Canadian Lawyer

18 S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 8 w w w . c a n a d i a n l a w y e r m a g . c o m T o facilitate innovation and access to justice, should law societ- ies relinquish their monopoly? If the various law societies could accept this idea in principle, entering a strategic alliance would be one way to co-ordinate this type of divestment. The major accounting firms are already providing advice of a legal nature in many cases, and fulfilling the public's legal needs this way could alleviate any pressure for the province to step in and deregulate. For example, if a law society intended to regulate lawyers and non-lawyers, then the accounting profession could be encouraged to develop the various standards and competencies for these new non-lawyers. The accounting firms would be well positioned to develop a viable business model for this category of alternative legal service providers. Viability means providing the unmet legal services at a much lower cost by operating at a larger scale, providing larger volumes of legal advice and requiring smaller margins. These lower costs could come about by the greater use of technology and artificial intelligence. To structure this alliance, we should determine what type of monopoly law societies have over legal services. The term monopoly has a somewhat negative connotation. Generally, a monopoly provides control over a supply or service or erection of barriers to new entrants, but some groups do not accept that lawyers and law societies maintain a monopoly over the supply of legal services. L E G A L I N N O VA T I O N N O W LET THE ACCOUNTANTS REGULATE By Gary Goodwin Manitoba, where I live, is currently address- ing whether it should relinquish some control over legal services. The Manitoba Law Society's strategic plan outlines that it intends to explore the notion of giving up its monopoly. Manitoba's Legal Profession Act states that the purpose of the society is to uphold and protect the public interest in the delivery of legal services with competence, integrity and independence. The society must also establish standards and regu- late the practice of law in Manitoba. Whether this defines a true monopoly could be difficult to argue, since anyone passing the law society's set standards could then practise law and charge the market price or anywhere below this to attract market share. This ability to set one's own price undermines the idea that this is a monopoly. Law society legislation also provides exemp- tions in that anyone acting on their own behalf is not practising law. Also, a notary public acting within their own powers is not practising law. Manitoba's legislation offers other situations that encompass the practice of law, such as drafting documents, litigation or any documents dealing with the sale of real or personal property. Whether lawyers do in fact have a monopoly, there are many compelling reasons why a stra- tegic partnership is important to consider. The most important is that access to justice contin- ues to be a major issue. More individuals represent themselves in litigation. Many people do not even attempt to deal with their legal issues. They often question the cost and whether a lawyer is even necessary. However, people often then bring legal-type Accounting firms could help us innovate in regulating legal services @GaryWGoodwin O P I N I O N

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