Managing Partner, ZSA Western Canada

(604) 283-9316 (403) 205-3444 mrace@zsa.ca

Mike Race

Mike is Managing Partner, ZSA Western Canada, with over 15 years of legal search and recruitment experience. He focuses on acquiring high performing Partners, Associates and teams for law firms, and In-house Counsel at all levels for Canadian and international corporations, and public sector bodies.

Prior to joining ZSA in 2016, Mike was a Director at one of Australia’s leading specialist executive search firms focused solely on the Legal profession. Mike spent over a decade in Australia helping to grow legal businesses – both private practice law firms and in-house legal teams – through placing lawyers and facilitating law firm mergers. Previously Mike was a commercial litigation lawyer at Australia’s largest law firm.

Mike has lived in Canada before and completed his final semester of law school at the University of British Columbia. Mike is married to a Canadian and his family decided to make the move here permanently, shortly before joining ZSA.

As head of the Western Canadian operations for ZSA for the last 5 years, Mike has led a large number of successful searches for in-house lawyers within corporate in-house legal departments, public sector organizations, and law firms. Since joining ZSA, Mike has personally placed over 150 lawyers, not including his previous decade of legal recruitment experience in Australia.

Success Stories

Associate Counsel

Law Firm

I was placed as an Associate Counsel and engaged ZSA after seeing a posting of interest and contacted Mike. My experience was excellent as Mike took the initiative to put together lists of firms for me, and then would reach out to the ones that I approved. This saved me a ton of time which was extremely valuable.

Associate

Law Firm

I was placed as an Associate. I tried to find a job through personal networking and cold applications for a long time. I had heard that another foreign-trained lawyer who had luck with Mike, so I reached out. My experience was excellent in that he was calm and kind and took a methodical approach to finding work which he explained thoroughly. He discussed his plan and then executed it – keeping me in the loop throughout.

Simon A. Fish

Executive Vice President & General Counsel | BMO Financial Group

ZSA is our preferred choice of legal recruiting partner. I have always found them enormously responsive, thorough and pragmatic. ZSA recruiters have a keen understanding of our business and are very diligent in their efforts to understand our hiring needs. This shows in the quality and suitability of the candidates that they present to us for consideration.

Amanda Showalter

DC Bank

After having little success filling our General Counsel position internally, we reached out to ZSA seeking a quality recruiter specializing in legal talent. Mike had a strong understanding of our needs and requirements and was able to leverage his network to deliver high quality candidates quickly. I would highly recommend ZSA’s services.

Suzanne Davies

Ensign Energy Services

I had a specific hiring need for our company’s small legal department and contacted Mike Race from ZSA to assist. Mike was terrific in understanding our position description and objectives for filling the role. We were presented with a number of excellent candidates and managed to go through the process quickly and efficiently. I found value in the quality of candidates and ZSA’s interview notes were also very good. Mike was good at providing a bit of feedback and guidance as needed. I hadn’t used other recruiters, but my experience with Mike was excellent and I would definitely use ZSA’s services again.

Joel Schuster

Chief Legal Officer, Senior Vice President, and Corporate Secretary | Avigilon Corporation

ZSA Recruitment has proven to be a valuable partner, time and again, assisting us with hiring numerous legal professionals including lawyers, legal assistants and IP professionals. I am very pleased with the personal service we have received from ZSA. Their national approach, coupled with their local knowledge, has helped us grow our fantastic in-house legal team. I highly recommend using ZSA.

Sylvia Pagnotta-Feraco

Former Human Resources Department | Chubb Insurance Company of Canada

We are pleased with ZSA’s success in placing qualified candidates within our company. Their ability to clearly understand our needs makes for a very efficient search process. In particular, I appreciate ZSA’s thorough analysis of each candidate prior to the interview stage. These analysis reports are always helpful and demonstrate ZSA’s solid understanding of our recruiting objectives and corporate goals. We have enjoyed a very successful history with ZSA and I happily recommend their services.

