Law Times

HIGHER TAXES New group has budget remedy P2 MEDICAL NEGLIGENCE Why do cases take so long? P6 FOCUS ON ADR/Mediation P9 $4.00 • Vol. 23, No.12 ntitled-2 1 COVERING ONTARIO'S LEGAL SCENE • WWW.LAWTIMESNEWS.COM L AW TIMES 7/7/11 9:10:05 AM ntitled-4 1 BY KENDYL SEBESTA Law Times O ntario deputy attorney general Murray Segal is leaving the government for private practice at Simcoe Chambers in Toronto, Law Times has learned. On June 1, Segal, who has served as deputy attorney general since 2004, will become counsel at the group of law fi rms and sole practitioners focusing on criminal law. Th e seasoned public servant will be working with criminal lawyers Bill Trudell of William Trudell Profes- sional Corp. and Joe Di Luca and Peter Copeland of Di Luca Copeland LLP and will provide consultations and services in the areas of mediation, professional regula- tion, government relations, and aboriginal matters. Segal will leave his position as deputy attorney general on May 31. Th e Ministry of the Attorney General has yet to an- nounce Segal's successor. It noted in a statement that it's cur- rently in the recruitment process. Th at process will likely take some time to complete, says Trudell. "How diffi cult for the ministry must that be," he says. "Th ey would have to invent him again. I'm sure he'll be greatly missed. He's like the Beatles in that way. Th ere's not a single criminal justice issue he hasn't been involved with, not just provincially but nationally as well. Th e more I speak to him, the more I realize the level of responsibility he's had. He's been at the centre of many, many major decisions." Segal joined the Crown law offi ce's criminal division April 2, 2012 12-03-20 10:44 AM Murray Segal leaving public sector Deputy AG set to join Toronto's Simcoe Chambers as counsel immediately aſt er his call to the bar and became direc- tor in 1990. Seven years later, the government appointed him assistant deputy attorney general for the ministry's criminal law division and chief prosecutor for the prov- ince of Ontario. During his tenure at the Crown law offi ce's criminal di- vision, Segal was involved in several high-profi le cases in Ontario, including the matters involving killers Paul Ber- nardo and Karla Homolka. Bernardo was convicted in 1995 of kidnapping, rap- ing, and murdering teenagers Kristen French and Leslie Mahaff y. Homolka pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the deaths in exchange for a 12-year prison sentence. Au- thorities released her from prison amid a public outcry in 2005. Segal was director of the Crown law offi ce at the time of the original proceedings. At the ministry, Segal was known as a mentor, friend, and tough prosecutor with a special interest in transform- ing Ontario's approach to guns and gangs. During his tenure, Segal helped create the guns and gangs task force, re-established the province's law reform commission, and spearheaded eff orts related to Project Truth, a public in- quiry into sexual abuse allegations in Cornwall, Ont. Trudell, who has known Segal for more than 30 years, Murray Segal will leave the Ministry of the Attorney General on May 31. says he's looking forward to welcoming his new colleague. "We're a really energetic mix of lawyers here, and I know we'll be even more so with Murray. His quiet demeanor masks an incredibly intelligent individual. Th ere are a lot of people here who will be really glad to have someone who is so wise and has seen his level of responsibility both provincially and nationally." See Segal, page 4 BY KENDYL SEBESTA Law Times O ntario's chief justice put the re- sponsibility squarely at the feet of the bar last week in a call on lawyers to do more to address a looming "meltdown in the courts." Although Chief Justice Warren Winkler de- voted much of his speech on March 28 to high- lighting the progress Ontario has made towards increasing access to justice and distinguishing the province's courts from those struggling in New York, he quickly turned to the bar's role with his suggestions that Bay Street fi rms forgo their fl ashy suits and cars for their "moral duty" to represent the poor. Winkler, joined by New York Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman and Law Society of Upper Canada Treasurer Laurie Pawlitza, made the comments during a question-and-answer ses- sion during the Ontario Bar Association's joint summit with the New York State Bar Associa- tion in downtown Toronto Wednesday aſt er- noon. Th e event, which focused on cross-border legal issues, continued in Buff alo the next day. During the session, the judges called on the bar to cut costs and do more to tackle access- to-justice issues. In his view, Ontario is facing a "meltdown in the courts" that warrants such comments. Lawyers, however, responded that there isn't any fat to trim from their budgets or practices. For his part, Winkler acknowl- edged the bar's frustration during the session but refused to back down from his recom- mendations. "We need to address cases on a subject-matter basis, simplify our rules of practice to decrease court backlog, address each problem with an understanding of the costs involved so that clients aren't surprised by heſt y bills and can negotiate set fees where necessary, and we need to off er incentives to our bar that reward them for producing good results," Winkler said during his speech. But Ontario and New York lawyers at- tending the session were quick to share their frustration with Winkler's suggestions, saying signifi cant cuts to their costs would be hard to muster. "I fi nd in New York there is more sup- port and operations are less expensive," said Heather John, a cross-border corporate lawyer at H.D. John in Toronto. "I, and I'm sure many of the people here, have done a lot of things that you have suggested and the judiciary has suggested over the years, and it would be hard to imagine what else we can cut. I think we need more support and mentoring in Ontario and a signifi cant cut in fees to cover our over- head if these changes are to be implemented." See Ontario, page 4 www.lawtimesnews.com KPI_LT_Mar26_12.indd 1 12-03-20 10:58 AM PM #40762529 Winkler lectures bar about access to justice

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