Law Times

Law timeS • September 28, 2009 NEWS Clinic lawyers doing good work here also helping out overseas 'I was the one who really benefited,' lawyer says BY JULIUS MELNITZER For Law Times I t's well known that the 80 in- dependent, community-based clinics funded by Legal Aid Ontario provide poverty-law ser- vices addressing the needs of the province's low-income popula- tion. But what isn't so obvious is that among the lawyers who staff these clinics is a group bringing a unique international perspective to their work. "I know of four or fi ve lawyers in the system who have taken the time to do some very chal- lenging 'improve the world' sort of work in remote places," says Ann McRae, a lawyer and liaison offi cer for LAO. Among them are Yedida Za- lik, a lawyer at South Etobicoke Community Legal Services, who has worked in Swaziland and Bosnia as well as at a refugee resettlement project for Burun- dian and Congolese refugees in Tanzania; Emma van Leusden of Kensington-Bellwoods Commu- nity Legal Services in Toronto, who spent nine months in South Africa assisting with law reform and community legal education projects; David Balderston, exec- utive director of the Grey-Bruce Community Legal Clinic, who helped set up legal aid clinics in China; Nina Hall, also at Kens- ington-Bellwoods, who during a year in Afghanistan helped to instruct law students and set up a school for lawyers and judges; and Shibil Siddiqi of Neighbour- hood Legal Services in Toronto. She worked in Pakistan for about a year on legal reform projects. Zalik, who had been overseas with the World University Ser- vice of Canada before attending law school and spent some time in Bosnia while studying law, felt the urge to go abroad again after articling with Toronto's Koskie Minsky LLP and spending al- most two years at Keewaytinok Native Legal Services working with the Cree community at LAO's northernmost clinic. She approached the Offi ce of the United Nations High Com- missioner for Refugees, which sent her to Tanzanian refugee camps to work with the senior resettlement offi cer. "We interviewed cases that we identifi ed as having protec- tion concerns and therefore might meet resettlement criteria," she says. "Th en, we'd write up reports making the case in support of our recommendation." When Canadian and Australian envoys came to camp to reinterview those recommended for resettle- ment, Zalik would host them. "I was originally on a three- month contract but stayed for nine months," she says. "It was an op- portunity for learning and a privi- lege to work with refugees who've survived what they survived. I don't like the word humanitarian to describe what I was doing. I was the one who really benefi ted." Interestingly, Zalik earned more than she makes in her cur- rent job. "I remember telling the senior protection lawyer that in Canada, non-profi t is really non- profi t," she says. For her part, van Leusden went to South Africa in 2006 through the Canadian Bar Association's international development com- mittee, which administers a pro- gram for lawyers under 30 fund- ed by the Canadian International Development Agency. "Th ey randomly placed me in Grahamstown, which was a small community," van Leusden recalls. "I had always been interested Faskens merges with French firm BY ROBERT TODD Law Times F asken Martineau DuMoulin LLP expanded its global reach last week by announcing a merger with a Paris fi rm. Th e deal with Gravel Leclerc & Partners came in tandem with an announcement that four lawyers from the Paris fi rm Dewey & LeBoeuf LLP also were coming on board. Th e merger comes on the heels of Faskens' recent addition of three senior lawyers in Ottawa and six lawyers to its offi ce in London. "Th e world economy is in an interesting time in which to com- pete," Faskens' managing partner David Corbett tells Law Times. "We have found some real opportunities for us. We've been in a fi nancial position that we're able to make some moves." Corbett says the Paris merger is particularly important from a stra- tegic standpoint. "Canada and the [European Union] have been talking about expand- ing trade," he says. "Th is isn't something that is going to happen in three months [or] six months, but over the long term we feel there's great op- portunity to have an offi ce on the continent and in France to service both our Canadian clients going into that market and also to gather clients wanting to bring investments [and] open business in Canada." Th e fi rm said the new blood in Paris will expand its capacity in cross-border transactions, EU regulations, international arbitrations, and a range of other specialized business law and litigation services. Th e deal adds to Faskens' complement of more than 650 lawyers in London, Johannesburg, and across Canada. LT Emma van Leusden in human rights in the interna- tional law context, but it's diffi - cult to get that kind of experience without fi ve or 10 years of a work record at home," she says. "Th is was a great way to get my feet wet in the area." For van Leusden, the work was fascinating. "Th e bulk of the work in- volved constitutional litigation aimed at dismantling the rem- nants of apartheid." Van Leusden helped in ad- land vancing claims and the rights of squatters and people with HIV-AIDS. Th at work had her involved in regular court- room battles with authorities over their allocation and deliv- ery of resources and services to the poor. She also volunteered to write articles for a local newspa- per about how individuals could get free electricity and water. "Th e experience changed me because I always believed the law could be an instrument of change, and now I see that it can actually change people's lives," she says. "Doing good things is something I really value." Th e experience was also re- warding professionally. "I was under 30 at the time, and for a young lawyer, it was a very hands-on experience com- pared to some of my colleagues who remained in Canada and who still haven't seen the inside of a courtroom," she says. "I also thought a diff erent cultural set- ting would be invaluable, and it was a good start for pursuing the career I want in international hu- man rights law." Th e pay, however, wasn't great. "I got airfare and a small living sti- pend," van Leusden says. Balderston, meanwhile, didn't get to live abroad. But between 2004 and 2008, he made eight short trips to China in support of a legal aid project also adminis- tered by the CBA and funded by CIDA. "I was the legal aid expert in- volved in negotiating and moni- toring participation agreements and providing training for four model legal aid agencies in some of China's poorest provinces," he says. "Th e Grey-Bruce board treated my involvement as a form of international communi- ty development, and I continued to receive my usual salary while participating." He, too, found the experience rewarding. "It was gratifying working with Chinese counterparts at the street and storefront level," Balderston says. "It was total immersion, and the idea of setting up legal aid in China totally re-energized me. After two decades in our own system, it amazed me to see how eager my co-workers — many of them lawyers — were to soak up everything, even the most mun- dane and prosaic minutiae proper offi ce procedures." of LT PAGE 5 No, we don't really think of ourselves as superheroes (although, we do regularly appear just in time to save the day) E-discovery requires expertise, strategic understanding, diligence and a uniquely collaborative approach. Fortunately, we have access to the most talented litigation support experts through our broad network of industry leaders and our ever-expanding database of over 30,000 legal professionals. Keep your e-discovery requirements in-house by recruiting our e-discovery experts. For seamless integration with the shortest possible search time – whatever your needs … whether it be one expert, a team, direct hire, temporary or contract. Just call us. We'll be there! • Phone: (416) 363-7227 • Fax: (416) 363-6125 • kentlegal.com • www.lawtimesnews.com

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