FirstService appoints Peter F. Cohen Chairman, Board of Directors

TORONTO, May 18 /CNW/ - Jay S. Hennick, President and Chief Executive
Officer of FirstService Corporation (NASDAQ: FSRV; TSX: FSV) today announced
the appointment of Peter F. Cohen to the position of Chairman of the company's
Board of Directors. Mr. Cohen was a founding member of the board of
FirstService and formerly Lead Director.
"We are delighted with the appointment of Peter Cohen as our new
Chairman," said Hennick. "As FirstService evolves we will continue to augment
our senior management and board to ensure the highest level of accountability
to our shareholders. We always strive to be leaders in the important area of
corporate governance and in accordance with industry best practices we have
separated the roles of Chairman and CEO."
Mr. Cohen, who replaces Mr. Hennick as Chairman, is the President and CEO
of the Dawsco Group, a private real estate and investment company owned by Mr.
Cohen and his family. Mr. Cohen is also the Chairman and a significant owner
of Hazelton Hotels International Corporation which is currently developing The
Hazelton Hotel and Private Residences, a five star hotel project in Toronto,
and the Building Value Limited Partnership, a private equity investment fund.
Mr Cohen was a co-founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Centrefund
Realty Corporation, a publicly traded shopping centre investment company until
August 2000 when control of the company was sold. Mr. Cohen is a Chartered
Accountant by profession and serves as a member of a number of private and  
non-profit charitable boards.
"I would like to thank the board for this tremendous vote of confidence
and I look forward to carrying out my new role in this impressive success
story that is FirstService," said Cohen. "We have just completed another
record year of growth and we remain committed to our disciplined strategic
approach towards creating long-term shareholder value."

FirstService and Corporate Governance
-------------------------------------
The appointment of Mr. Cohen is one of several recent moves by the
company to assert its leadership in the important area of corporate
governance. FirstService has been recognized with "high marks" in recent years
by several independent reviews of corporate governance. The FirstService
Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee is lead by David R. Beatty who
is also Managing Director of the Canadian Coalition for Good Governance. Mr.
Beatty is a professor at the Rotman School of Business at the University of
Toronto and a respected leader in the area of good governance in North
American academic and business circles.
In late 2004, FirstService added strength to its board of directors with
the appointment of Bernard Ghert as a new director. Mr. Ghert brought 30 years
of senior leadership experience and expert counsel within the investment and
property management industries and substantial experience in financial and
real estate services to the FirstService board. Mr. Ghert was previously
President, Chief Executive Officer of The Cadillac Fairview Corporation
Limited from 1981 to 1987 and President of Stelworth Investments Inc. from
1987 to 1992.
Earlier this year, FirstService also appointed Michael Natale to the
position of Vice-President, Performance and Risk Management. Mr. Natale is a
seasoned professional with experience in the critical functions of internal
audit, corporate governance, financial risk management and regulatory
compliance. Prior to his appointment, he advised FirstService and other
leading companies during his tenure at Jefferson Wells, where he was
instrumental in assisting companies meet the requirements of Sarbanes-Oxley.

About FirstService
------------------
FirstService is a leader in the rapidly growing service sector, providing
services to commercial and residential customers in the areas of: residential
property management; commercial real estate; integrated security services;
property improvement services; and business services. Market-leading brands
include Continental, Wentworth and Prime Management in residential property
management services; Colliers International in commercial real estate;
Intercon and SST in integrated security services; California Closets, Paul
Davis Restoration, Pillar to Post Home Inspections, Certa Pro Painters and
College Pro Painters in property improvement services; and Resolve Corporation
in business services.
FirstService is a diversified service company with annual revenues of
more than US$1 billion in annualized revenue and approximately
16,000 employees. More information about FirstService is available at
www.firstservice.com.

Forward-looking Statements
--------------------------
Certain statements included in this release and in the presentation to be
made by the Company constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning
of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (the "Reform
Act"). Such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks,
uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results,
performance or achievements of the Company, or industry results, to be
materially different from any future results, performance or achievements
expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such factors include,
among others, the following: general economic and business conditions, which
will, among other things, impact demand for the Company's services, service
industry conditions and capacity; the ability of the Company to implement its
business strategy, including the Company's ability to acquire suitable
acquisition candidates on acceptable terms and successfully integrate newly
acquired businesses with its existing businesses; changes in or the failure to
comply with government regulations (especially safety and environmental laws
and regulations); and other factors which are described in the Company's
filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.