Have you ever felt like your career success came at the expense of your mental health?

In this thought-provoking episode, we sit down with Registered Psychotherapist Dawn Binkowski, whose two decades of experience—including a background as a court reporter—give her unique insight into the intersection of mental health and Canadian immigration law.

Dawn shares powerful reflections on why mental well-being matters profoundly in the legal and immigration space, especially in a profession that often overlooks emotional needs. We explore common mental health challenges in the field—burnout, anxiety, people-pleasing, and vicarious trauma—and the impact of unresolved childhood experiences on legal professionals’ coping mechanisms.

From navigating shame and the fear of judgment to understanding generational differences in work culture, this episode explains why setting boundaries, cultivating self-awareness, and fostering human connection are essential—not only for personal health, but also for improved client outcomes. We also discuss the importance of community, the risks of compassion fatigue, and how practitioners can support each other while respecting emotional boundaries.

In this segment of “Things I Wish I Knew,” Chantal and Cathryn share tips on making mindful decisions around opportunity and burnout, including how to assess returns on investment—financial or otherwise—before saying “yes.”

Whether you’re a legal professional, immigration advocate, or simply curious about how emotional well-being impacts high-stress careers, this episode offers practical advice, validation, and a reminder that self-care isn’t a luxury - it’s a professional necessity.

Other topics include:

• Coping with shame and the fear of being judged in professional settings
• How unmet childhood needs manifest in legal careers
• The role of self-soothing and emotional numbing within the legal profession
• Generational shifts in workplace culture and expectations
• The risks of remaining in the profession for external validation

Special Guest: Dawn Binkowski is a Registered Psychotherapist based in Mississauga, Ontario, who focuses on supportive and compassionate approaches to mental health. Before transitioning into psychotherapy, she worked as a court reporter in the civil litigation field—an experience that inspired her to pursue a more active role in mental health support. Dawn completed her training at the Gestalt Institute of Toronto, building on her undergraduate studies in Psychology and Women's Studies at the University of Toronto. Her private practice specializes in areas such as anxiety, depression, relationship issues, trauma, and low self-esteem.

Can automation truly redefine immigration systems without sacrificing equity and trust?

Artificial intelligence (AI) is revolutionizing the way Canadian immigration processes operate, with promises of increased efficiency and reduced backlogs. However, these innovations bring complex questions: Are biases baked into the algorithms? Is decision-making still truly in human hands? What does this mean for the future of immigration advocacy?

In this episode, Chantal Desloges and Cathryn Sawicki are joined by Zeynab Ziaie Moayyed and Will Tao, leading voices in immigration law and technology. Together, they explore the growing role of AI in visa processing, risk triaging, and border security—while unpacking the critical challenges around transparency, procedural fairness, and regulatory oversight.

Key topics include:

• The tools shaping Canadian immigration—from Chinook to facial recognition systems.
• Practical advice for preparing applications in the age of automation.
• The ethical dilemmas of AI-powered decision-making.
• Strategies for leveraging tech to streamline legal practices while safeguarding client confidentiality.

In this segment of "Things I Wish I Knew," the hosts share essential tips for avoiding professional scams, including maintaining secure signatures, enabling dual-factor authentication, and screening for fraudulent collaborators.

Tune in for an engaging discussion on how immigration practitioners can adapt to—and thrive in—an evolving landscape of AI-driven systems.

Special Guests:

Zeynab Ziaie Moayyed is a partner at My Visa Law Group in Toronto, where she combines business and immigration law to advise clients on a wide range of immigration matters. She provides strategic advice for short-term visa planning, long-term immigration purposes, and compliance obligations for businesses and tech start-ups. Zeynab regularly represents clients before the Immigration Appeal Division and the Federal Court of Canada, advocates for the use of technology to increase access to justice.

Will Tao is the founder of Heron Law Offices in Burnaby and has over a decade of experience in all areas of Canadian immigration and refugee law. He focuses on complex applications, overcoming refusals, inadmissibility matters, appeals, and judicial reviews. Will frequently appears before the Immigration and Refugee Board and the Federal Court of Canada, and currently serves as Co-Chair and a founding member of the Canadian Bar Association’s National Immigration Section Anti-Racism Committee.

