A brief history of long-time Chamber member

A brief history of long-time Chamber member Miller Pressey Selinger

Miller Pressey Selinger is the oldest continuous law firm operating in Portage la Prairie. It began in 1909 when William James (W.J.) Cooper retired as The District Registrar of the Portage Land Titles Office and joined Arthur Meighen − who began his own practice in Portage la Prairie in 1903 − in private practice. The firm was called Cooper & Meighen.

W.J. Cooper died in 1913, and Meighen practised alone until his articling student William Raymond (Toby) Sexsmith was called to the bar in 1915. This firm was called Meighen & Sexsmith. In 1917, Joseph

MILLER PRESSEY SELINGER

BARRISTER AND SOLICITOR

REAL ESTATE

WILLS | ESTATES

CORPORATE

CIVIL

GORDON T. SELINGER

103 SASKATCHEWAN AVE. EAST PORTAGE LA PRAIRIE, MB 204-857-3436

mpslaw@mts.net

Charles (Joe) Miller articled with the firm and in 1918 his brother Calvert Charlton (Cal) Miller began his articles. Joe and Cal practised with the firm until 1920, when Arthur Meighen was elected as Prime Minister of Canada. The firm was then called Sexsmith & Miller.

Joe and Cal then branched off into their own firm, Miller & Miller, in 1922 and built the law office at 103 Saskatchewan Avenue East in 1926, where it has been located since. They practised together and became quite involved in the community. The firm joined the Portage la Prairie Board of Trade in 1938, and in 1943, Cal was elected president of the Manitoba Associated Boards of Trade from 1943 to 1945. He was then elected as Member of Parliament for the Constituency of Portage la Prairie from 1946 to 1949. Joe himself joined City Council from 1930 to 1935 and became mayor of Portage la Prairie from 1933 to 1935.

In 1954, Cal’s son Bruce Miller joined the firm, which became known as Miller, Miller & Miller. In 1959, Cal was appointed to the Queen’s Bench and was elevated to the Court of Appeal in 1960, then becoming Chief Justice of The Court of Appeal in 1961. He ultimately retired from the bench in 1967. In 1962 Cal’s other son, Clive Miller, joined the firm, and in 1979 Clive was appointed to the County Court (which later became part of The Queen’s Bench), leaving Joe and Bruce as remaining partners. They invited Orest Pressey (the former District Registrar of the Portage Land Titles Office) to join them in private practice as Miller, Miller, Pressey in 1979, and in 1986, Cathy Sherman joined the firm as an associate, practicing with them until 1990. Joe died in 1987 at the age of 93, and in 1988, Bruce also died prematurely. Gordon Selinger (formerly practising in Winnipeg and Carman) joined as an associate shortly thereafter.

In 1994, Gordon Selinger became a partner with Orest Pressey under the firm name of Miller, Pressey, Selinger. Another lawyer, Brad Patzer joined the firm as an associate in 1998 until he left to join the department of Justice in Northwest Territory in 2001. Orest Pressey retired from practice in 2000, at which time Gordon Selinger remained the sole partner.

Eric Freedman articled to Gordon Selinger in 2016 and remained as an associate until 2021, when he moved to a law firm in Selkirk.

Since then, Gordon Selinger has continued the practice maintaining the firm name of Miller, Pressey, Selinger.