The weather outside may be frightful but everyone’s outlook seems to be a lot more delightful than it was at this time last year. Heading into the first quarter of 2010 there appears to be a lot less malaise, trepidation, worry, anxiety, fretting — you get the picture — than there was 12 months ago. At that time, not only were we hearing from law firms about their concerns over the economy, we also felt the tightening of belts as an organization that services the legal community.
The good news from 2009 was that the Canadian legal market did not suffer to the same extent that those in the New York and U.K. markets did. Not only did revenues for them decrease dramatically but lawyers were being made redundant, as they say in the U.K., at an alarming rate.
Canadian firms cut some staff and lawyers but overall it was not the bloodbath seen in foreign markets. Nonetheless, there has been a lightening of the spirit. We’ve been feeling it in chats with managing partners, marketing and business development teams, and from on-the-ground practitioners.
By mid-December, the predictions were already coming in from law firms about the improved business environment. Some bright spots: revival of the oilpatch; increases in M&As; more class action certification; and the return of commercial real estate. There are still some bumpy spots, but overall, 2010 looks like it’ll be better than the year now behind us.
In the spirit of starting off the year with a bang, we have a great issue of Canadian Lawyer this month. There seem to be a never-ending litany of cases involving sexual abuse of young people by the clergy. The Roman Catholic Diocese of Antigonish is no exception but lawyers and alleged victims there are managing their class action in quite a different way, although it has not been a smooth ride. As of mid-December the class action looks like it will move along. Read our cover story, “Unsettled,” on page 26 for more about the genesis of the groundbreaking agreement.
Our second feature takes a critical look at the federal government’s changes to criminal justice legislation. Former chief justices Roy McMurtry and Allan H. Wachowich as well as current Ontario Court of Appeal Justice Marc Rosenberg weigh in on page 34 with their thoughts in “Wither judicial discretion?”
In addition to our great offerings in the print edition of Canadian Lawyer, we continue to build our online content at canadianlawyermag.com, which has news and updates every week. This month sees the debut of two columns: the monthly Human Rights . . . Here and There, helmed by professor Lucie Lamarche, Gordon F. Henderson Human Rights Chair at the University of Ottawa Faculty of Law; and Craig’s Reviews, a bimonthly review of law-related fiction from Craig Paterson, a former law prof and lawyer who has been practising for 33 years. There are also news stories each Monday aimed specifically at in-house and law students.
Online also means interactive so please comment, send us story ideas, and let us know what you’d like to see more of in our pages and on our web sites — and if you haven’t already, subscribe to the Canadian Legal Newswire, our Monday e-newsletter on all things legal.