In December 2023, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice ruled that Canada’s current “first generation” limits on citizenship violated the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

In this episode, citizenship experts Amandeep Hayer and Lisa Middlemiss join us to break down the proposed controversial Canadian Citizenship amendments. We discuss the limitations of first-generation citizenship, the Bjorkquist case, Bill C-71, and more. While Bill C-71 promises to abolish discriminatory limitations, many aspects of the Bill remain uncertain, including the “substantial connection to Canada” test. Does this new test make it too easy to qualify? Will these changes lead to a continual succession of Canadian citizenship or issues in population growth? Tune in to hear how practitioners can keep abreast of these changes and prepare clients for the uncertainty ahead.

In this segment of “Things I Wish I Knew,” we discuss nightmare clients and how to avoid them. We explore the red flags – clients who refuse direction, constantly look for shortcuts and discounts, ask irrelevant "what ifs,” or bombard you with too much communication. We share our advice for stepping away from an unresolvable situation while upholding your professional responsibilities. Special Guests: Amandeep Hayer is the principal lawyer at Hayer Law, a boutique immigration law firm in Langley, British Columbia. His firm specializes in citizenship by descent, business immigration, BC PNP applications, spousal and family sponsorship, criminal inadmissibility, and more.

Lisa Middlemiss, founder of Middlemiss Immigration Law, a boutique immigration law firm in Montreal specializing in work and study permits, permanent residence, citizenship applications, contesting refusals, and more.

Has the US immigration system earned its negative reputation and is Canada’s immigration system as welcoming as we think it is?

In this episode Chantal and Cathryn sit down with Erick Widman to discuss United States’ immigration pathways and their unique barriers, including the "H1B Cap,” spousal sponsorship restrictions, filing fees, permanent residence country caps, and waiver requests.  

How does the uncertainty, wait times, and expenses generated by these barriers affect the United States in the global talent and investment competitions? Many companies today are transnational and if there is no clear pathway to permanent residency, immigrants and companies will go elsewhere. 

Many believe the US immigration system is tougher than the Canadian system, but Canada in some ways rolls up our welcome mat too. Listen to Chantal, Cathryn, and Erick unpack the US and Canada’s surprisingly dissimilar stances on criminal inadmissibility.  

Other topics include: 

• Marijuana and US immigration. 
• The politicization of legal immigrants vs. refugees. 
• US immigration reform 
• Travel during application processes 
• Humanitarian parole 
• Inter-company transfer visas 

As an immigration practitioner, have you ever felt like you needed an entire workday just to go through your inbox? Instead of feeling overwhelmed, follow Chantal and Cathryn’s tailored time-management tips for immigration practitioners. In this segment of “Things I Wish I Knew,” Chantal and Cathryn discuss, utilizing outlook, managing client expectations concerning communication, farming out work when it is not your speciality, and more.  

Special Guest: Erick Widman, former expat, US immigration lawyer, and founder of Passage Immigration Law in Portland, Oregon. Erick’s firm specializes in both immigration and business Law, helping his clients to live globally and navigate the US immigration processes.

What degree of transparency should we expect from a government body that leverages AI to expedite processes that have a life-changing impact on thousands of people each year? 

The IRCC has introduced the use of artificial intelligence to expedite the processing of immigration applications, with assurances that AI does not have the power to determine or influence the outcome of applications. However, the details of its usage are opaque, and many questions remain unanswered – what exactly is the scope of AI’s current and future contributions? Who are the architects behind its intellect? What rules and information has it been fed?  

In this episode, Mario Bellissimo, Cathryn, and Chantal unpack the risks and possibilities of artificial intelligence as a tool to enhance – or undermine – the effectiveness of our immigration system. While AI offers promising improvements to a system that has been criticized for being slow, inefficient, and “broken,” it also has the potential to create new problems that come at a high cost and take decades to resolve. How can we be certain that AI is not perpetuating hidden biases or introducing new biases through its assessments? What digital privacy protections have been established, if any? Have safeguards been put in place to limit the scope of AI usage and to ensure human oversight?  

Other topics include: 

• Paving the way for AI's transformational impact through robust legislative and regulatory measures 
• Other countries that we can look to as examples of how to successfully integrate AI 
• Embracing transparency and open dialogue in this new era of AI-supported government processes 

In this segment of “Things I Wish I Knew,” what can you do when the volume and complexity of work required for a client expands beyond the scope of the original retainer? Instead of doing too much work for too little money, follow Chantal and Cathryn’s tips for crafting a retainer agreement that will protect you while ensuring clear and open communication with your client. 