Peter Torn

I contacted ZSA after becoming aware of a rare position in Victoria BC. Working with ZSA was excellent! They were straightforward, pragmatic, honest, and timely. I have used another recruiter in the past, but found that ZSA seems to better understand lawyers and is able to match legal skills with client needs.

Patrick Sullivan

Osler Hoskin & Harcourt LLP

I was contacted by Mike Race at ZSA on behalf of Osler’s regarding a specific role. My experience working with him was excellent. Mike is a very smart, informed and socially savvy recruitment professional. He was very thoughtful and understanding in regards to the considerations and concerns I had in meeting with my new firm and leaving my old firm. He did an excellent job balancing his role as a service provider to Osler with ensuring my interests were properly protected. As a former successful lawyer, Mike has a masterful understanding of the dynamics of corporate law firms and was a great resource throughout this process. He had an abundance of information on the possibility that was open to me at Osler. He knows how to speak the language of corporate law and was very knowledgeable about Osler’s areas of practice. Mike was also very responsive to any questions I had and ensured the process moved as quickly and efficiently as possible. Simply put, he got the job done in an impressive fashion. I would like to emphasize that Mike Race did an exemplary job throughout my transition between firms. I strongly recommend him to any lawyer interested in considering their options. ZSA is the only recruiter that has advised me, but I would definitely use them again.

Justin Louie

Ensign Energy Services

I saw a posting on the ZSA website I was interested in. I contacted Mike Race to discuss further – he was very good at keeping me updated on the status of opportunities as well as providing meaningful feedback. I found Mike’s ability to communicate clearly, effectively and on a timely basis was of great value. I have used other recruiters in the past, and I would have to say, ZSA is better; my experience was excellent. Should I have a need in the future, I would definitely use Mike’s services again.

Richard Scott

I wanted to look at positions across Canada and contacted Mike Race with ZSA because he operates in Toronto, Vancouver and Calgary. I hadn’t used a recruiter in the past but my experience was excellent. Mike was very knowledgeable, professional personable and timely in his responses. I would definitely use ZSA’s services again.

Marnie Stariha

Conwest Contracting

After researching multiple firms in order to source a General Counsel, we chose ZSA based on their local presence. Working with Mike was an excellent experience – he was able to stay on top of things the whole way through and presented excellent candidates that fit our criteria. Mike really understood the fit with our culture that we were looking for – out of the 6 candidates he presented, 5 could have been hired. We have worked with other recruiters in the past, but ZSA presented the most qualified and best fit candidates to date – we would definitely use their services again.

Julia Rees

Staff Lawyer | Economical Insurance

I reached out to Mike in response to a job posting online. My experience was wonderful – Mike was prompt, courteous, friendly, and made sure I was looked after when he was on holiday. He was able to connect me with a business hiring I might not have known about otherwise. While this was my first time working with a recruiter, ZSA was terrific. I would certainly use their services again, but hopefully I won’t be looking for a job for a while!

Marnie Stariha

Conwest Contracting

After researching multiple firms in order to source a General Counsel, we chose ZSA based on their local presence. Working with Mike was an excellent experience – he was able to stay on top of things the whole way through and presented excellent candidates that fit our criteria. Mike really understood the fit with our culture that we were looking for – out of the 6 candidates he presented, 5 could have been hired. We have worked with other recruiters in the past, but ZSA presented the most qualified and best fit candidates to date – we would definitely use their services again.

Julia Rees

Staff Lawyer | Economical Insurance

I reached out to Mike in response to a job posting online. My experience was wonderful – Mike was prompt, courteous, friendly, and made sure I was looked after when he was on holiday. He was able to connect me with a business hiring I might not have known about otherwise. While this was my first time working with a recruiter, ZSA was terrific. I would certainly use their services again, but hopefully I won’t be looking for a job for a while!

Patrick Teichreb

Morton Law LLP

I engaged ZSA after applying around 25 times on my own in search for a role in a specific sector. Dealing with Mike was excellent. He is an amazing person and I could not be happier with my experience. Mike brought great value to the hiring process in that not only did he make the connection with my current employer, but he provided great advice along the way, was super supportive, and generally made the experience positive.

