Outside general counsel for growing companies

Outside general counsel

The cost of a lawyer is not
what you think it is.

A growing company runs into legal questions every week: a contract to sign, an employee to hire, a client who does not pay, a supplier changing its terms. Each is too small to open a file, and together they create real exposure.

Outside general counsel answers that need. You have a lawyer who knows your business, your standard contracts and your habits, and whom you can ask before acting rather than after.

The arrangement suits companies that have outgrown the stage where the owner decides alone, but do not have the volume to justify an in-house legal department. It is structured case by case, according to your actual needs.

The applicable framework is the Quebec Business Corporations Act or the Canada Business Corporations Act, depending on the regime under which the company was incorporated, supplemented by the general rules of the Civil Code of Québec.

What we do

Be there before
the question becomes a file.

Day-to-day questions

A contract to read, an email to phrase, a doubt about a commitment. Short questions handled quickly avoid most disputes.

Standard contracts

Establishing your templates for service, supply, confidentiality and employment agreements, so your teams no longer improvise.

Corporate housekeeping

Board resolutions, annual meetings, updating the minute book and registers, filings with the provincial and federal registers.

Compliance

Protection of personal information under Law 25, ultimate beneficiary obligations, requirements specific to your sector.

Preventing disputes

Spotting relationships that are deteriorating and stepping in with a demand letter or a negotiation before the matter becomes judicial.

Coordinating specialists

Tax specialist, accountant, notary, trademark agent. We remain the single point of contact and keep the advice consistent.

Frequently asked questions

What we are asked most.

How is this different from calling a lawyer when needed?

The difference is context. A lawyer who already knows your standard contracts, your shareholdings and your habits answers faster and more accurately. And you call more often, which is precisely the point.

How are fees set?

Case by case, based on the actual frequency and nature of your needs. This service is not among those offered at a posted price: it is agreed after measuring the volume, at a first meeting.

Does this replace a specialist lawyer?

No, and it is not meant to. For major litigation, a complex transaction or a fine point of intellectual property, we bring in the right resource, internally or through our network.

Is a fixed term required?

The arrangement makes sense over time, because its value comes from accumulated knowledge. The terms are agreed at the outset and revisited as your needs change.

Two subjects that come up constantly in this relationship: Law 25 compliance, which most companies address too late, and the demand letter, whose drafting often changes the outcome of a dispute.