Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: Good afternoon.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: We are pleased to welcome you to today's New Lawyer Welcome Webinar. I'd like to start today's agenda with a land acknowledgement.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: We acknowledge that we live and work on land where Indigenous peoples have lived since time immemorial, and we are honored to share this land with them.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: We acknowledge the many First Nations, Metis, and Inuit who have lived in and cared for these lands for generations.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: We are grateful for the traditional knowledge keepers and elders who are still with us today, and those who have gone before us.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: We make this acknowledgement as an act of reconciliation and gratitude.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: For some introductions, I am Michael Oxman, Policy and Education Council with the Law Society of Alberta. We also have representatives from 5 other organizations presenting today.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: Kelsey Dick, Resources and Publications Lawyer with the Legal Education Society of Alberta, or LISA.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: Chris Samuel, President of the Canadian Bar Association Alberta Branch, the CBA. Angela Ashton, Law Librarian with Alberta Law Libraries.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: Colleen Bonnieman, Claims Counsel with the Alberta Lawyers Indemnity Association, ALEA,
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: And Mark Adler, Program Director with the Alberta Lawyers Assistance Society. ASSIST.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: Also joining us to support today's webinar are Avery and Beth from the Law Society's communications team.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: Today's session will be conducted through Zoom webinar. I want to briefly take you through a few features of this software.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: First, I want to mention that this webinar will be recorded and posted to our website within a few days of today's event.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: Next, at the bottom of your Zoom window, you should see the Zoom taskbar, which gives you a few options to interact with today's session.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: If you open the Q&A window, you will see an area where you can type questions throughout the webinar.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: We will be compiling a list of your questions to ask during our Q&A session, which will comprise the last part of today's presentation. And everyone has presented… after everyone has presented, and we do a draw for door prizes.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: You'll also see a resources section, and here you can download the slide deck from today's presentation.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: And then finally, live transcription of this event is enabled. So if you want to turn closed captioning on or off, select the closed captioning button on your Zoom taskbar.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: So let's get started with today's presentations, and I will kick things off.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: As I mentioned, my name is Michael Oxman, and I am Policy and Education Counsel at the Law Society of Alberta.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: This is the third year that we've presented the New Lawyer events, and it always makes me think back to when I was a new lawyer. I remember hearing about all the organizations that are here today, but I wasn't sure what they actually did. So today we're going to talk about that, and you'll probably be overwhelmed with information.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: But there's a really key point that I'd like you to take away, and it's that we're all here to help.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: So if you ever encounter an issue and you don't know where to turn, reach out to any one of us. If we can't help you, we'll know who can, and we're happy to point you in the right direction.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: With that said, let's dive in. So, first, what is the Law Society?
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: The Law Society regulates the legal profession in the public interest. Most people associate that with discipline, and yes, we do have a disciplinary process for serious concerns. But over the years, we've shifted to a more proactive approach to regulation.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: Our goal is to support lawyers by offering resources that help you build a safe, effective, and sustainable practice, and to help you deal with small issues before they turn into big ones.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: I'll highlight some of the programs and resources we offer, but you can check our website for the full list of our offerings.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: So first, mentorship. We've traditionally offered several different mentorship programs catering to different needs.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: I should flag that these programs are currently under review, and they're evolving, but the core idea is to connect newer lawyers with more experienced ones, who can then guide you, answer your questions, or even just let you vent about some of the frustrations inherent to practice.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: We also host table talks, which bring together mentees and mentors to network and talk through practical legal topics.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: Now, currently, our mentorship programs do not focus on substantive law, but the advisor link program fills this gap.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: In AdvisorLink, you'll be connected with senior counsel for one-off substantive law inquiries. It can help you understand a legal problem, consider different possible solutions, or just offer a sanity check on a difficult file.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: Next, the practice and equity advisors provide several important support.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: Their main role is to provide confidential assistance on practice management questions, things like conflicts, trust conditions, difficult clients, civility, and many other things.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: And this part is really important. The practice and equity advisors act as a separate office within the Law Society.