Claudia Fleischer

Caron & Partners

We had been recruiting for this position for over three months with no success when we decided to contact several recruiters. We approached ZSA and Mike was willing to work with us and give us the right support and feedback during the hiring process. Dealing with Mike was excellent and his experience and negotiation skills were vital in the hiring process. I will use ZSA again in the future.

Maryam Zargar

Managing Partner | Zargar Lawyers

Mike had stayed in touch with us and became aware of our need to hire a junior associate. Working with Mike was excellent. He was efficient, communicated clearly and understood our firm’s unique culture and requirements. What I found particularly helpful in the process was Mike’s facilitating discussions with the candidates. We have used other recruiters in the past but I enjoyed working with Mike and would trust him with future searches.

Hailey Laycraft

Terra Law Corporation

I contacted Mike Race regarding a job posting with ZSA for a 1-2 year commercial real estate position. My experience with Mike was excellent. Mike is an incredible recruiter. He was helpful in guiding me through the process; contacted me regularly during interviews; and was very quick to respond to any questions I had. It was great to have a “middle-man” in the process who had experience with the process and who kept me updated on my progress in the interview process. I have spoken to other recruiters in the past; however, I was underwhelmed. ZSA’s services were superior.

Dafydd Samuel

I had worked with another recruiter who, while doing good work, was not moving things along as quickly as I’d liked. Mike is excellent – very fast and a great communicator. He kept me in the loop at all times and appeared to be very well-connected in the market, letting me know what his contacts were saying and where there might be opportunities arising. While I appreciated the work of another recruiting firm I was using during the process, Mike and ZSA provided superior service. I recommended Mike to a friend, and within a week he had several offers lined up. Fantastic service.

Brandon Dean

Associate Lawyer | Fasken

I engaged ZSA because of Mike’s reputation. I did not apply to any jobs or complete an active search prior to engaging ZSA. Mike was excellent to work with and I will be recommending him to any friends who are hoping for a change. Mike is confident and took care of all of the little things for me, so I could concentrate on performing in the interviews and making decisions. I have used other recruiters in the past but ZSA has been far superior because I felt less pressured.

Bonnie Andriachuk

General Counsel & Corporate Secretary

I was placed by ZSA in the position of General Counsel & Corporate Secretary. My experience dealing with Mike was excellent. I found it particularly helpful that he was able to move things along quickly and answered my questions. ZSA is excellent compared to others I have used in the past.

Barbara McNab

Synergy Business Lawyers

We were looking to hire an office manager and had posted on a CBA job board. Working with Mike was excellent. Not only was he quick to respond but if we needed additional information, he was on it right away. We valued the quality candidates he brought to the hiring process. We will use ZSA in the future.

Lisa Beck

Vice President Human Resources | Loop Energy Inc.

I engaged ZSA to assist with a specialized search for an in house counsel. I had not made any previous efforts to reach out to a recruiting agency and was referred to ZSA by the legal counsel of a large national corporation. We were hiring for a General Counsel & Corporate Secretary position and dealt with Mike Race. Mike was excellent, efficient, and clear and concise. The candidate profiles also met with and exceeded expectations. What I found particularly helpful was his managing of the candidate process end to end, and he was knowledgeable and provided support managing candidate expectations and the closing process. I have used other recruiters in the past but ZSA has a specialized niche, and it is to the credit of the organization for these roles to have deep knowledge. I would use the services of ZSA again in the future and thank the whole team for their tireless efforts moving us through the process!

Sandra Mouland

General Manager | Fasken

I was looking for an HR Manager and was not having any success with any search agencies. I had worked with Mike at ZSA before. He set up a meeting with me very quickly after I reached out to him in order to get a better understanding of what I was looking for and also promptly got back to me with some good candidates. I appreciated how well Mike followed up and let me know what was happening so I wasn’t left wondering what was going on with my search or the candidate I was interested in. Mike offered excellent customer service and was attentive to my needs and concerns to fill that position. I have used other recruiters in the past and ZSA is above the others and I will use them again.