Law Times

Page 16 November 16, 2015 • Law Times www.lawtimesnews.com JOLLIFFE TO STEP DOWN AS GOWLINGS CEO After 20 years as chairman and chief executive officer of Gowling Lafleur Henderson LLP, Scott Jolliffe is step- ping down and Peter Lukasiewicz is taking over the helm. Lukasiewicz, who's currently the firm's external managing partner, will take over as chief executive officer effec- tive Jan. 1. He'll also serve as a represen- tative on the global board of Gowling WLG, the new international legal prac- tice created by the merger of Gowlings and Wragge Lawrence Graham & Co. announced in July. Lukasiewicz was the managing partner of the Toronto office of Gowlings for 15 years. He took on the external managing partner role two years ago. Jolliffe told the firm's partners more than a year ago he wouldn't be seeking a renewed term. "I felt it was time to build for the future with a new CEO," says Jolliffe. The firm launched an internal nomination process and the nomi- nating committee recommended Lukasiewicz. The firm's partners voted on that recommendation in July. Lukasiewicz, a commercial litigator, has been at Gowlings for his entire legal career. Jolliffe isn't leaving the firm. He'll take on a new role as one of Gowl- ings' three representatives on the global board of Gowling WLG. "That board is being launched Jan. 18 and it's important to me it gets off to a really good start and that we continue to grow our firm in a global, international sense. I will take a very active role in that aspect of the combined firm," he says. WOMEN TWEET PERIOD INFO IN PUSH TO CHANGE ABORTION LAW DUBLIN — In a novel campaign for legal reform, Irish women are tweeting details of their periods to Prime Minister Enda Kenny to help publicize their bid to repeal restrictive abortion laws. Abortion is a divisive issue in Ireland where, after large street protests from both sides of the debate, the government only lifted a complete ban in 2013 to allow terminations if a mother's life was in danger. When Ireland chose to become the first coun- try to adopt gay marriage in a referendum this year, a move that marked a major shift in what was once a strongly Catholic and socially con- servative society, calls for abortion law reform gained momentum. "Since we know how much the Irish state cares about our reproductive parts . . . I think it's only fair that the women of Ireland let our leader @EndaKennyTD know the full details of our menstrual cycle," said comedian Gráinne Magu- ire in a tweet this week that kicked off a Twitter campaign that has gone viral. Dozens of other women joined in, tweeting details of their menstrual cycle, with some criti- cizing Kenny for not responding. According to Reuters, governments have been loath to tackle an issue they fear could alienate conservative voters despite a dramatic waning of the inf luence of the Roman Catholic Church. The 2013 abortion legislation followed the death of a woman who wasn't allowed to abort her dying fetus, a controversy that made inter- national headlines and reopened the decades- long debate. Kenny, a practising Roman Catholic, has said any further changes will be for the next govern- ment to consider. His junior coalition partner has already said it will campaign during the elections next year to allow abortion for cases such as rape, incest, and fatal fetal abnormality. According to Reuters, Irish activists are demanding the abolition of the eighth amend- ment of the constitution, which enshrines the equal right to life of the mother and her un- born child, while their opponents demand that it remains in place to safeguard all life. Less than a quarter of Irish people believe abortion should be available in all circumstances, an RTE/Behaviour & Attitudes poll showed this week, with 64 per cent in favour in some circum- stances and 14 per cent against it outright. "To all the women tweeting @EndaKennyTD their period news. They can take our human rights, but they'll never take our humour #repeal- the8th," Maguire tweeted. MINISTER'S PROPOSAL TO DEPORT ANIMALS REJECTED JERUSALEM — In an odd and swiftly rejected proposal to deal with a religious dilemma, an Is- raeli cabinet minister has proposed sending stray dogs and cats to another country as an alternative to government-funded efforts to sterilize them. "Use the budget to transfer stray dogs and/ or cats of one gender (all the males or all the fe- males) to a foreign nation that will agree to ac- cept them," Agriculture Minister Uri Ariel sug- gested in a letter to a cabinet colleague leaked to the mass circulation Yedioth Ahronoth daily. The proposal prompted strong criticism by animal rights activists and bemused opposi- tion politicians. "No way am I going to apply for a foreign passport for Pitzkeleh," former for- eign minister Tzipi Livni tweeted above a photo showing the smiling Zionist Union party politi- cian reclining on a sofa and feeding her cat. The newspaper report said Ariel, a religious Jew and a member of the far-right Jewish Home party, views spaying and neutering as possible violations of God's directive "to be fruitful and multiply" and ritual law that prohibits animal cruelty. But Zahava Galon, head of the opposition left-wing Meretz party, wrote on Facebook that Ariel's idea ran contrary to "basic morality." LT ARE YOU RECEIVING CANADIAN LEGAL NEWSWIRE? Keep abreast of essential legal news, opinions and analysis with our electronic newswire. VISIT OUR WEBSITE WWW.LAWTIMESNEWS.COM SIGN UP FOR FREE From the publisher of and CLNW_LT_Nov2_15.indd 1 2015-10-28 8:33 AM u Bizarre Briefs By Viola James u The InsIde story LOUIS RIEL EVENT TODAY With 2015 marking the 150th anniversary of the execution of Louis Riel, the Law Society of Upper Canada is hosting an event to commemorate the Mé- tis leader today. The event will take place at Osgoode Hall with a roundtable set for 4 p.m. followed by a recep- tion at 6 p.m. The roundtable will include experts and leaders from the Métis community, academia, and government speaking about what reconciliation looks like in the future. Moderating the panel will be Jean Teillet of Pape Salter Teillet LLP. The speakers in- clude Métis Nation of On- tario president Gary Lipinski, political scientist Peter Russell, Ontario Ministry of Aborig- inal Affairs counsel Candice Telfer, and Pape Salter Teillet's Jason Madden. INPUT SOUGHT ON INQUEST CHANGES The Ontario government is seeking input on proposed changes to the province's death investigation system. The regulatory changes in- clude expanding the role of the Death Investigation Oversight Council to enable it to provide ad- vice and make recommendations to the chief coroner on whether to call a discretionary inquest. The proposal wouldn't change the chief coroner's decision-making authority. According to the gov- ernment, the authority to direct a chief coroner to hold an inquest remains with the chief coroner. The government is seeking comment on the changes over the next five weeks. JAMES MOORE JOINS DENTONS Just a few weeks after the federal election, former Conservative cabinet ministers are already making the jump to big law firms. On Nov. 6, Dentons Cana- da LLP announced former in- dustry minister James Moore would be joining the firm. Based in Dentons' Vancouver office, he'll serve as a senior business adviser. "We are delighted to welcome James to Dentons. Our clients in Vancouver, across the coun- try, and around the world will greatly benefit from his strategic advice and insights," said Lori Mathison, managing partner of Dentons' Vancouver office. LT "What's the problem? Since the deregulation of legal advertising, I thought I'd try a little reverse psychology." Peter Lukasiewicz

• Cover