Donations sought to celebrate the career of lawyer Edward T. Little

A retirement party may not be an option, but that’s not stopping a local law firm from celebrating the career of Ridgetown lawyer Ed Little. Whittal + Company Law Firm, which has opened a permanent location at 80 Erie Street South in Ridgetown, is honouring Mr. Little by launching the Edward T. Little Community Fund through the Chatham-Kent Community Foundation.

Many East and South Kent residents are familiar with Ed Little, a lawyer who has diligently served the community for decades. And as of January 2021, Mr. Little has officially retired, and has passed the reigns to Whittal + Company Law Firm.

Ed was born in Barrie, Ontario, and completed his legal studies at UWO before moving to Chatham-Kent in 1984. Since then, Ed worked to establish a practice that reflected the unique needs of our community – including developing unique expertise in the complex legal work related to farms and agricultural clients.

When Ed and his wife Jan decided that retirement was in his future, he wanted to ensure that the practice he had established in Ridgetown was preserved. So two years ago, he began working with Whittal + Company Law Firm to establish a permanent presence in Ridgetown in order to begin the transition process.

Whittal + Company Law Firm is a local law firm that offers services in real estate law, business law, estate planning, and estate administration. Its principal lawyer, Daniel Whittal, focuses on agricultural and commercial real estate, business and corporate law, and farm and business succession planning. Jocelyn Kraayenbrink, another lawyer in the firm, focuses on estate planning and estate administration, while lawyer Paul Randhawa focuses on residential real estate and estate planning as well. Manuel Mady and Stacey Williams are currently articling students at Whittal + Company Law Firm, and are planning to join their ranks as lawyers as well this spring. With its main office in Chatham, the firm will soon be announcing the opening of a third Chatham-Kent location.

The legal professionals at Whittal + Company Law Firm have spent the last two years working side-by-side with Ed to facilitate the transition, and they are committed to continuing Ed’s legacy of providing excellent legal services in the East and South Kent area.

Ed is not only known for his work as a lawyer. He is also a long-time community volunteer and charitable donor. He is a past member of the Ridgetown Kiwanis Club and a past director for the Ridgetown Minor Hockey Association. In 2013, Ed joined the Chatham-Kent Community Foundation, where he has served as the chair of the foundation, and where he now continues to serve on the board. The goal of the Chatham Kent Community Foundation is to assist in the development of the community through grants to registered charitable organizations which focus on education, health, arts and culture, recreation, social services, heritage and the environment.

As a result of the pandemic, a retirement party was not an option. Instead, Whittal + Company Law Firm has established the Edward T. Little Community Fund in honour of Mr. Little’s decades of work assisting families in Chatham-Kent. The Fund will be administered by the Chatham-Kent Community Foundation, and will be dedicated to the benefit of rural community causes, with a particular focus on the areas in and around Ridgetown, Highgate, Orford, Thamesville, and Blenheim.

Whittal + Company Law Firm is inviting families, businesses, and individuals to contribute to the fund in celebration of Ed Little’s career.

If you’d like to contribute to this fund in recognition of Ed’s incredible contribution to the community, please contact Whittal + Company Law Firm at 519-352-9136, info@whittal.co, meetpathway.ca.