Canadian Lawyer InHouse

3 CANADIANLAWYERMAG.COM/INHOUSE MARCH/APRIL 2019 www.canadianlawyermag.com/inhouse Director/Group Publisher: Karen Lorimer karen.lorimer@thomsonreuters.com Managing Editor: Jennifer Brown jen.brown@thomsonreuters.com Copy Editor: Patricia Cancilla Art Director: Steve Maver Account Co-ordinator: Catherine Giles Sales and Business Development Sales Manager: Paul Burton paul.burton@tr.com 416-649-9928 Consultant, Strategy and Business Development: Ivan Ivanovitch ivan.ivanovitch@tr.com 416-887-4300 Business Development Consultant: Kimberlee Pascoe kimberlee.pascoe@tr.com 416-996-1739 Account Executive: Steffanie Munroe steffanie.munroe@tr.com 416-315-5879 Canadian Lawyer InHouse is published 6 times a year by Thomson Reuters Canada Ltd., One Corporate Plaza 2075 Kennedy Rd., Toronto ON. M1T 3V4 (416) 298-5141. Fax : 416-649-7870 Web: www.canadianlawyermag.com/inhouse LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/groups/3380194 Twitter: @CLInHouse Editorial advisory board: Sanjeev Dhawan, Hydro One Networks Inc.; Jonathan Lau, Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario; Fernando Garcia, CargoJet; Lynn Korbak, Toromont Industries; Julia Shin Doi, Ryerson University; Dorothy Quann, Xerox Canada; Lorne O'Reilly, Dow Chemical Canada ULC; Jolie Lin, Sierra Systems; Dean Scaletta, Manitoba Public Insurance; Robert Piasentin, Sierra Systems; Yonni Fushman, Aecon Group Inc.; Tony Linardi, Golder Associates. 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 InHouse 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 #40766500 ISSN 1921-9563 Copyright © 2019 H.S.T. Registration #R121349799 To subscribe or change addresses Call (416) 649-9585 Fax (416) 649-7870 or e-mail Keith Fulford at keith.fulford@thomsonreuters.com RETURN UNDELIVERABLE CANADIAN ADDRESS TO: CIRCULATION DEPARTMENT One Corporate Plaza 2075 Kennedy Rd., Toronto ON. M1T 3V4 By Jennifer Brown Editor's Box SEND YOUR news AND story ideas TO jen.brown@thomsonreuters.com @CLInHouse @canadianlawyerinhouse The future is about adaptability W hen people talk about innovation in the legal market, a couple of themes inevitably come to mind: technology and a change in the way clients obtain legal services. But at the crux of all of this is not tech or billable hours — it's about the people and how they will need to adapt to change. Over two days last month, I was part of two different conferences that looked at innovation and the future of legal departments. One was focused on examining where in-house counsel are at when it comes to making and driving innovation. Hosted by Osler Hoskin & Harcourt LLP, the session was facilitated by the fi rm's national innovation leader, Mike Fekete, and included Melissa LaFlair, director of legal operations, legal services division at the Workplace Safety Insurance Board of Ontario, and Natalie Munroe, who leads Osler Works in Ottawa. The session used polling technology to ask audience members, both in-person and on web- cast, a series of questions on their use of technology, alternative service providers and what their main pain points are when dealing with legal work. Lack of cost certainty remains a top issue, that was clear. One audience member pointed out that the current law fi rm structure and billable-hour model prevents signifi cant change. I argued that as the customer, the in-house client is more in the driver's seat than they may think — from boutique and regional fi rms to alternative staffi ng models even the largest fi rms are offering. The second conference was focused on the future of legal departments. I had the pleasure of moderating a panel of dream team in-house counsel — Peter Nguyen, general counsel of Resolver Inc., Bindu Cudjoe, general counsel of Canadian Western Bank, Nikki Latta, assistant general counsel of Deloitte Canada, and Lynne Charbonneau, former deputy general counsel of HSBC. What I appreciated most about this panel was their candour around where they had tried to do things and not quite hit the mark, and in particular at the end when Martine Boucher of Simplex Legal asked the panel what they are looking for in future hires. Latta spoke fi rst, saying she wants something that sounds pretty basic but is apparently not always easy to fi nd — lawyers with the fl exibility to be ready to take on anything as the needs of the business change. Every organization likes to refer to the need of businesses to be "agile" these days — what that really means is that with the world changing as fast as it is, who can predict what will be needed more than six months or a year out. So, while some in-house leaders admit that yes, a lawyer who can write code would be great, what they really need are people who can get up to speed on new client demands. This adaptabil- ity mindset is perhaps best demonstrated right now by those lawyers who have moved in-house to the cannabis sector. As Mariana Fonar of Lift & Co. says in our profi le this issue, her biggest challenge is trying to "provide some certainty in an uncertain world, while properly evaluating risks and protecting the company's interests knowing that the legal environment could change rapidly." I think that is easily applied to most sectors in-house counsel oversee. It's really what they do best — try to be two steps ahead in often ambiguous situations, knowing that things could change at any time. Staying creative and curious is perhaps how the real innovation is going to happen in the years ahead. IH

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