Law Times

PAGE 4 NEWS OCTOBER 31, 2011 • LAW TIMES Strosberg gearing up for full return to work Continued from page 1 It was, in fact, his driver's li- cence, he says with a laugh. Th e eff ort to regain his lan- guage skills involved starting from the basics, almost as if he was a child learning to speak for the fi rst time. Th erapists would show him pictures of everyday objects like a cup or a toothbrush. "I recognized the toothbrush but I couldn't say the word," he says. "I had to learn language over again and it took me a lot of time." Some words came back more easily than others, but he had diffi culty with verbs. If he was out in public, people might mistake him for someone who had a severe disability because he'd speak so slowly as he tried to remember the words. His wife Cathy typed up labels for things in the house such as the TV, couch, and wall. "Everything in the condo was labelled," he says. Once he got the pronuncia- tion of the words correct, his ability improved. "I could read and then I had to pronounce the words and then I remem- bered," he says. A trial scheduled for April of this year on the Manulife class action was postponed until March 2012. By that time, Strosberg expects to be suffi ciently recovered. He's now back working six hours a day. Strosberg notes his reading ability was much better than his speech. "I could read but I couldn't speak," he says. "I couldn't get the words together." Strosberg still receives therapy four hours a week but is other- wise gearing up for a return to law full time. Last week, he re- ceived the OBA's civil litigation award. On Nov. 22, the Toronto Rehab Foundation is putting on a benefi t in his honour. Th e OBA honoured him not WILL "STANDARD" BOILERPLATE CLAUSES PROTECT YOUR CLIENT? NEW EDITION BEHIND AND BEYOND BOILERPLATE: DRAFTING COMMERCIAL AGREEMENTS, 3RD EDITION CYNTHIA L. ELDERKIN, B.A., LL.B. AND JULIA S. SHIN DOI, B.A., LL.B. In the heat of negotiation, savvy practitioners pay particular attention to boilerplate clauses. By making sure you include essential clauses, and by fine-tuning – rather than cutting and pasting – standard clauses, you put your client in a secure position. Prepare yourself with the confidence and skill to identify, understand, and refine boilerplate language to protect your clients in every circumstance. • Negotiate and draft clauses to anticipate disputes and avoid future losses – no matter how unique your client's transaction • Eliminate the risks of transplanting boilerplate clauses that might actually defeat your contractual intent • Zero in on details concealed in a boilerplate provision that might engender litigation in certain circumstances – and quickly clarify your draft You'll find step-by-step guidance, sound recommendations, expert advice, and actual how-to illustrations and tips on drafting thorough agreements. NEW IN THE THIRD EDITION • New independent contractor clause • Update of all case law affecting boilerplate clauses referenced in the second edition ORDER # 983689-69803 $179 Hardcover approx. 420 pages August 2011 978-0-7798-3689-5 ISSUE DATE November 14 November 21 November 28 December 5 December 12 AVAILABLE RISK-FREE FOR 30 DAYS Order online at www.carswell.com Call Toll-Free: 1-800-387-5164 In Toronto: 416-609-3800 just because he's prominent as a civil litigator but also because of his rich contribution to the profession, says OBA civil liti- gation section chairman Colin Stevenson. Besides being past Law Society of Upper Canada treasurer, Strosberg devoted "an enormous amount of time" to revitalizing the lawyers' in- surance program that culmi- nated in LawPRO, according to Stevenson. Th e November benefi t will include a video presentation about Strosberg's recovery. Ter- rence O'Sullivan and Michael Eizenga, both Toronto litiga- tors who have practised with and against Strosberg, are co- chairing the event. O'Sullivan, who had once also been a patient at the re- habilitation institute for an autoimmune illness, says the event, called Harvey's Back, will recognize Strosberg's "terrifi c recovery" and the cen- tre's unique therapeutic ap- proach. He notes many lawyers have gone through its stress recovery program given that they're in a high-stress occupa- tion and "may be more prone than some other people to these kinds of problems." Strosberg says he was over- whelmed by the recognition as well as the multitude of e- mails, letters, and visits from members of the legal profes- sion during his recovery. He notes that if there are lessons to learn from his ill- ness, one of them is to slow down. All too often, he says, lawyers feel that they have to respond instantly. "Th ey re- spond to other lawyers and to their clients too quickly with- out sitting back and taking your time and thinking about the problem." As well, he believes people should have more compassion. "I want to be an example for people who are disabled. For ex- ample, if a person is struggling with a word, just say nothing. Just give her or him a chance to get the right word out." For his part, O'Sullivan calls Strosberg "iconic" and says he's someone who has come to "embody the new revolution of class action litigation" since its introduction in Ontario in the early 1990s. Strosberg, he notes, was the "most respon- sible person for breathing life into it and taking cases on the plaintiff s' side and making the legislation work." Strosberg's most famous cases include the hepatitis C mass tort, the YBM Magnex International Inc. class action, and the payday loans litigation. Currently, his fi rm is coun- sel on matters involving Bre- X Minerals Ltd., Air France Flight 358, Vioxx Canada, Ticketmaster, Money Mart, and Menu Foods . Many arbitrators work alone Continued from page 1 partner at Norton Rose, and they said that was one of the reasons why they called me," he says. In the meantime, colleagues are paying trib- ute to Fortier. "He has been a mentor to me as well as to every other member of the fi rm who practises in this fi eld," says Pierre Bienvenu, Norton Rose's international arbitration global practice leader. "I think it's fair to say he has been a bit of an icon in Canada and globally as a jurist. For these reasons, we are sad to see him go but we are happy that the reason is for him to be able to continue to practise." Andrew McDougall, who heads the interna- tional arbitration group at Ottawa fi rm Perley- Robertson Hill & McDougall LLP, says he's not surprised that Fortier felt compelled to move out on his own. He notes many of the world's top international arbitrators operate independently, including another leading Canadian practitio- ner, Marc Lalonde, a Trudeau-era cabinet minis- ter who retired as a senior partner with Stikeman Elliott LLP in 2006. "Th ere's a big diff erence between a national fi rm and an international fi rm," says McDougall. "It's a logical step that is a refl ection of the reality when you're operating at that level exclusively as an arbitrator considering the types of cases and what's at stake with large multinational players. Yves has a richly deserved reputation for being one of the best in the world." Before moving to Ottawa, McDougall was a partner at White & Case LLP, itself an interna- tional legal giant with more than 2,000 lawyers. Although potential confl icts weren't a factor in his own move, he says he has noticed a change in his ability to take on appointments as an arbitrator. "I'm now in a 60-lawyer law fi rm. It's a very diff erent environment in terms of the global reach of the law fi rm. In the past, I had to turn down appointments because of business con- fl icts but now I'm able to accept everything." Confl ict restrictions can work both ways at big fi rms, says McDougall, who notes they can restrain other lawyers from bringing new business to the fi rm as well. "When you accept a mandate, that's something the other partners must take into account once the arbitration starts." It's what's inside that counts! FOCUS SECTION Labour & Employment Law Environmental Law Business of Law ADR/Mediation Criminal Law AD CLOSING November 2 November 9 November 16 November 23 November 30 To advertise in an upcoming issue of Law Times, contact our sales team: Karen Lorimer 416-649-9411 • karen.lorimer@thomsonreuters.com Kimberlee Pascoe 416-649-8875 • kimberlee.pascoe@thomsonreuters.com www.lawtimesnews.com News, Commentary, Focus Sections, Analysis, Caselaw

• Cover
• Novel Case
• Costly Litigation
• Focus On Real Estate Law