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EDITOR'S DESK UPFRONT 2 www.canadianlawyermag.com EDITORIAL Editor-in-Chief Tim Wilbur Senior Editor Elizabeth Raymer Editor Zena Olijnyk Canada News Editor Aidan Macnab Production Editor Patricia Cancilla Writers Bernise Carolino, David Kitai CONTRIBUTORS Neill May, Matthew Diskin ART & PRODUCTION Art Director Marla Morelos Lead, Media Production Coordinator Catherine Giles Production Coordinator Kim Kandravy Global Production Manager Alicia Chin (on leave) SALES & BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT VP, Media and Client Strategy Dane Taylor Sr. Business Development Manager Steffanie Munroe Business Development Manager Lynda Fenton 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 NAUK SUBSCRIPTIONS CO-ORDINATOR Donnabel Reyes tel: 647 374 4536 ext. 243 donnabel.reyes@keymedia.com ADVERTISING INQUIRIES legaladvertise@keymedia.com ISSUE 44.08 | OCTOBER 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 A s the dust has settled from the early days of the pandemic, the longer-term challenges ahead came into focus. While the negative impacts of the pandemic have become clear, though, so have the silver linings. For legal technology companies, the immediate impact was negative. Lawyers were in crises mode and uninterested in new processes and products. But a cultural change has also occurred, and with that comes opportunity for legal tech entrepreneurs. "A weird spell has been broken," says Brent Arnold, a litigator at Gowling WLG (p. 8). "People are now like, 'Oh, OK, there's technology and technology can help us,' and it's no longer cool to be the person who says, 'I don't have to know that, I've got people to do that.'" Sean Bernstein, co-founder of a company that helps firms digitize corporate docu- ments, says he now no longer talks about hypothetical situations where lawyers may not be able to access physical documents. Now he can talk about how to fix their actual problem of accessing them remotely. For most litigators, breaking the spell of requiring in-person proceedings is also great news. By forcing lawyers and other parties to a legal dispute to operate through videoconferencing, the COVID-19 pandemic meant files have been completed faster and more efficiently, says personal injury lawyer Ryan Naimark (p. 7). E-filing and the adoption of virtual hearing software by the courts and government has also been on overdrive, allowing matters to proceed more efficiently as the courts ramp back up. For women who bear a disproportionate share of child-care responsibilities, working from home has also had its benefits. "I've found that the pandemic has also allowed female lawyers, and lawyers with kids, to support and commiserate with each other in a way we didn't before," says Tina Lie at Paliare Roland Rosenberg (p. 48). While there are many silver linings, the downsides are immense. Mentoring junior lawyers is a real challenge from afar. Feelings of isolation are widespread. For lawyers, though, some of the silver linings are now clear. Here's hoping they become even brighter soon and outshine the storm clouds we all still see. Tim Wilbur, Editor-in-Chief COVID silver linings emerge For women who bear a disproportionate share of child-care responsibilities, working from home has had its benefits. www.canadianlawyermag.com CORRECTION In the Top 25 Most Influential Lawyers of 2020 article in our September issue, we stated that Talon Regent assisted the Province of Saskatchewan, the Law Society of Saskatchewan and Co.Labs with various initiatives. In fact, he has not worked with any of these organizations on those initiatives. Canadian Lawyer apologizes for the errors.