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: This means they don't share information with the rest of the organization, and this allows you to get the advice you need safely and confidentially without worrying that it will trigger a complaint.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: As for the Equity Advisor Program, it's there to help if you've experienced or witnessed harassment or discrimination.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: If that happens, an advisor can provide confidential assistance and support and walk you through your options.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: Now, this process really works, and each year, the practice and equity advisors respond to over 6,000 inquiries. The point is, if you need advice on a tricky ethical or practice management-related issue, don't feel like you'll get yourself in trouble.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: or that you're the only one who needs help. The practice and equity advisors are there to help you work through all manner of ethical issues that you'll encounter on a file.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: We'll now turn to practice management, and this involves things such as file and time management, billing, trust accounting, and client communications.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: For these kind of issues, our practice management team offers customized one-on-one support through in-person and virtual consultations.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: Practice management consultations are particularly useful if you're a newer lawyer operating your own firm.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: There's just so much to learn early in your career, especially for a small firm or solo practitioner. So if this sounds like you, I'd really encourage you to consider setting up a consultation with our practice management team.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: You should also know that all active lawyers in Alberta are required to submit and implement the CPD plan each year.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: The Policy and Education team is available to provide coaching and guidance to help you develop and implement your plan so you can stay on top of your CBD obligations.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: Finally, the Key Resources section of our website has a variety of on-demand courses, articles, webinars, podcasts, and other content on topics relevant to legal practice.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: I'm going to spend the last few minutes today focusing on one specific resource called the Practice Fundamentals Program.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: This is a new CPD program designed specifically for new lawyers. It's being developed in partnership with Lisa and is delivered entirely online on Lisa's website.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: And maybe most importantly, the program is available at no cost to lawyers who became Alberta Law Society members in 2024 and after.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: The program builds off the skills you learned in PrEP and provides training in several areas, like legal practice skills, including things like writing and advocacy.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: Professional ethics and civility.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: Managing the lawyer-client relationship, including things like how to have a difficult conversation with a client.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: Practice some file management.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: And finally, lawyer well-being, because stress management turns out to be a core competency, and not something that we as lawyers can just push to the sidelines.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: You can currently access 11 courses, some of which you can see on screen.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: But we're adding more courses on a regular basis, and eventually there will be a library of over 20 courses, so check back often. Again, the program is free to lawyers who first obtained active status with the Law Society in 2024 and after, so this is a cost-effective way to build your skills and meet your CPD obligations.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: And you'll also get access to a ton of great benefits from Lisa, also at no cost.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: So if you want to register for the Prax Fundamentals program, or get more information, go to Lisa's website, which has everything you need to know.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: More information on Law Society resources is available on our website, so you can start your own search by looking under the New Lawyer Resources tab.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: And if you have any questions about the Prax Fundamentals program, or any other Law Society resources, you can always reach out. Contact our general email, or our customer service team, who will point you in the right direction. Thanks again for coming out, and I'll now hand things over to Kelsey Dick from Lisa.
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: Thanks, Michael. Hi, everyone. As mentioned, I'm Kelsey Dick. I'm the Resources and Publications Lawyer here at LISA, the Legal Education Society of Alberta, for those who maybe aren't familiar with us.
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: So today, I'm going to give you a brief background on our organization and what we can help provide, especially in your early years of practice.
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: I'll also briefly go over the registration process for the Practice Fundamentals program, as it's housed on our online classroom, and I'll highlight some of the benefits that Lisa's providing to Practice Fundamentals program registrants, that Michael alluded to earlier.
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: So, by way of background, Lisa's been serving the continuing legal education needs of Alberta lawyers since 1975. We offer a vast catalog of online and print resources, as well as a full calendar of webinar, livestream, and in-person programs.
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: Our goal is to be your partner as you move through your legal career, so first, in your continuing legal education needs.
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: for resources, for precedents, for live programming, and later in your career as a place to give back to the profession, we have Alberta lawyers that often come back and volunteer as faculty members, and as contributors to our resources.
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: So, I would encourage you to visit our website to see our full list of available resources, as well as our program calendar, to find upcoming programs that are going to be relevant to you and your practice area.
