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BY PATRICIA CANCILL A Law Times THE Law Society of Ontario is overhauling the role of parale- gals in family law and bencher election candidates and voters have responded on Twitter about what they think about the issue. See their comments on the LSO expanding the scope of fam- ily law matters paralegals can address as well as other issues here and on Twitter by checking out the #BencherElection2019 hashtag. LT BY JULIUS MELNITZER For Law Times IN the last bencher election, in 2015, all 22 incumbent lawyer benchers that ran for re-election kept their seats in Convocation, of 40 available spots, according to statistics from the Law Society of Ontario analyzed by Law Times. With the bencher election coming later this month and a record-setting number of can- didates, hopefuls are addressing whether incumbents have an advantage. The voting period is from April 15 to April 30 in what will be the first joint election for both lawyer and paralegal benchers, with 40 spots for benchers and five for paralegals. Signa Daum Shanks, a pro- fessor at Osgoode Hall Law School and a bencher candidate, says people do not necessarily have to be incumbents to win in elections. "Statistically, incumbents reg- ularly do win, but I'd say there are so many people that have ended up in position or won an election that have a story where an incumbent has not won." This election cycle, incum- bent and former benchers have both informally and formally endorsed some of the new talent entering the race. Daum Shanks says she doesn't have a budget or marketing of- fice spearheading her campaign and notes that Indigenous prac- tices make the process of seeking endorsements different for her. While the incumbents' advan- tage is usually chalked up to name familiarity, Daum Shanks says that, although name familiar- ity and incumbency may overlap, they are two independent factors. "Let's say somebody is quite well known and they are a new candidate. How their fame com- pares to an incumbent is any- body's guess. So, I think that's why all of us are wanting to meet PM #40762529 BY ANITA BAL AKRISHNAN Law Times MASTERS hearing Construc- tion Lien Act cases do not have the same "enhanced powers" of authority as a judge, Justice Ed- ward Belobaba said in a March 14 decision. In R & V Construction v. Baradaran, 2019 ONSC 1551, Belobaba set aside a master's or- der, which had ruled in favour of the plaintiff and awarded the plaintiff more than $78,000. The case, a dispute about a 2016 home renovation project be- tween plaintiff R & V Construc- tion Management Inc. and de- fendant Manoucher Baradaran, should have proceeded with a trial, Belobaba wrote in the deci- sion. Ken Wise, who represented the defendant and the success- ful moving party in the decision, says the decision has implica- tions in the construction law area and, more broadly, in its analysis of the roles of the judi- ciary and the legislature. "His decision may be disrup- Masters denied judges' 'enhanced powers' Ken Wise says the decision has implications both in construction law and in its analysis of the roles of the judiciary and the legislature. Do incumbents have an edge? Paralegals and lawyers debate online See This, page 2 See Should, page 3 See CLA, page 2 David Scott 'A staggering loss' page 5 Steel safeguards Report coming page 4 COVERING ONTARIO'S LEGAL SCENE | APRIL 1, 2019 | WWW.LAWTIMESNEWS.COM | VOL. 30, NO. 12 | $5.00 AG role Controversy not new page 7 page 9 Signa Daum Shanks says people do not necessarily have to be incumbents to win a seat at Convocation. Photo: Laura Pedersen & $#&!&jmmm$cYa[bbWh$Yec ntitled-4 1 12-03-20 10:44 AM cLeishOrlando_LT_Oct29_18.indd 1 2018-10-25 7:52 AM The Bencher Election is April 30th Visit our new micro-site devoted to the upcoming LSO Bencher Election with news coverage, candidate profiles and advertising opportunities for bencher candidates. Connect with all facets of the bencher election and make an informed decision by visiting BencherElection.ca today. Untitled-1 1 2019-03-05 1:51 PM Special Bencher Election Issue