In the second of our stories this year on the top boutique law firms in the country, Canadian Lawyer turns its attention to those specializing in labour and employment, environmental, and maritime law. While each of these firms has a different approach to standing out from the crowd to attract business, each group of firms face similar challenges and opportunities in their respective markets.

In recessionary times employers look to save costs by reducing labour costs, and those times have come to Canada. All across the country, labour lawyers are seeing an upswing in activity indicating a downturn in fortunes. Ron Pink, managing partner of Pink Larkin in Halifax, has noticed a large increase in cold calls from individual employers since January and calls the slowdown “profound.” André Nowakowski, a labour lawyer at Miller Thomson LLP in Toronto, has seen activity picking up since last fall. “It doesn’t matter what size the employer, we are seeing it everywhere. It’s a painful process for everyone.”