Canadian Lawyer

38 F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 9 w w w . c a n a d i a n l a w y e r m a g . c o m connection. "The practical impact is, if one is familiar with the rhythm, you can talk to any- body exactly the same way in a casual sense, conveying a heck of a lot of information with relatively few words." He points to the response from the Minister of Justice Andrew Parsons, a lawyer, when unexpectedly informed by media that the government was being sued for defamation by another lawyer in the community. "Yes b'y," he said with a nod. Hodder is quick to note, however, that mutual support and respect are not synonymous with a lack of sophistication or legal acumen. Indeed, the reverse is true, she notes. "There are world- class lawyers in Atlantic Canada." Three regional firms dominate the market — Stewart McK- elvey, McInnes Cooper and Cox & Palmer — and they all have offices in each Atlantic province. There are no "national" firms east of Montreal that cover the region, says Bugden. "I think, as a region, we tend to punch above our weight in demonstrating leadership within the profession and the kind of client work we undertake given the difference in the size of markets." She notes that changes in practice areas often track along with advances and vagaries in society generally. "For exam- ple, changes to our country's demographics have resulted in a surge in the practice area of immigration. Similarly, the legalization of cannabis has spawned new opportunities for businesses and new areas in the law of regulated indus- tries and dealing with the complexities it introduces in the workplace. Advances in health sciences and technology have driven the need for lawyers to develop practices aligned with those changes, for example, the emergence of fertility law." There is also a large start-up community in Halifax, and to a lesser extent in New Brunswick and Newfoundland and Labrador. "Firms are focused on providing services to start- ups with the hope you will continue with them as they go through their stages of growth," says Hodder. By the numbers Nova Scotia 127 - Number of lawyers called to the bar in 2018 2,043 - Number of practising lawyers (as of Dec. 10, 2018) 257 - Number of retired lawyers (as of Dec. 10, 2018) 394 - Number of law firms in the province (including private practice and solo practitioners) 138 - Number of law firms with two or more lawyers 256 - Number of sole proprietorships 96.4 - Percentage of firms in the province with 10 or fewer lawyers (including solo practitioners) 89.9 - Percentage of firms in the province with 10 or fewer lawyers (excluding solo practitioners) 1.01 - Percentage of firms with 50 or more lawyers (4/394) 1,345 - Number of lawyers in private practice Source: Lawyers' Insurance Association of Nova Scotia "I think, as a region, we tend to punch above our weight in demonstrating leadership within the profession and the kind of client work we undertake given the difference in the size of markets."

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