Law Times

Visit carswell.com or call 1.800.387.5164 for a 30-day no-risk evaluation )BSECPVOEȕ1VCMJTIFE'FCSVBSZFBDIZFBS 0OTVCTDSJQUJPOȕ- 0OFUJNFQVSDIBTFȕ- .VMUJQMFDPQZEJTDPVOUTBWBJMBCMF 1SJDFTTVCKFDUUPDIBOHFXJUIPVUOPUJDF]UPBQQMJDBCMFUBYFTBOETIJQQJOHIBOEMJOH CANADIAN LAW LIST 2014 :063*/45"/5$0//&$5*0/50$"/"%"Ȏ4-&("-/&5803, ȕ BOVQUPEBUFBMQIBCFUJDBMMJTUJOH ȕ DPOUBDUJOGPSNBUJPO ȕ MFHBMBOEHPWFSONFOUDPOUBDUJOGPSNBUJPO .03&5)"/"1)0/�, CLL-Dir_LT_Feb10_14.indd 1 14-01-31 12:11 PM Lawyer describes 'craziest legal odyssey' Mystery over laneway owner sends him on quest to find heirs estled between the shores of the Credit River and Mississauga Road, Glatt's Lane is a quiet, discreet little stretch next to seven picturesque homes in Mississauga, Ont., that became the unlikely sub- ject of a lawyer's legal odyssey recently. It began in 2012 when the city's electricity provider, Enersource Corp., said it couldn't service the laneway any- more because it didn't have permission from its owner to replace rotten hydro poles. e situation le the residents of the small neighbourhood perplexed. Residents, who weren't fully aware of the private owner- ship of the laneway, faced many questions: Who's the owner of Glatt's Lane and, more importantly, where is that person? Real estate lawyer Tony Nguyen, a resident of Glatt's Lane, couldn't have predicted then that those questions would be the start of "the craziest legal odyssey" he's ever been on. Nor did he know the Glatt's Lane's quagmire would send him down the path of 87 years of history and inheritance issues while solving tricky legal questions along the way. To legally do work on Glatt's Lane, Enersource needed an easement, says Nguyen. "We were in a catch-22 because in order to grant the easement, we had to own the laneway." Transfer documents Nguyen gathered named Charlotte Muriel Hill as the owner of the laneway. But the transfer dated back to 1926. "How do you fi nd someone from 87 years ago?" Nguyen asks. He searched Hill's name on Google without any luck. He then came up with several possible legal alternatives to fi nding the owner of the laneway but also to no avail. Nguyen called certifi ed real estate specialist Alan Sil- verstein, who suggested getting a declaration order from a judge on the basis that he couldn't fi nd Hill's heirs. But soon, the two fi gured a judge would ask them how hard they'd tried to fi nd the descendants before issuing a declaration. Back on Google, Nguyen did more searches. Finally, he found something about Hill's husband, Clarence Bruce Hill, a First World War veteran. One web site says Clarence Hill of Ottawa received his fi rst military cross "for conspic- uous gallantry in action in April 1918." Later, Nguyen would fi nd out Charlotte Hill had served in the Red Cross. Further research and more Internet miracles led Nguyen to the Hills' three children: Heather, Peter, and Trevor. Paralegal advertising under the microscope paralegal in Toronto is facing a potential mis- conduct hearing over al- legations that his "we win or it's free" claim in his online adver- tising is misleading to clients. e notice of application is- sued last month by the Law Society of Upper Canada against Benito (Benny) Zappia is believed to be one of the fi rst times online adver- tising by a paralegal has been at the centre of misconduct allegations. In the competitive paralegal in- dustry in Ontario, it's not uncom- mon to see web sites where fi rms make broad claims about their success rates, describe themselves as traffi c ticket specialists or of- fer unverifi able testimonials from former clients. For example, on the web site of one paralegal fi rm, a person identifi ed only by his fi rst name states the fi rm "got me off even though I was guilty." e term specialist is "reserved for lawyers with the certifi ed spe- cialist designation," says Susan Tonkin, a spokeswoman for the law society. ere are no ongoing discipline proceedings involving the use of the word "specialist" in online advertis- ing and the law society doesn't pro- actively monitor this type of mar- keting. "Licensees who make claims that may contravene these rules may be brought to our attention via complaints from the profession and the public," says Tonkin. e president of the Paralegal Society of Ontario says it urges its members to "stay within the rules" in advertising and not to try to test the boundaries of what they can do. John Tzanis notes the law so- ciety web site provides clear infor- mation about acceptable market- ing and urges paralegals to look to it for guidance. Christine Stover, a paralegal in southwestern Ontario who also teaches an ethics course for parale- gals at Fanshawe College, suggests the large number of people in the profession in Ontario may have an impact on how some individuals advertise. "You are trying to make a living. Everyone is on a razor's edge. CONSTRUCTION LAW Province fails to consult on new bill P7 FOCUS ON Class Actions P8 Tony Nguyen searched far and wide to secure ownership of Glatt's Lane after discovering the owner had died many years back. Photo: Laura Pedersen See Ads, page 5 See Heir, page 5 The Paralegal Society of Ontario urges its mem- bers to 'stay within the rules' in their advertis- ing, says John Tzanis. PM #40762529 & $#&!&jmmm$cYa[bbWh$Yec ntitled-4 1 12-03-20 10:44 AM $4.00 • Vol. 25, No. 13 April 7, 2014 Follow LAW TIMES on www.twitter.com/lawtimes l aw TIMes l aw TIMes BY SHANNON KARI For Law Times A BY YAMRI TADDESE Law Times N LEGAL WRANGLING Heydary's clients face action over fees P4

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