Cross-Border Matters

Genuine cross-border capability, grounded in bar admissions in both Canada and the United States, for businesses and individuals whose lives and dealings span the line.

Scope of work

• Canada-U.S. commercial transactions
• Cross-border disputes & litigation
• Recognition & enforcement of foreign judgments
• U.S. market entry & expansion
• Cross-border tax & estate coordination
• U.S. business practices & risk advisory
• Contracts spanning both jurisdictions
• Coordination with U.S. and Canadian counsel

Cross-border work is the thread that runs through much of what the firm does, and it rests on an unusual foundation. Barrister and Solicitor Derek Brett is now based in the Halifax region and is licensed to practise in both nations. He holds the same conviction in Nova Scotia that he held in the United States: that clients do not need to pour scarce resources into the largest firms to receive honest, quality-driven, dedicated service.

The future of this region depends in part on stronger economic relations with the United States. Derek Brett arrived in Nova Scotia as an American immigrant, someone who understands, arguably as well as anyone in the region, the nature of U.S. law and U.S. business practice. That perspective is the firm’s genuine advantage on any matter with interests on both sides of the border: it is read with working knowledge of each system rather than guessed at from one side.

In practice, cross-border matters take many forms. The firm advises on transactions that span Canada and the United States; on disputes and litigation that touch both jurisdictions; on the recognition and enforcement of judgments across the border; on U.S. market entry and expansion; and on the cross-border tax and estate questions that arise when assets, income, or beneficiaries sit in two countries. Where local counsel is required on the far side of the line, the firm coordinates the work rather than handing the client off.

The commitment is to help Atlantic Canadians and Americans build shared prosperity on Atlantic Canadian terms, and to protect those respective interests whenever and however they are challenged, inside the courtroom or out of it.