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: On that LISA website is where you can also register for a LISA.org account. As Michael mentioned, that a LISA.org account is required to practice, or to register for the Practice Fundamentals program.
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: It's something you can do very easily by going to our website, clicking on Create Account, and following the prompts. So I would encourage you all to look into it, because it is a great program, and as mentioned, free for new lawyers called in 2024 onwards.
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: You can also sign up for our email list, and this will give you 10% off any one electronic resource, and it also allows us to keep you informed about new LISA programs and resources that might be relevant to your practice.
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: So, the first resource I wanted to mention is our LISA Library. The LISA Library hosts all of our program papers from 2010 onwards, as well as all of our practice manuals and publications.
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: So we have practice manuals in core areas of law, including real estate, business, civil litigation, family, wills and estates, as well as publications in criminal law and foreclosures.
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: Our practice manuals, for those who maybe aren't familiar, are comprehensive books that are designed to be a day-to-day reference for your practice.
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: They're a really great reference source. They're written, in a very practical manner to kind of help you work through files, and particularly in your early years of practice, they can be a really great resource.
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: They usually contain practice tips, as well as a number of precedents, and then an overview of substantive law, and kind of how-tos, when you're practicing in different areas of law.
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: We also have a broad catalog of papers. These are organized by area of law and topic, again, covering a wide range of legal issues and topics that you may encounter in your own practice.
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: The Lisa Library also has a precedent bank, with currently over 1,200 different precedents in all areas of law. Most are downloadable in Microsoft Word, so you can save them and adapt them for your own files.
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: Again, when you're coming from a variety of different practice areas and different firm sizes, this can be a really great resource if you don't already have a large, precedent bank to access of your own.
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: The LISA Library is available as a complete subscription to all areas of law, or you can choose to subscribe to one or two areas, depending on your area of practice.
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: And registrants of the Practice Fundamentals program will automatically receive 25% off a subscription to the Lisa Library.
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: So, the next resource that I will highlight is our LISA Classroom.
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: If you do register in the Practice Fundamentals program, you'll find yourself probably becoming pretty familiar with Lisa Classroom, as this is where that program is largely housed. The Lisa Classroom hosts all of our on-demand programs, as well as our online self-study courses.
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: Our on-demand programs are recordings of past programs, available by presentation, so again, you can access topics that are most relevant to you. We have over 900 on-demand programs available in all areas of law on a wide range of topics and legal issues.
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: And the full catalog can be found on our website.
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: On our LISA Classroom, you can also filter by, by programs on demand, and we have a practice foundations.
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: program, which, is part of our Practice Foundations series. These are programs designed for lawyers in their early years of practice. So in addition to Practice Fundamentals, a similar name, but Practice Foundations is another place for you to check out to find some really great programming that might be relevant to you.
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: Registrants of the Practice Fundamentals program receive 5 free on-demand programs, as well as 25% off all on-demand programs.
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: So again, it's another great reason to register for that Practice Fundamentals program and take advantage of some of those benefits.
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: Alright, the last, thing I'm going to highlight today is some of Lisa's programming.
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: We provide live programming through a variety of formats, including in-person, livestream, and webinars. So our webinars are typically 60 to 90 minutes. They're offered usually at lunchtime, just to make it easier to incorporate into your workday.
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: Our full-day in-person programs are usually held in our classroom space here in Edmonton, or sometimes at venues around Calgary, but they're also typically livestreamed, so you can access them from wherever you practice.
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: We also hold several multi-day programs throughout the year. These are held at locations around the province, and occasionally, in places around BC. These are great opportunities for legal education, as well as networking with those in your field.
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: You can view our full program calendar on our website to find programs that are most… of most interest to you and your area of practice.
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: So, registrants in the Practice Fundamentals program receive 25% off most LISA webinars and full-day programs, so another added benefit to look into, if you're interested in registering in that Practice Fundamentals program.
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: So, I'm happy to take any questions at the end of the presentations. You're also welcome to reach out to me directly, and I'm happy to answer any questions later on. But for now, I will turn it over to Chris with the CBA. Thank you.
