Law Times

Law Times • November 15, 2010 NEWS PAGE 5 McMillan CEO experienced in law firm unions Continued from page 1 as well was a process that took some time," Kent says. Kent credits Tougas and Cranston with doing the legwork that produced a fi nal consensus. "Th e support for a concept built around integration is now overwhelming," he says. At the same time, Lang Michener has practice areas that the current McMillan doesn't, such as its Supreme Court advoca- cy group, that will allow the fi rm to off er a more comprehensive range of services. In the meantime, one advantage Kent has is that he's not lacking in expe- rience with mergers. Th e current version of McMillan emerged from Toronto- based McMillan Binch LLP's combina- tion with Montreal fi rm Mendelsohn in 2005 and a subsequent amalgama- tion with most of the Calgary offi ce of Th ackray Burgess in 2009. "Mendelsohn, for example, was an ethnic fi rm that included a group of younger French-Canadian partners, so we in Toronto had to learn how to accept other systems and a diff erent culture," Kent says. "Th e upshot is that from an attitudinal standpoint, we're much better equipped to be good partners than when we expanded to Montreal." Th ere's no doubt that McMillan has come a long way. "I was involved in the merger discus- sions that took place in 1999 among McMillan Binch, Byers Casgrain, and Bull Housser Tupper," Kent recalls. "I remember some of the partners at Bull Housser saying that they didn't know that the McMillan lawyers were pre- pared to be good partners in the deal. It was obvious that we're going to have to do better on that level in the future." Arguably, the fact that a venerable name like Lang Michener will disap- pear under the McMillan banner au- gurs well for the new enterprise. "We felt we had to use a single name that symbolized a unifi ed fi rm in order to be competitive in the national legal François Tougas (left) and Robert Cranston (right) join Andrew Kent in the McMillan LLP boardroom to announce the merger with Lang Michener LLP. marketplace," Cranston says. For his part, Kent believes the great- est challenge faced by the new fi rm will be creating a trustworthy organization. "It won't happen automatically," he says. "Th e partners will give you the benefi t of the doubt for a while, but ultimately you have to earn a reason- able level of trust in a relatively short time." LT Some lawyers grateful for guidance Continued from page 1 involving a recurring addiction to Percocet since a serious car accident in 1984. It ordered him to pay costs of almost $280,000. Finally, the law society granted Jaikrishin Ambwani permission to resign his LSUC membership after a panel found the Toronto sole practitioner to have knowingly participated in a mortgage fraud involving 17 properties. He also must pay $5,000 in costs. Besides issues related to small-fi rm practitioners, the string of disbarments and dis- ciplinary proceedings in gener- al also raises diversity concerns. Sudevi Mukherjee-Gothi, a partner with Torkin Manes LLP who's also president of the South Asian Bar Association, says lawyers from ethnic mi- norities will often be involved in disciplinary cases against sole practitioners because so many of them end up work- ing alone. In fact, she notes many foreign-trained lawyers come to her for help in fi nd- ing a placement at a larger fi rm but run into roadblocks. "It's very diffi cult for them to get placements when they get their qualifi cations here," she says. "Often, their only recourse is to set up their own shop." Her association has tried to help, however, by setting up a mentorship scheme to match sole practitioners with lawyers at larger fi rms who can help them out with advice and sup- port. "Th ey have very limited resources," Mukherjee-Gothi says. "I'm not using that as an excuse, but there has to be a mechanism in place to provide them better support." When LawPRO presented its most recent report to Convoca- tion in September, it highlighted the continuing trend of increased claims and rising costs per claim. In turn, law society CEO Mal- colm Heins told benchers they must be more proactive about practice reviews. "Our audit program is really the only way we're ever going to get at this issue," he said. "If we can't go in and look at the way people are practising and change the way they practise, we're going to be faced with this issue on an ongoing basis." Miles agrees. "We feel strongly that if we can get out there early, we can help prac- titioners make changes, even if they're small changes, to make them more viable and ensure they avoid any issues in the future," she tells Law Times. Last year, the LSUC changed the selection criteria for the practice-management review program to bring it in line with the percentages of lawyers in- volved in conduct proceedings and negligence claims. Th at has meant a greater focus on recent calls as well as sole and small-fi rm practitioners. But rather than feeling tar- geted, Miles says small-fi rm law- yers are grateful for the guidance they receive during practice re- views. "Although some may be a bit concerned when they get the notice from us, on balance, almost 100 per cent feel it is a really good, positive experience for their practice." One lawyer who has had his own run-ins with the law society is Munyonzwe Hamalengwa. He received a one-month suspen- sion earlier this year for failing to produce his records for examina- tion. He's currently appealing that decision and believes law- yers from minority groups are being targeted. "Th ere are hardly any black lawyers in Toronto who have not experienced some kind of investigation or discipline," he says. Hamalengwa also feels small- fi rm practitioners get too much attention more generally from the law society. Although large-fi rm lawyers may account for fewer LawPRO claims, he says the cost to the profession is balanced by the greater value of their cases. According to McCallum, the upheaval of a practice re- view can have a signifi cant ef- fect on small-fi rm lawyers. "If it takes a day, that's 20 per cent of my income for the week gone," he says. LT Engaging Unionized Employees Employee Morale and Productivity Blaine Donais How to build a more productive working relationship This is the first book dedicated to employee engagement in the unionized work environment. It gives you the practical tools and guidance necessary to achieve an engaged unionized workforce. This book: • analyzes the strengths and weaknesses of various levels of union involvement in the workplace and offers advice on when to choose the appropriate type of involvement • places employee engagement in the context of past, present and future relationships between the employer, the union and employees • explains how unions work and how they represent their membership Order your copy today Perfectbound • Approx. 180 pp. November 2010 • $54 P/C 0122010000 ISBN 978-0-88804-510-2 • explores how various levels of union involvement in the workplace will have an impact on employee engagement • examines prominent unionized employee engagement efforts in North America • provides useful advice for every kind of workplace looking to engage unionized employees It also includes practical templates, diagrams and checklists to help get you started! canadalawbook.ca For a 30-day, no-risk evaluation call: 1.800.565.6967 Canada Law Book, a Thomson Reuters business. Prices subject to change without notice, to applicable taxes and shipping & handling. LT1115 www.lawtimesnews.com Photo: Paul Lawrence

• Cover
• For The Defence
• End Of An Era
• Focus On Labour and Employment Law