Canadian Lawyer

w w w . C A N A D I A N L a w y e r m a g . c o m M A Y 2 0 1 7 7 I t is not business as usual for the Nova Scotia Barristers' Society. The 192-year-old law society is rethink- ing, reviewing and revamping the way it regulates the legal profession and operates as a professional organization. "It has been and it continues to be transformative," says NSBS executive direc- tor Darrel Pink. "This organization is not the same as it was two years ago." A review of how lawyers throughout Nova Scotia were regulated led to a new way of thinking about regulation and more, says NSBS president Daren Baxter. "We realized our approach has been reac- tive. We realized the same set of rules apply to everybody without any flexibility." The one-size-fits-all model has been replaced with the Triple P approach, which stands for proactive, principled and pro- portionate. Identifying the greatest risk is a cornerstone of the new way of operating, explains Baxter. "We want to provide broad guidance. We will tailor regulation to the circumstances of the lawyer." He points to a recent example of how Triple P is changing the way the law soci- ety makes decisions. At the recent call to the bar, it was discovered that one student who had been given the green light was actually short one requirement. In the past, the student would have simply been informed they could not be included. "But that's not a principled, proportionate approach," says Baxter. Instead, the law society allowed the admittedly good student, whose family was coming from out of town for the cer- emony, to be called on the condition that they subsequently complete the outstand- ing requirement. "There is no risk. We have a better outcome," says Baxter. "That kind of thinking is resonating throughout the society." A new approach to regulating lawyers is also moving forward. Individual lawyers will still be licensed by the society, but legal entities will be a central focus. This new form of regulation will promote mitigating risk instead of slapping wrists. The empha- sis will be on compliance in a broad sense, not detailed reporting and documentation. Legal entities, including law firms, gov- ernment departments and in-house offices will have to establish what are called "man- agement systems for ethical legal practice." Lawyers and legal entities will be required to have in place all of the required ele- ments for such an effective management system and demonstrate that the lawyer or legal entity is engaged in and committed to key elements including developing com- petent practices, communicating in an effective, timely and civil manner and ensuring confidentiality. According to the NSBS, "The elements describe 'what' legal entities will be asked to achieve but not 'how' to get there." An MSELP pilot project with 50 firms is currently underway. The third pillar on which the Nova Scotia Barristers' Society's transforma- tive new regulatory approach rests is access to justice. "We want to enable lawyers to be more innovative in the types of services they provide and work with non-lawyers," says Baxter. Before the law society's vision can become reality, legislative changes are required. Baxter hopes that will happen in the fall sitting of the provincial legis- lature. And other law socities are following suit. "We're at the forefront," says Baxter, "but we are not alone." — DONALEE MOULTON REGIONAL WRAP-UP AT L A N T I C \ AT L A N T I C \ C E N T R A L \ P R A I R I E S \ W E S T NSBS transforming how it regulates P.E.I. LAW SOCIETY ACTS ON TRC REPORT T he Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada has called on the legal community across the country to take action, and the Law Society of Prince Edward Island has responded. "As a society, I must say that we were compelled to respond to the calls to action without hesitation," says president Bobbi-Jo Dow Baker. As a starting point, the society established a committee comprising Island lawyers with First Nations experience. It has set out to engage with indigenous Mi'kmaq of P.E.I. about how lawyers in the province could become more culturally competent. The society has already delivered a cultural awareness presentation to the articled clerks at the PEI Bar Admission Course, and earlier this year it held a full-day continu- ing legal education program that examined the history and legacy of residential schools in Canada. "Prince Edward Island's law society appears to be one of the first that has been able to organize and deliver a cultural competency training seminar to a large per- centage of its membership," says Dow Baker. "We are proud of having achieved this, but we are mindful that it is in large part due to our small size and large uptake." P.E.I.'s bar society is not content to rest on its laurels. More work is being planned, especially around action item 27, which calls upon the Federation of Law Societies of Canada to ensure lawyers receive appropriate cultural competency training. "As Call to Action 27 is very broad in scope," says Dow Baker, "it was decided that this first program should focus on creating an awareness and understanding of the legacy of Indian residential schools." — D.M.

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