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: Hi, everyone. I think I have control of the slides, yes, it does. So,
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: Thanks for joining us today, whether you're doing it live or viewing the recording.
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: As has already been said, my name is Chris Samuel, and I have the privilege of serving as the president
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: of the Canadian Bar Association Alberta branch this year. In addition to serving in that role, I'm also the Director of Legal Research and Writing at the University of Alberta Faculty of Law, so to any of my former students who are in attendance or watching, nice to see you again as well.
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: What I'd like to do today is speak to you about the role the Canadian Bar Association can play in your life and career as a young lawyer.
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: And in fact, in all stages of your practice.
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: So, if, you don't know…
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: what the Canadian Bar Association is, or what we do. I will let you know that we are the largest professional association for lawyers in Canada. We represent nearly 40,000 members nationally, and over 5,600 here in Alberta.
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: The role of the Canadian Bar Association is to be an ally and an advocate for the legal profession. So what that means is that we are actively advocating on key issues that impact
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: all lawyers at all stages of their careers, and in fact, on issues that affect the justice system as a whole. Things like the funding for that system, the independence of the judiciary, and the independence of the bar as well.
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: And we also try to promote well-being
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: Within the profession through mental health events, and encouraging wellness overall.
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: As an early career lawyer, we have the ability to provide you with tools and resources that you will need to advance your career, including opportunities for community building and networking, as well as professional development opportunities that will keep you at the very top of your game.
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: I can tell, just speaking for myself, that as a young lawyer, I was involved heavily in the young lawyers section.
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: And that introduced me to lawyers who practiced in all different areas
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: And as an early career criminal practitioner.
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: I was able to get in touch with people who practiced in wills and estates, in the areas of real estate, in the areas of personal injury, so when I had friends and family members
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: asked me, do you have a lawyer that can help me with this issue? I was able to refer them to people that I knew and had developed a relationship with.
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: So there is a real benefit to networking outside of your immediate practice area that I think the CBA can provide.
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: As I progressed through my career, I was able to rise to different types of leadership positions, including as chair of the provincial
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: criminal justice subsection, and that enabled me to do things like travel to Ottawa, to advocate for reforms to law, at a national level, and those types of opportunities I felt were very unique.
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: rewarding As part of my career.
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: So, let me keep on going and tell you a little bit about how we can support you here.
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: the,
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: as I said, the early stages of your career are important for you because they set the stage for your future successes. And so, to help you do that, we have several benefits that are intended for articling students and early career lawyers in mind.
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: One of the ways that we deliver much of our professional development is through our CBA sections.
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: And we have over 40 sections that represent a number of different practice areas.
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: And portfolios, so that might include things like construction law, intellectual property, and subject-specific
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: areas of expertise, but we also have professional interest and shared identity sections, such as our small and solo general practice group, we have a sexual and gender diversity alliance group, as well as our Women's Law Forum.
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: So, all told, the sections deliver over 400 professional development sessions and networking events a year.
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: And, we have constructed our professional development to be flexible for you as young lawyers. So, what that flexibility means is that our programs are delivered in a hybrid model. You can choose to attend in person in either our Edmonton or Calgary office.
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: Or you can join us online, through… through an online webinar platform.
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: We also offer our professional development sessions as videos on demand after the session has been completed.
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: Speaking specifically to the Articling Students section and the Young Lawyers section, Those sections regularly host
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: Presentations and topics that are of specific interest to young lawyers and early career lawyers.
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: And one of the most valuable things that I found as an early career lawyer was how that section put me in contact with not only other members of the profession, but also members of the judiciary as well. So we host several bench and bar events that you should take advantage of.
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: Last fall, we made a decision to make the Articling Student and Young Lawyers sections free for all CBA Alberta members to join at the webcast level. So what that means is that you will have access to all of our library of on-demand programming content.
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: And the ability to attend our in-person meetings if you wish to pay a small nominal fee as well.
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: That'll get you invited to our regular social events, things like pub nights or other networking events that allow you to connect with new lawyers who might be at the same stage as you, but at a different firm or different practice area.
