Canadian Lawyer

REGIONAL WRAP-UP ATLANTIC The revoluTion in legal services is coming T Pink, executive director of the Nova Scotia Barristers' Society. "Those who think they can continue to practise as they are prac- tising now will quickly be overtaken." Pink examined the nature of the legal discussed four key issues that will define the legal landscape in this country. The first issue to address — and accept " he times they are a changin' — and lawyers who don't keep up will be left behind, warns Darrel revolution sweeping Canada and the world at a recent barristers' society annual meeting in Halifax. His presentation, "The Revolution in Legal Services Delivery, — are the "lightning-fast changes" that are happening; most obvious in technology but also in business practices and with client expectations. "Lawyers need to be on top of this," stresses Pink, who has presented his revolutionary talk to Alberta lawyers and others across Canada. Relationships with clients is another and a growing lack of fidelity. There is a new group of clients who don't remember a time before the Internet, says Pink. "They behave differently and they communicate differently. And they expect their service providers to be able to meet their needs." In addition, he notes, "clients are no longer attached to any single service provider. Adaptability is a third issue. "Though " lawyers need not keep up with everything, as a profession, failure to be connected to the most relevant changes presents a real and present danger. area of noteworthy change. Two key fac- tors are: the arrival of the next generation ongoing negotiations with the provincial government. The two groups have been without a contract since March 31, 2011. Both sides were to head back to the bargaining table in mid-June, but the only sound emanating from all parties over the summer was silence. Eric Boucher, president of the New Brunswick Crown Counsel Association, which rep- resents approximately 43 lawyers working in the Legal Services and Legislative Services branches of the Office of the Attorney General in Fredericton, initially told Canadian Lawyer the organization might have more to say following the renewed negotiations. More recently, he said, "I am not certain when we would be in a posi- tion to comment." The Crown counsel and prosecutors associations had more to say, and publicly, N late this spring after negotiations stalled. In a joint release, the two organizations, that agreed to negotiate a collective agreement together, said it became clear that "this government is not interested in bargaining fairly." The two associations contend the minister of finance has directed his negotia- tors to ink a two-year wage deal and put an end to the retirement benefit for new 8 SEPTEMBE R 2012 www.CANAD I AN Lawyermag.com was published in the U.S. to a round of applause from the Wall Street Journal. "The editorial argues that it is time for the legal profession to be deregulated, as other is legal regulation. This is already under intense scrutiny, he told members, point- ing to changes that have occurred in the U.K., Australia, and New Zealand. Last summer the book First Thing We Do, Let's Deregulate All the Lawyers notes, are affecting where and how lawyers practise. One example close to Pink' No deal for N.B. Crown lawyers o verdict has been reached, but it is not looking hopeful for the New Brunswick Crown Counsel Association and the New Brunswick Crown Prosecutors Association in their hires that has existed for decades. A proposal put forward by the associations, which they say addressed the government's demands and fixed a long-stand- ing problem with administration of movement on the salary scale, was rejected. "This has been a long and sometimes frustrating process," said Chris Titus, president of the NBCPA. "We couldn't start bargaining when we wanted to because the new government was not prepared to negotiate. Things were going rea- sonably well until the government suspended bargaining again in January because they were trying to work on their budget. Since then they have basically refused to consider any of our ideas. Their tactics are tantamount to bargaining in bad faith." Boucher is less vehement. "It's not unusual for collective bargaining to take sev- eral months," he said in an interview. "In the interim, it's business as usual." That business may turn ugly. David Calvert, the Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada negotiator who has been working with the associations since they were certified in 2010, called the government's response to their spring offer "a major slap in the face." He said: "We are well aware of the economic prob- lems faced by this government and we have been accommodating in the past, but that doesn't mean that [the finance minister] can just roll over people as if their con- cerns don't matter. We know that the negotiators we have been dealing with can't make any major decisions without first checking with the boss." — DM " Those changes, he s heart industries have been, in order to create price competition for legal services, spur innovation in the delivery of legal services, and reduce the premium that lawyers get for pricing their services as a result of strict occupational licensing, "Kodak moments," referring to business giants that have failed to survive because they were left behind by bigger, brighter, better ways of doing things. That may well be the case with the delivery of legal services and who delivers them. Recently two municipalities in the U.K. announced they would begin to make legal services available through local libraries in collabo- ration with a network of solicitors while JustAnswer.co.uk offers legal advice in many countries with only a "live lawyer" and a smartphone. "There will be huge disruptions in how legal services [are offered]," says Pink. "We don't know what they are yet but they're coming. — DONALEE MOULTON Finally, there are what he calls the " says Pink. " donalee@quantumcommunications.ca DEAL

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