Law Times

Page 2 June 29, 2015 • Law Times www.lawtimesnews.com A closer look at law society voting patterns Statistics show Ottawa lawyers, sole practitioners less likely to turn out BY TALI FOLKINS Law Times hen it comes to making sense of voter turnout figures for this year's Law Society of Upper Canada bencher elections, it seems the devil is in the details. When it comes to voter turnout as a whole, universal disappointment in the numbers seems to be the rule. Turnout this year was just under 34 per cent of eligible voters, a number that was down from 37 per cent in 2011 and ref lects the continuation of a negative trend since 1987 when 56 per cent of them cast a ballot. Participation seems to be sliding across the board, figures recently re- leased by the law society suggest. A statistical analysis accompanying the election results released by the LSUC divides voters along various lines — by sex, year of birth and call, size of firm, membership status, and region — but virtually all of them show the same de- clining trend. However, that's not to say patterns don't emerge and identifying them could be key to reversing the decline, some election observers suggest. Michael Ras, director of public af- fairs for the County & District Law Presidents' Association, says the orga- nization, which put on a pre-election push for voter turnout, was especially disappointed with the results and has been looking hard at what may have motivated lawyers in various categories and regions to vote or not. Participation, Ras notes, can vary significantly across regions. Ontario's northwest region led the way, as it has traditionally done, with a turnout of almost 43 per cent. The lowest turnout was in the east region at 31 per cent. Per- haps not surprisingly, variances at the county and district level are consider- ably higher. Huron County, for exam- ple, saw a whopping turnout of 60 per cent whereas Lennox and Addington County saw only 14 per cent of eligible voters casting ballots. It's important to note, however, that both areas have a small number of voters with just 68 of them in Huron County and 35 in Len- nox and Addington. The turnout for the Ottawa-Carleton Regional Municipality, however, has some people at CDLPA scratching their heads, according to Ras. At just under 30 per cent, turnout in the nation's capi- tal, an area home to 5,111 eligible voters, was well below the average. One theory, according to Ras, is that lawyers em- ployed by the federal government may feel less of a need to participate in law society affairs. But Steven Gaon, principal of dis- pute resolution firm ADR Ottawa Inc. and president of the County of Carleton Law Association, says he hasn't seen any evidence to support that theory. Many of his members, he says, noted they felt overwhelmed by the sheer volume of e-mails from candidates. "There was al- most too much information to the point where the message got lost," he says. Voter apathy, he adds, seems to be on the rise across the board. "People have lost sight of the role that benchers serve. We share the same concerns the LSUC has [about turnout]. We're just not sure of the solution." The law society's statistics on turn- out by membership status actually show that members identifying themselves as employed with the government had relatively high turnout. In 2015, almost 36 per cent of them voted. In some high-participation areas, such as the northwest with its smaller towns, personal touch probably plays a role, says Ras. "The president [of the district asso- ciation] or whoever could call the list [of lawyers in the district] and make it hap- pen," or a district may have only a few dozen lawyers who often run into one another at the courthouse so that any- one wanting to urge them to vote could easily get the word out, he notes. Male members have traditionally had higher turnout rates than women, but the gap is closing, the statistics show. This year, almost 36 per cent of male eligible voters cast ballots versus 31 per cent of women. In 1987, male turnout was significantly higher at 58 per cent versus 44 per cent for women. Turnout varies also by date of birth. In 2015, the highest rate of participation was among those born in the 1950s (40 per cent) followed by the 1940s (37 per cent). Younger voters were below the average, but those born in the 1980s outvoted those born in the '70s. The numbers, according to Ras, may ref lect concerted efforts through social media and other means to get younger mem- bers to vote. Size of firm also affected turnout. Participation was lowest (36 per cent) among sole practitioners and trended roughly upwards with firm size. Firms with 76 to 100 employees topped the list with a striking turnout of almost 78 per cent. "My speculation is that firms of 76 to 100 . . . are large enough to have some substance but small enough so that ev- eryone knows the managing partner," says Ras. "The managing partner