Law Times

Move towards entity regulation gathers steam BY Yamri Taddese and donalee moulTon f the Law Society of Upper Canada starts regulating law firms, one specific area for firm compliance could be trust ac- count management, a new report suggests. Law societies in Nova Scotia and Alberta have specific com- pliance rules regarding firm trust accounts, according to the interim report penned by a committee looking into a framework for en- tity regulation for consideration by Convocation. "The Nova Scotia Barristers' Society requires an annual law firm report and a specific trust account report, which must be signed by at least four partners of the firm," according to the LSUC report. "The Law Society of Al- berta requires a number of specific controls on trust accounts." Overall, the report touts the benefits of regulating law firms. "Entity regulation would permit a more proactive, compliance- based approach for firms. In other jurisdictions, compliance-based regulation has been found to have a significant positive effect on the number of complaints received about a firm and its licensees. Es- tablishing regulatory objectives for entities may improve practice and therefore better protect clients and the public interest." The report comes as the push for entity regulation gathers steam, particularly in Nova Scotia, and is a development some lawyers are welcoming. "Even as a signalizing device, it's very interesting to see Ontario considering this because I do think this is the regulatory way of the future," says Jordan Furlong. "It's a great approach. It's a wel- come change in how we view the purpose of regulation of lawyers and regulation of legal services," he adds. "I like the fact that it's proactive." In light of the current consider- ation of alternative business struc- tures at the law society, pondering entity regulation is more impor- tant than ever, according to Fur- long, who notes entity regulation would allow the LSUC to regulate the provision of legal services by ARE YOU RECEIVING CANADIAN LEGAL NEWSWIRE? Keep abreast of essential late-breaking legal news and developments with our electronic newswire. VISIT OUR WEBSITE WWW.CANADIANLAWYERMAG.COM AND LOOK UNDER "LINKS" SIGN UP FOR FREE From the publisher of and Untitled-5 1 14-05-27 1:38 PM A closer look at Dentons merger with U.S. firm Lots of cross-border potential despite departures from McKenna Long BY Julius melniTzer For Law Times lthough uncertainties continue to revolve around the recent merger of Dentons and McKenna Long & Al- dridge LLP, what seems clear is the U.S. firm's pow- erful connections to Canada will greatly strengthen Dentons Canada LLP's cross-border practice. The glue in the ointment is Gordon Giffin, the U.S. ambassa- dor to Canada from 1997 to 2001, who leads McKenna Long & Al- dridges's public policy and international practice. A partner based in Washington and Atlanta, he boasts extensive experience at the state and federal levels in regulatory and administrative litigation in the energy, technology, and telecommunications fields; govern- ment procurement counselling and litigation; public policy strate- gic counselling and advocacy; corporate compliance counselling and internal audits; election law; international transactions; and trade matters, including trade disputes and policy counselling. "We have a team that spans the border and understands the bor- der," Giffin tells Law Times. "With this merger, we will harmonize seamless teams of Cana- dian and U.S. lawyers to deal with cross-border matters in the con- text of a strategic vision that embraces a North American law firm." Giffin, who has a two decades-old relationship with Dentons Canada and its predecessor Fraser Milner Casgrain LLP, spends 40 per cent of his time in Canada and expects to spend "more time than ever" here going forward. employee expertS Court pronounces on qualification to testify P5 FoCUS oN Aboriginal Law P8 See Nova, page 4 'It's a welcome change in how we view the purpose of regulation of lawyers and regula- tion of legal services,' says Jordan Furlong. PM #40762529 & $#&!&jmmm$cYa[bbWh$Yec ntitled-4 1 12-03-20 10:44 AM $5.00 • Vol. 26, No. 15 May 4, 2015 Follow LAW TIMES on www.twitter.com/lawtimes L AW TIMES A I Hersh Perlis was among the speakers at the official opening of the Legal Innovation Zone at Ryerson University on Wednesday. Perlis is director of the new legal incubator, which offers working space and resources in order to help entrepreneurs develop their ideas and assists law firms and companies to make their innovations a reality. Photo: Robin Kuniski See Initial, page 4 legal incubator launches eleCtioN reSUltS List of the winners P16

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