Our Team

Walid S. Chiniara, Esq. is the founder of Chiniara & Co. He is an international finance lawyer, an artisan, and a thought leader in the field of governance, its history, and philosophical foundation.

 

After 15 exciting years practicing law across several jurisdictions, Walid spent the last 25+ years serving families in business, looking to preserve and grow their Wealth in the hands of future generations.

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He worked alongside over 165 iconic families from around the world, building family offices, managing conflict, and devising family-specific tools, tailored to address their needs and those of the rising NxGen. He still acts as homme de confiance to many of them.

 

Over the years, Walid forged himself a reputation as the go-to person for mission impossible family business succession planning, and the 7-Step Methodology™ he has developed has been recognized by his peers as a game changer. For many, it has become the family business succession planning tool par excellence.

 

He is an accredited Mediator and a member of the Quebec Bar. He is also, an associate member at Outer Temple Chambers, in the UK, a fellow at the Institute for Corporate Governance, ESCP Business School, Paris, France, and a member of the Family Firm Institute (FFI), the Society of Trust and Estate Planners (STEP), and The International Academy of Trust and Estate Law (TIAETL).​

 

Walid is the recipient of many prestigious awards, a published author, and a regular guest speaker at a number of regional and international forums.

He recently shared his experience in a book titled: Dynastic planning: a 7-Step Approach to Family Business Succession Planning and Related Conflict Management.