP Avocats).
The one who recently won the title of “Best Lawyers in Canada 2023 for work in: Family Mediation” is launching this project with three of her partners, Me Stephanie TremblayMe Michael Plante and me Emily Kissel. Two paralegals will soon join the team in the coming days.
For the occasion, Droit-inc spoke with Me Fourcand to find out the reasons that led him to open this new firm, but also to learn more about the values of FTKP.
Since when do you plan to open your own practice?
My associates and I have been discussing this idea for several years. But I think it all came together last January, when we realized that we managed to get through this pandemic with our small team.
We also understood that we did not need the services of a large firm to achieve our objectives. It is teamwork and our complementary team that have allowed us to serve our customers well.
How was the announcement of your departure from Miller Thomson?
It was very moving for us to have to make this announcement. But I think the firm understood our approach very well. Miller Thomson is the only national office to have a family law department and it is not the most central area.
This is why they welcomed our desire to open a firm that puts forward our expertise, which is family law. I must also add that we have maintained excellent relations with Miller Thomson, since we will continue to work with them on all their family law files.
Do you want to expand or keep a small team?
We want to stay on a human scale, but we also want to grow. Above all, we want to ensure that our practice remains in the field of family law and not in expertise that we know less well. We also want to hire people who share our vision of law and our values.
What exactly is your view of the law? And what are the values of your firm?
As I say all the time, family law is a very emotional field. Always keep a cool head and try not to escalate the situation. We must also try to help clients make reasonable decisions that take into account their long-term interests.
At FTKP, we want to develop respectful relationships with team members, customers and associates. We will also favor the hiring of people who complement our team.
Lawyers often tend to hire people who look like them, but here that will not be the case. Instead, we will have lawyers who are better in some areas and less good in others. We want to respect difference and celebrate people’s different strengths.
Have you thought about hiring an equal number of men and women in your firm?
In family law, there are far fewer men than women, so it’s not really conceivable to do so in the short term. In Montreal, I believe that there are about 80% women versus 20% men in the field of family law. On the other hand, we want a diversified team in terms of language, culture, origin, etc.
What are you most proud of starting your own practice?
I am very happy to have been able to found, with my fellow partners, this firm which is mainly composed of women. It is also a privilege to be able to hire future lawyers and ensure that they will be in a diverse team. I want our team to be a breath of fresh air for diversity and equality.
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