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: Finally, I want to mention the Young Lawyers Explore program. This is a membership package that we have available, which allows young lawyer members
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: to enroll in two section events, four sections in which you're not currently enrolled. So if you're interested in something, maybe you're thinking about switching your practice area, or making a move at an early stage in your career, you can attend some section events outside of what you're currently enrolled in as a way to see
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: What the, what that area of practice might offer for you.
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: And, CBA membership, if you didn't know this, I'm pleased to tell you that we offer deep discounts for our articling students and our new lawyers who are within their first 3 years of call.
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: That rate is a bit variable, but it can give you a discount of up to 70% of the regular membership rate.
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: So, again, I'm pleased that you were able to join us. If you'd like to learn more about CBA membership, please use this QR code or email us at members at cbalberta.org.
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: It is really refreshing to see so many young lawyers taking time out of their day to attend a webinar like this, and if you have any questions, I'm always
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: I'm happy to answer them.
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: Thanks very much.
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: I will turn that over then to, the next speaker.
Angela Ashton, Alberta Law Libraries: That's me!
Angela Ashton, Alberta Law Libraries: Hi everyone, I'm Angela Ashton. I'm here representing the Alberta Law Libraries, and we're at about halfway through, so you're doing… you're doing good. Have another sip of tea or coffee, do a little stretch. Hopefully I will get through my section fairly quickly.
Angela Ashton, Alberta Law Libraries: Okay. And so, I just want to give you a very quick overview today of what we do at Alberta Law Libraries and how we can support you as new lawyers, which is the theme today. Whether it's unfamiliar legal topics, you have a tight timeline, or maybe you just need to talk to someone about research strategies, we're always here to help.
Angela Ashton, Alberta Law Libraries: Okay, so, first things first, if you don't already have an account with us, I strongly recommend that you sign up through our website, and there's a little
Angela Ashton, Alberta Law Libraries: Picture there of how you go about doing that. With an account, you can access our physical and electronic collections, you can request materials, and you can use our services remotely and in person. It's quick and free, and gives you access to a lot more than you might expect.
Angela Ashton, Alberta Law Libraries: Okay, so, I mean, obviously, I'm a little bit biased. I love Alberta Law Libraries, but I think you will too, and I… we do have a lot of patrons who are very dedicated, and why do they love us so much? Why do they keep coming back?
Angela Ashton, Alberta Law Libraries: Well, I mean, again, totally biased, but our staff, I think you can ask a law librarian and get real help, not just search results. Our extensive textbook collection is very handy, especially useful for unfamiliar practice areas.
Angela Ashton, Alberta Law Libraries: Our webinars and research guides are designed for practical, real-world use, and our e-resources and videos support efficient searching.
Angela Ashton, Alberta Law Libraries: So, importantly though, there's no dumb questions. Asking for help is a part of strong legal practice.
Angela Ashton, Alberta Law Libraries: Okay, and so here's what we can actually do for you. With the… with the one proviso that, as articling students, we really want you to flex your research muscles, so we can't do the research for you. We want to… we can help you, so sometimes we'll get students who send an email and say, you know, I'm just stumped.
Angela Ashton, Alberta Law Libraries: I'm supposed to find some cases on this, I don't know where to begin, or do you have some book recommendations? I love, love those types of requests.
Angela Ashton, Alberta Law Libraries: But, while you're articling, there are certain services that are not available to you. And so that includes paid research and note up, but the things that are available to you, are research support and training on a one-to-one basis, which can also help you towards your CPD. It does count towards that.
Angela Ashton, Alberta Law Libraries: You also get borrowing privileges across our system.
Angela Ashton, Alberta Law Libraries: You get access to electronic resources, both in library and remotely.
Angela Ashton, Alberta Law Libraries: And so the subject searches are the ones that, generally… so when you're in practice, if you need help jump-starting your research, we can do that for you. It's… there's a fee, it's a $75, fee, flat fee, but, yeah. And then we also do, document delivery and note-up services.
