Ask Canada Immigration Lawyer Evelyn Ackah Evelyn Ackah

Texas immigration lawyer Wendy Whitt of https://www.loveandborder.com/ (Whitt Law PLLC) recently asked Canadian immigration lawyer Evelyn Ackah about how her Iraqi clients who are facing long waits for a U.S. asylum can move to Canada. Wendy's law practice focuses on immigration and naturalization law to help people overcome the obstacles to achieve their American Dream.
Wendy talks to many Iraqi nationals who are seeking asylum in the U.S., and they're finding that these cases are taking years, sometimes even decades. And many Iraqis and others have asked her, "Do I have any options at all for moving to Canada?"

Calgary, Alberta lawyer Gordon Vanderleek is the Founder and Chief Strategist of VanderLeek Law (and Evelyn's wills and trusts guru!). His practice focuses on solving problems and educating in the areas of estate planning, estate administration and trust law. Gordon takes pride in being compassionate and empathetic, had making a difference in people's lives during high stress times of their lives.
Ackah Law recently expanded our legal services to provide wills and estate planning for newcomers to Canada. From our experience, we see that many temporary and permanent immigrants don’t understand that if they are living in Canada and unexpectedly die, if they don't have a will, the laws in the province or territory you live in will determine how your estate is divided - not necessarily the laws of their home country.
Evelyn and Gordon discuss:
Why estate planning is hard for many people - talking about what will happen to their assets - their things - after they are gone, and how to protect their loved ones; and why Gordion decided to practice this area of law.
Why wills and estate planning is important to everyone, including immigrants.
Life events and milestones that should trigger estate planning, beginning at age 18.
How Canada and Alberta laws impact newcomers, and what happens when a person's wishes don't match their legal documents. How to make sure your wishes are carried out.
The importance of establishing guardianship for your minor children.
How Personal Directives and Power of Attorney plan for incapacitation or disabilities, which have become a more visible issue since Covid.
Special trusteeships and adult guardianships that are available for adults with special needs, and how the Britney Spears conservatorship made people aware of the need to do advance planning.
Are DIY wills and holographs enforceable?
Estate planning for children with special needs: how to gift money and protect their financial future.

November is Financial Literacy Month in Canada. Evelyn spoke to Enoch Omololu, DVM, MSc, whose passion is to help newcomers to Canada with their personal finances. Enoch is a veterinarian and the resident personal finance expert at Savvy New Canadians. He has a master’s degree in Finance and Investment Management from the University of Aberdeen Business School (Scotland) and has completed several courses and certificates in finance, including the Canadian Securities Course. He also has an MSc. in Agricultural Economics from the University of Manitoba and a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from the University of Ibadan.
Enoch has been helping others win with their personal finances and has been writing about money matters for over a decade. His writing has been featured or quoted in The Globe and Mail, Winnipeg Free Press, Wealthsimple, Financial Post, Toronto Star, Credit Canada, MSN Money, National Post, CIBC, and many other personal finance publications.
Evelyn and Enoch cover a range of Canadian personal finance and immigration issues including:
You’re a Doctor of Veterinary medicine. What was your journey, and what led you to launch a personal finance website?
What are some of the biggest financial frustrations you’ve seen Canadian newcomers experience?
What happens after they get here? Building credit. Buying a home. Setting a budget. Saving for retirement. How is personal finance the same for newcomers - and how is it different?
How do you make money now, to turn this into a money-making business?
You have millions of website visitors each year - that's impressive. They can’t all be immigrants. Why do you think native born Canadians also visit Savvy Canadians?
You’ve also authored several personal finance guides and eBooks.
Many highly educated immigrants are coming in, business owners from other countries coming in, but yet they're starting all over again. They need to learn how we can create a financial legacy for our children, the next generation.
If an immigrant is successful financially, the chances are that their descendants are going to also succeed.
How do you see the financial needs of immigrants changing after they’ve lived in Canada 5, 10, 15 years and longer?
Immigrants have taken advantage of those opportunities to grow businesses, establish themselves, become employers themselves.
If you could share one piece of financial advice with immigrants before they arrive in Canada, what would that be?
Developing a money mindset.

Kim Nutz is a labour and employment lawyer who has managed to design a career that has the best of both worlds. She is Senior Legal Counsel at https://www.west-legal.ca/ (West Legal) in Calgary and has opened her own firm, https://sunstonelegal.com/ (Sunstone Legal). As a lawyer and legal entrepreneur, her mission is to bring calm to her client's legal chaos. Kim and Evelyn discuss: How Kim transitioned from a career in criminal law to employment law.
The work/life balance goals that led Kim to consult for a small law firm.
Introducing flat flee service fees to employment law in Calgary.
Why she opened her own firm... and named it Sunstone: the meaning of the sunstone crystal.
Have the changes Kim's put in place made her a happier lawyer?
Who are her ideal clients?
The COVID shutdown happened when her new firm was 5 weeks old: how that impacted Kim's business.
The crossover between immigration law and employment law.
How COVID impacted The Great Resignation.
What's Kim's secret sauce: what makes you a happy lawyer, and makes life enjoyable as a lawyer?
Why Kim is optimistic for young women in law and how the practice of law is changing.

Attorney Mario Godoy is the founder of Godoy Law Office. and Estate and Probate Legal Group. He lived the true immigrant's American Dream and success story. He grew up seeing his family experience injustices many immigrants face in the United States and went to law school with the goal to be part of the solution. As a legal entrepreneur who practices immigration law, criminal law and estate and probate law, plus running 2 successful, thriving law firms, Mario shares lessons he's learned along the way... and has advice for other lawyers who don't want to be a one trick horse.
When Mario realized he doesn't want to be a unicorn, not a one trick horse What led Mario to practice 3 very different types of law - and open 2 different law offices?
The legal partnership that makes it all work
The U.S. immigration courts have a huge backlog. How has Mario helped his immigration clients cope with the delays?
His hiring strategy behind both law firms
Mario's old-school calendaring system for long-term planning
Mario-isms and advice on leading a team
Why you need to work on yourself before you can work on your team
Mario's top 3 lessons learned for running a law firm

Davina Frederick Esq is an attorney, law firm growth and wealth strategist and the Founder and CEO at Wealthy Woman Lawyer, LLC®. Davina combined her expertise in marketing and her entrepreneurial experience as the owner of a law firm to launch a coaching business for women lawyers. Davina joins Evelyn on the podcast to discuss how women lawyers and legal entrepreneurs can grow their law firms (hint: it's not magic!).
Davina and Evelyn cover law firm growth and marketing including:
how a practicing lawyer started marketing her own law firm
if legal marketing Is different from marketing for other businesses
what Davina knows about legal marketing that other lawyers don’t know - or don’t do
are there special marketing rules for lawyers? coach business?
why Davina started a business coaching other female law firm owners
how do free resources - like your Facebook page, your book - help Davina grow her law firmeting to other attorneys?
is it harder marketing to other attorneys?
how much should attorneys be spending on marketing?
what is Davina's ideal law firm owner client?