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REGIONAL WRAP-UP THE PRAIRIES Manitoba giving teeth to enforce support orders are failing to pay their child support payments or ex-partners who fail to pay spousal support payments change jurisdiction, it can be even harder to track them down and make sure they live up to their responsibilities," said Manitoba Justice Minister Andrew Swan, in announcing proposed changes to the Inter- jurisdictional Support Orders Act in late April. The proposals would alter the act to see to it that child support T orders dealt with through the province's recalculation service are honoured and enforced in cases with inter-jurisdictional elements. The changes would also shed light on the factors Manitoba courts will look at when dealing with challenges to orders from other jurisdictions. Courts would prioritize appli- cation of Manitoba law, and consider out-of-province laws only if the matter fails to merit an entitlement to family sup- port under local law. Provisions indicating how long a support order from outside the province should stand would aid the THERE'S A and visiting lawyers. On Nov. 1, the Law Society of Alberta T will roll out its new Code of Conduct. Doug Mah, president of the LSA, says: "There is a fundamental principle that underpins the Code of Conduct: a lawyer is expected to establish and maintain a reputation for integrity because high eth- ical standards are necessary to maintain public confidence in the profession." The law society's code is based on the Federation of Law Societies of Canada's Model Code of Professional Conduct. In 2004, the FLSC, the national co-ordin- ating body of Canada's 14 law societies mandated to regulate the country's 95,000 lawyers and Quebec's 3,500 notaries, struck a committee to create the model code, which was eventually approved in October 2009. his fall, Alberta will have a new code of conduct to guide its lawyers, students-at-law, he Manitoba government hopes proposed legislative changes will fill a gap that has thwarted enforcement of some child and spousal support orders. "If parents who Maintenance Enforcement Program, which is authorized by the Family Maintenance Act. The province also hopes to speed up the creation or alteration of support orders by reducing the time paying parents or former partners have to offer a response to court demands for information. Gerald Ashcroft, a family lawyer at Thompson Dorfman Sweatman LLP in Winnipeg, believes the proposed amendments are more of a "remedial" measure, saying enforcement of inter- jurisdictional support orders has not been a noteworthy issue in the province. He points out that other provinces are bringing in similar legislation, with Alberta having done so last November. Ashcroft says he believes the government could better spend its time looking for ways to make room for more maintenance enforcement officers to help litigants collect payments. He says his clients often complain their calls aren't returned because officers are too busy keeping their heads above water. — ROBERT TODD robert.l.todd@thomsonreuters.com IN TOWN "The code sets out statements of prin- ciples which outline important expected standards of ethical conduct for lawyers. The code also assists in defining ethical practice and in identifying what is ques- tionable ethically," says Mona Duckett, the Alberta representative on the FLSC's council. "Consistent conduct rules across the country will demonstrate to the pub- lic and to lawyers that there are national ethical standards for the practice of law." Not only is the goal of creating national uniform ethical standards real- ized in the model code, it also addresses the issue of increased mobility of law- yers across Canadian jurisdictions. The model code is a reciprocal arrangement between Canadian law societies, allowing lawyers to practise in other participating jurisdictions for up to 100 days per year. The FLSC expects all 14 Canadian juris- dictions will adopt the model code. The LSA approved its new code in WEST November 2010 and has set a target date of Nov. 1 to implement it. "By defin- ing and clarifying expectations and stan- dards of behaviour that will be applied to lawyers, Alberta's Code of Conduct is intended to serve a practical as well as a motivational function," says Mah. Alberta's code has gone beyond the FLSC's model code and adopted new, innovative provisions including that of conflicts exception for pro bono work. Over the next six months, the LSA will be providing further details about its new code to lawyers in upcoming issues of The Advisory and e-bulletins as well as on its web site. An educational com- ponent is being developed and lawyers will be notified of upcoming educational opportunities to learn more about the code. — DIANE L.M. COOK dianecook@shaw.ca www.CANADIAN Lawyermag.com JUNE 2011 13 NEW C O D E