walks around and says, 'Maybe you should vote today.' I think it has an impact." Noel Semple, a law professor at the University of Windsor currently work- ing on a study of LSUC bencher elec- tions, says voter turnout for any group tends to depend on why its members feel their vote matters and any investment they feel they have in the outcome. But the nature of the constituency system, he says, can inf luence those factors. For example, the law society's constituency system is geographical only with voters selecting candidates from inside and outside Toronto. Other law societies have more complex constituency sys- tems recognizing, for example, groups such as young lawyers. That's impor- tant, says Semple, because many lawyers identify more with their own area of law than the profession as a whole. "If we had an electoral system that gave representation to different seg- ments in the profession . . . lawyers would be more likely to vote," says Semple. LT NEWS Criminal law firms putting greater focus on online presence BY SHANNON KARI For Law Times ith its use of red and blue lighting, black and white photos of lawyers, and ex- posed brick, Ottawa crim- inal defence firm Abergel Goldstein & Partners LLP has a distinct online pres- ence. "It is more Batman, Dark Knight, less Batman, Tim Burton era," says Michael Spratt, a partner at the firm. While Ottawa may not necessarily have the same brooding intrigue as Go- tham City, the style of the firm's web site and the image it's trying to convey were a source of considerable thought and ef- fort, he says. "This is more than modern Yellow Pages," says Spratt. "We wanted the site to ref lect that we are younger, we are modern and not stuffy yet we still have experience." The Ottawa firm isn't alone in the criminal defence field in Ontario in finding that a modern online presence is increasingly important from a brand and business perspective. Firms and sole practitioners are producing sophisticated web sites that go beyond phrases about fighting for clients, posing for a photo in front of a courthouse, and stock images related to crime. Philip Tsang, a partner at Clutch Mar- keting, notes there are different marketing issues at play for defence lawyers than, for example, those practising in the personal injury field. "In personal injury, you are all offence," says Tsang, whose company has designed sites for a number of firms, including Henein Hutchison LLP and Greenspan Partners LLP. Criminal defence may require a more subtle marketing style, but it's still essen- tial to have a modern online presence, says Tsang. Prospective clients are more likely to do online research before contacting any defence lawyer, he suggests. "In that first impression, it is important to define your brand, what kind of lawyer you are, what kind of firm you are," says Tsang. Craig Bottomley, a defence lawyer at Pringle & Bottomley in Toronto, agrees that a modern online presence is key. "The way I see our web site is as a complex business card," says Bottomley. While a potential client may not make a decision based on a web site, it's another way of showing the firm is the right one for the case, he adds, noting the visual element is important. A defence firm's web site must also be mobile friendly, says Tsang, because people increasingly browse on phones and other mobile devices. "If the web site is not mobile friendly, it says something about your firm," he adds. Another issue for defence lawyers is how to show they're getting results in court without breaching any issues of con- fidentiality to clients. "We take that very seriously," says Bottomley. His firm has a list of success stories on its web site. It lists the cases by initials only with a brief synopsis but no link to any judgment that would identify the client. Some defence lawyers, meanwhile, are increasingly present on social media with commentary on cases and legal issues ei- ther on sites such as Twitter or through blogs. Bottomley isn't sure of the business value of social media for a defence lawyer. "Criminal clients are not following your tweets or your blog," he says. But Tsang says social media may have its benefits. "It is a way to build your own reputation in the long term. It is about be- coming a thought leader," he notes. Spratt is very active on social media and in writing about current legal issues. Ab- ergel Goldstein also has a blog with com- mentary by lawyers at the firm. "As issues get more complex, it is a plat- form to add your voice to the discussion," says Spratt. Speaking to the media also has benefits for lawyers who do it properly. "We are not chasing ambulances but are we saying, for example, there are problems with our bail system? This is commentary in a constructive way," he says. LT W W Abergel Goldstein & Partners LLP's web site features dark images of its lawyers set against bleak backdrops.

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