AWE Awards nominees are recognized for their resilience, innovation, and leadership in their communities. Though we’ve had to postpone our 2020 AWE Awards celebration, we’ve taken this opportunity to talk to nominees, exploring their journeys and the challenges they’ve overcome to build successful businesses in Alberta.
Banyk Chia is the CEO of Alternative Legal Service Firm Inc. (ALSF), a bilingual firm with a team of paralegals, but she prefers the term “legal agents.” ALSF provides assistance in self-representation before the Alberta Provincial Court and organizations like the Alberta Human Rights Commission. Her firm also assists clients with legal drafting, family mediation, commissioning of oaths and immigration consulting services.
Banyk, whose first language is French, came to Canada in 2014 from Cameroon with a background as a lawyer. “When I arrived, I was full of ambition of becoming a lawyer [in Canada]. I wasn't aware of all the challenges I would have to face. I didn't know where to start.”
After doing some research, she discovered she would have to take seven exams to practice law in Canada. The Federation of Law Societies of Canada gave her five years to complete her accreditation. In that time, she knew she needed two things: to learn English, and to find a job.
While getting settled in her new home, she saw an ad on TV for a legal assistant program with CDI college. She soon enrolled in the one-year program, and was confident she could find work with a law firm and start her path to becoming a lawyer once again.
“Things didn't happen the way I wanted and that is life!” After graduating as a legal assistant, Banyk was unable to find a job. “It was a challenge. No one wanted to hire me. That's when I started to get depressed.”
She applied to countless law firms. She didn’t have any connections and she knew nothing about networking. Banyk kept applying online and getting nowhere. She did that for three years.
By the end of 2017, her husband was growing concerned, and asked her what she wanted to do. “I refused to give up on my dream.” She knew she needed legal experience, even if it was unpaid. She began volunteering within the Alberta court system.
“That's how I found it was possible to be a legal agent and run your own business as a paralegal. I thought, ‘If I create my own organization of legal agents, I will have the experience of the legal system and I will have money to prepare my career as a lawyer.’ ”
That’s exactly what she did.
In 2018, Banyk incorporated her organization. “I'm so happy! It was the best choice in my life! But I still had challenges; I had to run an organization. As an immigrant, I didn't know how to make it happen. I had no connections.” She didn’t let that stop her. Banyk attended business classes for many months in order to learn how to set up her own firm.
Her journey to owning her own business wasn’t an easy one. Banyk’s inspiring resilience kept her on track: “I wanted to give up. You have to fight harder — triple time — just to reach your dream.” With limited English, no connections, and no knowledge of the Alberta court system, Banyk has done her fair share of fighting for her dream, and she hopes other immigrant entrepreneurs, especially women, are inspired by her journey.
“The biggest challenge as an immigrant was credibility. Being an entrepreneur is a challenge; being an immigrant entrepreneur is more challenging because you have no connections. You need to build that credibility. You need to believe in yourself.”
Banyk is now continuing her studies to practice as a lawyer and hopes to start her own law firm. She has been nominated for the AWE Awards (2020) and the Afro-Canadian Best Entrepreneur (2019). She’s received this year’s award for Best Immigrant Entrepreneur from the Economic Development Council in Alberta.