Special Guest: Mario Bellissimo, founder of Bellissimo Law Group PC and former Chair of the Canadian Bar Association National Immigration Law Section. Mario's firm is exclusively committed to Canadian citizenship, immigration, and refugee matters, and represents clients from around the world at every stage of the immigration process.

Immigrants make up over 25% of our population and form a critical component of Canada’s workforce. Under Canada’s new immigration plan, we hope to welcome 500,000 new immigrants per year. This could be a tall order as the inherently political nature of Canadian immigration law means frequent and far-reaching policy changes, often made with little to no warning. How can practitioners deal with this lack of legal continuity and help Canada welcome 1.5 million immigrants?

In this episode, Chantal and Cathryn sit down with Andrew Carvajal to discuss the current state of Canada’s economic immigration policy, including the National Occupation Classification’s new TEER system, occupation-specific draws, work permit applications, and more. Will CRS scores continue to fall? What can you do when your client doesn’t meet the education requirement? Will the government favour healthcare workers in express entry draws? The recent extension of COVID-era policy means visitors can continue to apply for work permits inside Canada, but does this mean that they should?   Other topics include: 

• Subspecializing in immigration law. 
• Post-grad work permits. 
• Canada’s caregiver application process. 

Many lawyers opening up their own practice don’t have a business degree but find themselves at the wheel of one of the most complicated small businesses to run. In this segment of “Things I Wish I Knew,” Chantal and Cathryn offer practical guidance on taking your firm to the next level.

Special Guest: Andrew Carvajal, Head of Economic Immigration and Leader of the Latin America (LATAM) group at Desloges Carvajal Law Group in Toronto. Andrew’s practice focuses on all types of business immigration, including work permits, LMIA applications, start-up visas, study permits, visitor visas, citizenship applications, and more.

Has a client ever mentioned why they chose you? Have you ever asked? If you had to guess what matters most to your clients when selecting a legal representative, what do you imagine their answer would be?

In this episode, Chantal and Cathryn explore a client’s perspective and learn about the surprising things that matter most to a client seeking representation in an immigration law case. They interview two Jane Does, anonymous clients who discuss their processes for selecting a lawyer/consultant, describe the behaviours that would immediately disqualify someone, and share their expectations regarding truthfulness, responsiveness, and empathy. If you thought an untarnished track record of success was the most important thing you could advertise to a potential client, think again – it may be time to brush up on your "bedside manner" instead.

Other topics include:

Cultivating an authentic connection with your clients and the role of honesty from both sides – keeping in mind the timeless wisdom of “under-promise and over-deliver."

The importance of empathy when dealing with cases that have life-changing implications for your clients – and how to deliver bad news in the kindest way possible.

A personal story of how Jane Doe dealt with the threat of deportation and how one person made the eventual experience of deportation more tolerable for her.

What should you do when faced with an area of law that you are unfamiliar with? In this segment of “What I Wish I Knew,” Chantal and Cathryn offer their insights into navigating this tricky situation.

Unlimited intake quotas, limited processing targets, inaccurate processing times, and resource constraints all contribute to the massive and seemingly perpetual IRCC backlog. With many cases dragging on for years and being unfairly dismissed or refused, should group litigation be considered to protect applicants' right to procedural fairness and legitimate expectations?

On this episode, we welcome esteemed immigration counsel Pantea Jafari to discuss her federal court case, Tafreshi v. Canada. In 2022, Pantea won a group litigation case involving a backlog of visa applications—most notably from Iranian applicants—unfairly dismissed under the Self-Employed Class. Other topics include:

• Tips and tricks for preparing IRCC documentation: litigating vs. re-applying.
• Mentorship in the immigration law community.
• Managing your caseload.

Have you ever had a client that was over-involved, vengeful, or unresponsive? In this segment of “What I Wish I Knew,” Chantal and Cathryn offer their seasoned strategies for dealing with difficult clients. Special Guest: Pantea Jafari is a founding partner and lead counsel at Jafari Law in Toronto and Halifax. Her expertise spans the entire spectrum of immigration law, and she represents clients in all related matters. Pantea serves on the executive committee of the Ontario Bar Association’s Citizenship and Immigration Section and the board of the Canadian Muslim Lawyers Association.