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www.canadianlawyermag.com 1 EDITOR'S DESK UPFRONT www.canadianlawyermag.com EDITORIAL Editor-in-Chief Tim Wilbur Senior Editor Elizabeth Raymer Associate Editor Aidan Macnab Production Editor Patricia Cancilla Writers Anita Balakrishnan, Bernise Carolino, David Kitai CONTRIBUTORS Neill May, Heather Suttie ART & PRODUCTION Art Director Marla Morelos Lead, Media Production Coordinator Catherine Giles Production Coordinator Kim Kandravy Global Production Manager Alicia Chin SALES & BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT VP, Media and Client Strategy Dane Taylor Sr. Business Development Manager Steffanie Munroe Business Development Manager Lynda Fenton Business Development Manager Catherine Reale National Account Executive Abhiram Prabhu CORPORATE President Tim Duce Events and Conference Manager Chris Davis Chief Information Officer Colin Chan Human Resources Manager Julia Bookallil Global CEO Mike Shipley Global COO George Walmsley EDITORIAL INQUIRIES tim.wilbur@keymedia.com SUBSCRIPTIONS Keith Fulford tel: 416 644 8740 ext 329 keith.fulford@keymedia.com ADVERTISING INQUIRIES legaladvertise@keymedia.com W hen the COVID-19 pandemic hit Canada in March, everything seemed to change all at once. Canadians who could worked at home, unemploy- ment spiked and the daily infection rates transfixed Canadians. As things settled down into late spring, however, "flattening the curve" was replaced with "new normal" as the catch phrase of the day. Everything had changed, and it was now about adjusting to a new world. And while the pandemic no doubt changed a lot, it has also highlighted structural problems that existed well before March. Heather Suttie, who for decades has advised law firms that are restructuring, argues that the current pandemic will force law firms to deal with their pre-existing economic health (p. 32). "Legal service providers that went into this pandemic in a weakened state are vulnerable," she says. "Some will continue to drag their historical legacy like a ship drags an anchor and the results will mete out." For the Canadian public, the pandemic has also highlighted structural issues with our long-term care facilities. Since most of the deaths from COVID-19 took place in these facilities, they have received much more scrutiny from the public and politicians across the country. As we see in our cover story (p. 20), lawyers are pushing for reform to long-term care facilities on many fronts. While the wave of infections reported in some facilities does not necessarily reflect a problem across the board, as an insurance defence lawyer we spoke with points out, structural reforms seem to be inevitable. Personal injury lawyers are using individual cases and class action suits to high- light systemic issues. Lawyers for advocacy groups are campaigning for greater family involvement and raising questions around funding and staffing issues. Across practice areas, many of these lawyers want to see a broad public inquiry after the pandemic has passed. While it may feel like the pandemic changed everything, it did not change the structural problems for law firms and long-term care facilities. It just put them out there for everyone to see. It is up to us to decide if the "new normal" is about changing things or simply reacting without changing a thing. Tim Wilbur, Editor-in-Chief New normal, same structural problems ISSUE 44.06 | JULY/AUGUST 2020 Canadian Lawyer is published 10 times a year by HAB Press Limited. KEY MEDIA and the KEY MEDIA logo are trademarks of Key Media IP Limited, and used under license by HAB Press Limited. CANADIAN LAWYER is a trademark of HAB Press Limited. All rights reserved. Contents may not be reprinted without written permission. The opinions expressed in articles are not necessarily those of the publisher. Information presented is compiled from sources believed to be accurate, however, the publisher assumes no responsibility for errors or omissions. Canadian Lawyer disclaims any warranty as to the accuracy, completeness or currency of the contents of this publication and disclaims all liability in respect of the results of any action taken or not taken in reliance upon information in this publication. Publications Mail Agreement #41261516 ISSN 0703-2129 ©2020 GST/HST Registration #703184911RT001 RETURN UNDELIVERABLE CANADIAN ADDRESS TO: CIRCULATION DEPARTMENT 20 Duncan St., 3rd Floor, Toronto, ON, M5H 3G8 RETOURNER TOUTE CORRESPONDANCE NE POUVANT ÉTRE LIVREÉ AU CANADA AU SERVICE DES PUBLICATIONS 20 Duncan St., 3rd Floor, Toronto, ON, M5H 3G8 HAB Press Limited 20 Duncan St., 3rd Floor Toronto, Ontario M5H 3G8 tel: +1 416 644 8740 www.keymedia.com While it may feel like the pandemic changed everything, it did not change the structural problems for law firms and long-term care facilities.