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Tuesday, May 22, 2012

lisa.adamson@thomsonreuters.com (Lisa Adamson) — Tue, 22 May 2012 14:10:06 GMT

TORONTO FIRM MERGES WITH CROSS-BORDER BOUTIQUE
Nesathurai & Luk LLP has merged with Toronto law firm Devry Smith Frank LLP.

Nesathurai & Luk is a cross-border boutique law firm that focuses on business law, tax litigation, and Canadian and U.S. matters.

“In this ever more complex age of transnational businesses, it is important to provide small- to medium-size enterprises and individuals transacting business both domestically and internationally with reliable tax, immigration, business, and litigation services.

By merging with Devry Smith Frank LLP, Nesathurai & Luk LLP will be able to offer a greater breadth of legal services to both firms’ ever growing client base,” said Hari Nesathurai, a founder and principal of Nesathurai & Luk.

Following the merger, the firm will continue under Devry Frank Smith name.

MCGRATH BECOMES LAWPRO CHAIRWOMAN
The LawPRO board of directors has announced the appointment of Susan McGrath as its new chairwoman.
McGrath will replace former chairman Ian Croft, who will continue as the board’s vice-chairman.

McGrath became a Law Society of Upper Canada bencher in 2007 and has served on several law society committees, including access to justice and government relations.

CONFERENCE NEXT MONTH
The Association of French Speaking Jurists of Ontario will host its annual conference in Collingwood, Ont., next month.

The event, to take place June 21-23, will feature training and networking opportunities. Topics of the conference will include harassment and violence in the workplace as well as administrative law.
For more information, see ajefo.ca.

CHANGES AT LAWPRO
LawPRO has combined its claims prevention and stakeholder relations’ programs into one department.

LawPRO vice president Dan Pinnington will run the department. It will also include Ray Leclair, LawPRO’s vice president of public affairs.

Pinnington, who has served as director of practicePRO for the past 11 years, will oversee LawPRO’s risk-management efforts and its stakeholder relations portfolio in his new role.

In addition, Leclair will be responsible for LawPRO’s government relations and other outreach activities.

NEW ADR ETHICS COURSE
The ADR Institute of Ontario Inc. has created a new training course to help alternative dispute resolution professionals resolve ethical dilemmas during the course of their work.

“As mediation becomes more mainstream, it is important that we raise the standards of the profession,” says Joyce Young, president of the ADR Institute of Ontario.

“The course is intended to make mediators and arbitrators think about what they would do if faced with an ethical dilemma. Mediation is done out of the public eye, so it’s very important that we set the right standards to ensure the process is ethical.”

Elaine Newman, a mediator and arbitrator in Toronto, said the course will also provide participants with a roadmap of potential ethical dilemmas.

“The objective of ethics training is to provide the practical tools necessary to assist the reflective mediator to increase his or her awareness of the issues in a case,” said Newman.

“The code of ethics governing members of ADRIO will be strengthened when paired with focused, interactive training of mediators through this course.”

The ethical issues and dilemmas in mediation and ADR course is available online. For more information, see adrontario.ca.

OAKVILLE LAWYER TARGETED IN HACKING SCAM
An Oakville, Ont., lawyer has been targeted in a computer hacking scam.

According to practicePRO, someone who identified himself as Mason Saunders contacted a law firm on the morning of May 11 and asked to speak directly to the lawyer.

The caller, who appeared to be calling from a Florida area code, then told the lawyer he had been asked to create a web site for the law firm. He noted that due to privacy issues, the web site could only be accessed by creating identification numbers for the lawyer.

According to practicePRO, this was a ploy to have the lawyer access an external web site that would download malware. The malware would then give the scammer access to the law firm’s information.

LAWYERS FEED THE HUNGRY EVENT
Lawyers Feed the Hungry will hold its annual Bugsy & Ken Charity Golf Tournament next month.

The event on June 13 will raise money for the Toronto Lawyers Feed the Hungry program and Camp Oochigeas, a camp for kids with cancer.

For more information, see lawyersfeedthehungry.ca.

LAW STUDENTS AMONG TRUDEAU SCHOLARS
Three law students are on the list of recipients of the Trudeau Foundation Scholarship.

The three are Kerri Froc of Queen’s University, Lisa Kerr of New York University, and Michael Pal of the University of Toronto.

Every year the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation presents the doctoral award to 15 students. It supports students focused on researching and sharing innovative ideas aimed at solving issues of importance to Canadians.

“This group of students demonstrates a remarkable engagement and an immense curiosity for the current state of the world,” said foundation president P.G. Forest. “The Trudeau scholarship will enable them to act upon their lively interest.”

Lawyers navigate tricky world of unbundling

lisa.adamson@thomsonreuters.com (Kenneth Jackson) — Tue, 22 May 2012 14:07:35 GMT

Toronto lawyer Mitch Kowalski wants to change how lawyers do business by dragging them kicking and screaming into the new realities.

A Criminal Mind: Vulnerable-sector checks a growing challenge for defence lawyers

lisa.adamson@thomsonreuters.com (Rosalind Conway) — Tue, 22 May 2012 14:02:42 GMT

Organizations are requiring police checks more often for employment, even for volunteer work, and it’s becoming an issue for lawyers’ clients.

Court rejects favouritism for murdered lawyer’s daughter

kendyl.sebesta@thomsonreuters.com (Kendyl Sebesta) — Tue, 22 May 2012 13:59:24 GMT

The child of a criminal defence lawyer and a computer expert who were shot to death in their home in Ancaster, Ont., in 1998 won’t get more favourable treatment from the courts than the man once accused of murdering them, the Ontario Superior Court has ruled.

Cassels Brock’s counterclaim raises eyebrows

kendyl.sebesta@thomsonreuters.com (Kendyl Sebesta) — Tue, 22 May 2012 13:56:26 GMT

Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP has shocked lawyers across the country after it sued more than 150 practitioners and law firms in the midst of highly publicized conflict of interest allegations against it.

LSUC budget among new treasurer’s priorities

lisa.adamson@thomsonreuters.com (Kendyl Sebesta) — Tue, 22 May 2012 13:49:48 GMT

Thomas Conway admits he has “big shoes to fill” but says he’s ready to tackle the budget in his new role as treasurer of the Law Society of Upper Canada.

Bits and Bytes: Top finds at ABA Techshow 2012

lisa.adamson@thomsonreuters.com (Monica Goyal) — Mon, 14 May 2012 15:28:44 GMT

Recently, I attended the American Bar Association Techshow in Chicago.

Legal clinics facing significant reform

kendyl.sebesta@thomsonreuters.com (Kendyl Sebesta) — Mon, 14 May 2012 05:00:00 GMT

Ontario’s 77 community legal clinics are facing significant changes to the way they do business, a Legal Aid Ontario paper suggests.

Nortel privilege ruling smells like pyrrhic victory

lisa.adamson@thomsonreuters.com (Julius Melnitzer) — Mon, 14 May 2012 05:00:00 GMT

Ontario Superior Court Justice Frank Marrocco’s ruling last week that lawyers for Nortel Networks Corp. executives won’t have to hand over the notes they took during their clients’ interviews with company investigators smells like little more than a pyrrhic victory for the criminal defence bar.

Lawyer took $1M from dad’s estate

kendyl.sebesta@thomsonreuters.com (Kendyl Sebesta) — Mon, 14 May 2012 05:00:00 GMT

The Law Society of Upper Canada has made a finding of professional misconduct against a well-known Ottawa lawyer after a hearing panel found he misappropriated more than $1 million from his deceased father’s estate and misapplied more than $40,000 from the trust accounts of several Lang Michener LLP clients.