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Career Path  LinkedIn has been around for about 10 years now. There are more than 200 million users worldwide, with 7 million of those users in Canada. I have been a member since 2006, and have witnessed many changes to the professional networking site since then.
| Trials & Tribulations  I’m sure there is nothing that warms the bottom of the heart of class action defendants more than seeing a mass exodus of potential class members from the proceeding following certification. Fewer class members mean reduced exposure to the payment of damages. And if enough people opt out, it could effectively render the class proceeding economically unviable from the perspective of class counsel. That, in turn, could lead to an early and lower settlement, or in an extreme case, a discontinuance |
 A recent Saskatchewan Court of Queen’s Bench decision, Branco v. American Home Assurance Co., awarded aggravated and punitive damages in the millions against the insurers. This case attracted the attention of everyone in the insurance industry due to the high awards: a total of $450,000 in aggravated and $4.5 million in punitive damages were awarded against AIG (American Home Assurance) and Zurich Life Insurance Co. Ltd.
| The Accidental Mentor  A sense of humour is an endearing quality, even in a lawyer. It can help you win the confidence of clients and colleagues. A flash of wit can signify a mastery of the facts. Lack of humour can be interpreted as being uncomfortable with the facts, like trousers that are too small. Too much humour, on the other hand, is like too much drink: it makes a display of the speaker at the expense of the subject matter.
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 In-house counsel may be developing diverse internal departments and asking their external firms to staff with diversity in mind but when it comes to mediation or arbitration, diversity seems not to be on their radar.
|  A University of Windsor law graduate who was previously declared a vexatious litigant has been granted a licence to practise law by the Law Society of Upper Canada.
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Human Rights . . . Here & There  As a lawyer, when I hear about human rights abuses my reflex is to seek legal solutions through criminal prosecution, a more human-rights-positive approach to interpretations of laws and regulations, and, when all else fails, new legislation. However, over the past year or two, I keep bumping into things that bring my attention to another form of resistance that is perhaps more accessible and more democratic — art.
| Cover Story  It was news that hit Bay Street with a bang. In late February, a group of lawyers from Fraser Milner Casgrain LLP’s mining group crossed over to Bennett Jones LLP, effectively gutting FMC’s mining practice just a month before it was to officially join with SNR Denton and Salans LLP to create a new global law firm with 2,500 lawyers and 79 offices around the world. “That was a big deal,” says Carolyn Berger of legal recruitment firm Marsden International. “It was a great, great thing for |
Current Issue
May 2013 • Volume 37, Issue 5
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- Subtitle Cover Story
Written by Jennifer BrownIssue Date: May 2013It was news that hit Bay Street with a bang. In late February, a group of lawyers from Fraser Milner… -
Written by Ava ChislingIssue Date: May 2013For the past nine years, Toronto criminal defence lawyer Edward Sapiano has been actively seeking out and retrieving illegal arms…
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- Subtitle Legal Report: Forensics & Criminal Law
Written by Shannon KarlIssue Date: May 2013One day after the Supreme Court of Canada ruled that text messages are private communications, the intermingling of privacy rights,…
Departments
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- Subtitle Tech Support
Written by Dera J. NevinIssue Date: May 2013Most people assume e-discovery law and practice are relevant only to litigators and those involved in responding to regulatory requests and investigations. Not so. E-discovery law and operations are highly relevant to corporate lawyers involved in the acquisition and divestiture of businesses and corporate assets. Avoiding the e-discovery implications of…
Columns
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- Subtitle Top Court Tales
Written by Philip SlaytonIssue Date: May 2013R.v. Ryan is an important case for an unusual reason. It introduced a new kind of case commentary, one made possible by social media. If this novel form of commentary catches on, it will change the way the public sees and evaluates the justice system. -
- Subtitle Editor's Desk
Written by Gail J. CohenIssue Date: May 2013At last month’s Canadian Corporate Counsel Association spring meeting, I sat in on a few sessions and panels that focused on various aspects of one’s legal career. One was a lunch panel with a group of high-powered women general counsel discussing their careers and how they broke through into the…
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In this month's episode, executive coach Debra Forman offers project management insights that demonstrate how lawyers can lead by example and teach juniors to focus… -
On March 14, students and faculty at Osgoode Hall Law School hosted a drag show to raise funds for the Wendy Babcock bursary. The late…
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