Law Times

lAw Times • April 11, 2011 Should LSUC have sliding fee scale? Law society levy among key issues in 2011 bencher campaign BY OLIVIA D'ORAZIO For Law Times cation, many candidates are voicing their opinions dur- ing the election campaign on the issues the Law Society of Upper Canada is facing. However, many of those is- sues involve the same worries candidates were fretting over in 2007. Four years later, what has A changed? Access to justice: In a 2007 speech, Supreme Court Chief Justice Beverley McLachlin declared access to justice to be one of the most prominent concerns facing the legal system. A lack of ad- equate funding had led to a slew of self-represented litigants and slowed down an already drawn-out court process. In 2008, Convocation ap- s Osgoode Hall pre- pares to welcome new faces at Convo- But the cost still makes it diffi cult for some lawyers to access programs. For lawyers outside Toronto, a drive to the city for an hour-long seminar isn't a great option. A lecture via webcast can cost $300 and up. But incumbent candidate There's often not enough publicity of more affordable options for continu- ing professional development, says Susan Hare. proved the law society's par- ticipation in the Ontario Civil Legal Needs project, which aimed to develop strategies for helping Ontarians to secure legal representation. In 2010, the LSUC approved guidelines for sponsorship funding. Ear- lier this year, it helped the Pro Bono Law Ontario project at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto. But bencher candidate Lee Akazaki says small communi- ties in northern and eastern Ontario are still under-served. As a result, he wants the govern- ment to provide a tax incentive for lawyers who want to start a business in under-served com- munities. "It's a tax disincentive for lawyers to set up a fi rm in small- er communities," he says. "Th ere's a serious problem with allocating lawyers to small- er communities," he adds. Candidate Bill Burden says that in terms of legal aid, the law society should also be look- ing to the government for as- sistance. "What can be done is to urge the government to fairly compensate lawyers," he says. "It's a funding issue." Burden acknowledges that the increase in self-represented litigants, especially in family law, has become a big problem. "We need to fi nd creative ways of providing access to justice to those people," he says. "Maybe more pro bono, more legal aid, simpler court processes, new rules of procedure geared to the self-represented." Retention of women: Despite high-profi le eff orts, some women continue to fi nd that the law society isn't ad- dressing their unique needs. In 2008, the LSUC approved all nine recommendations of the retention of women in private practice working group. Th ey included launching the Justicia project and the Parental Leave Assistance program. Incumbent bencher Christo- pher Bredt acknowledges that for a sole practitioner, taking time off work to raise a family is diffi cult. Under the paren- tal leave program, up to three months of paid leave is now available to lawyers. Nevertheless, candidate Katherine Henshell says there are still things the law soci- ety can do to address women's needs. "Women have indicated to me at the courthouses that they can't drop their kids off at school and make it to court at 9 a.m.," she says. "Th e law society needs to address the concerns that are raised by women." Candidate Marvin Kurz agrees, adding that women shouldn't face barriers because of the choices they make. In- stead, they should have alterna- tive options available to them, he says. Continuing professional development requirements: A major issue in the 2007 bencher election was the ac- cessibility and aff ordability of continuing professional devel- opment. Since then, the law society has implemented several new options to make it easier for lawyers to achieve their re- quired 12 hours. Susan Hare says many of the eff orts made by the law soci- ety aren't advertised. At the same time, members can of- ten get credit towards the re- quirements through "a small meeting with . . . two or three lawyers [to] discuss profes- sional ethics issues, profes- sional responsibilities or other legal issues." Bencher hopeful Barbara Murchie also supports the educational requirements but says they need to be more af- fordable. She suggests service providers should off er a dis- counted rate for larger groups. If elected, Murchie plans on reviewing and reassessing the requirements after a few years to see how eff ective they've been. "I hope we can work out any kinks so that people can fi nd this valuable instead of cumbersome," she says. LSUC fees: Law society fees have been in- creasing steadily, a concern for some lawyers who don't make a lot of money. In the meantime, bencher candidates are trying to under- stand where the money goes. Ba- sil Alexander, for example, asks whether the law society is mak- ing appropriate use of its bud- get. At the same time, bencher hopeful Mitch Kowalski feels the need for greater transparency at Osgoode Hall. He's calling for a four-year freeze on fees. Candidate Norman Panzica wants to see the law society ease the blow of high fees by off er- ing diff erent rates. LawPRO, he notes, "off ers diff erent rates for diff erent parts of law. I think the law society should do that, too." For her part, Sudha Chan- dra, a sole practitioner running in Toronto, believes that while the large Bay Street fi rms may feel the pinch somewhat, it's the small-fi rm lawyers who are truly hurting. "Th ere should be some kind of discount for small fi rms and sole practitio- ners," she says. "Th ey're the ones who suff er most." Articling positions: At the time of the last bencher elections, 95 per cent of all law school graduates were able to secure an articling position. Two years later, that statistic had dropped by two per cent. As well, the rate of fi rms hiring back their articling stu- dents suff ered a seven-per-cent decrease to 42 per cent in 2009 from 49 per cent in 2007. "I think we as a profession have an ethical obligation to help the younger members of the law society," says candidate Paul Cooper. He off ers a single solution to two problems facing the profes- sion. "We should consider and promote younger members of the bar, whether new calls or students, in smaller regions . . . not only to satisfy the goal of matching people so they can have articling positions [but] to help in the areas of [under service]." SE T A PRECEDENT ELECT MORE BENCHERS WHO REPRESENT THE CHANGING FACE OF THE PROFESSION We need a more diverse convocation that accurately refl ects the range of personal characteristics, backgrounds, professional experiences and challenges faced by all lawyers in this province. I think that I can be a part of that change. In the past, I have worked as a partner with a large law fi rm, crown attorney, and in-house counsel and have served as the President of the Barbra Schlifer Clinic. I currently work as counsel to the Class Proceedings Committee of the Law Foundation of Ontario and serve as a Deputy Small Claims Court Judge and a Director of the Human Rights Legal Support Centre. I have a broad and valuable perspective on the profession and my choices and advocacy demonstrate my sincere commitment to the profession, access to justice, equality, diversity and the retention of women lawyers. The problems faced by the legal profession can only be solved when all voices are heard. Let me speak for you. PAGE 9 PLEASE VISIT MY WEBSITE AT www.ginapapageorgiou.ca for details about me and my platform and feel free to email me at papageorgioug@me.com. GINA PAPAGEORGIOU FOR BENCHER GinaP_LT_Apr4_11.indd 1 www.lawtimesnews.com 4/7/11 11:49:09 AM

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