Angela Ashton, Alberta Law Libraries: So, but this is the time. This is the time for you to flex those muscles,
Angela Ashton, Alberta Law Libraries: And we also have a lot of, other resources beyond just case law, like annotations, legal periodicals, and those fantastic Lisa materials. Now, Kelsey has not greased my palm, I have not been paid to say this, but
Angela Ashton, Alberta Law Libraries: highly recommend those LISA materials, especially the practice manuals. That's usually where I begin when someone comes in and has a question. They're just fantastic. The seminar materials are also very handy.
Angela Ashton, Alberta Law Libraries: So, yes, those are also worth coming in for.
Angela Ashton, Alberta Law Libraries: We also have a YouTube channel, and, where you'll find some short tutorials on advanced search techniques, Boolean searching, that sort of thing. I know
Angela Ashton, Alberta Law Libraries: Right? It's just about… sounds as fun as watching paint dry, but it's actually very helpful, and once you understand the whole Boolean and proximity connector thing, you will be using your time much more efficiently when you're researching.
Angela Ashton, Alberta Law Libraries: Okay, so our e-resources. We provide access, so not just our book books. These are our electronic resources that you can access, and some of them you have to come in, some of them you can access remotely by just using your barcode, and your last name as a
Angela Ashton, Alberta Law Libraries: a password, but we offer access to Westlaw, Edge Canada, Lexis Plus, Hein Online, VLEX, ICLR, and several other specialized collections. And like I said, oh, I didn't say this yet. Some resources are only available on-site, so it's worth visiting a branch when you can.
Angela Ashton, Alberta Law Libraries: And our beloved research guides. These are designed to help you get up to speed quickly. They're all available on our website. They walk you through key sources and practice-specific materials. Think of them as curated starting points, which are especially helpful when you're dealing in an area that you've never touched before.
Angela Ashton, Alberta Law Libraries: And this is just an example of our civil procedure guide, so you can see, you know, right away, if you just want to start with a good old textbook.
Angela Ashton, Alberta Law Libraries: If you're already… if you've been, you know, asked to do some pleadings or to find some precedents, there's some examples there. And there's also other resources under those, the links. So, very handy for you if you're new to an area.
Angela Ashton, Alberta Law Libraries: Okay, and that's really it for me, so I invite you to connect with us. You can visit one of our 10 branches, reach out through our website, or just ask a question anytime. We're here to support your practice and help you research with confidence.
Angela Ashton, Alberta Law Libraries: Thank you all very much for your attention. I will now turn it over to, Colleen Boniman with, Alia, Aaliyah, Tomato, Tomato. Not too sure how that, how to pronounce it, but I will turn it over now.
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: Thanks, Angela. As Angela said, I'm Colleen Bonnieman, I am Claims Counsel with ALEA, and I'm going to give you a high-level overview of ALEA today.
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: So, I'll talk about, who we are, what we do for you as lawyers, and what your obligations are under the policy.
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: And we recognize that despite your best efforts, mistakes do happen. We want you to obviously reach out to us per your obligations, but just to let you know we're there to support you, to cover you, through a hard time, or what could be a hard time.
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: So, I'll start with discussing,
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: how ALEA was established, and that our unique role is recognized by the courts, which is the quote on the screen.
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: So, ALEA was established in 1988, under the Legal Profession Act.
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: We're a subsidiary of the Law Society.
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: And we manage the mandatory indemnity program in Alberta.
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: That means we indemnify every lawyer who is a member of the Law Society of Alberta, except for in-house and government lawyers who are exempt.
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: But we have no role in determining who is a member of the Law Society. That is up to the Law Society of Alberta.
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: And part of our role in running the program is to ensure the quality, efficiency, and sustainability of the program.
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: And this quote on the screen is, like I said, our unique role is recognized by the courts. Together, the roles of ALEA and the Law Society, are parts of a system of public protection, but we are very different.
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: While the Law Society stands between lawyers and the public, protecting the public, ALEA stands behind the lawyers, and we make sure that lawyers who are liable to a member of the public can compensate them for damages, and that's why we're an indemnifier.
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: So basically, we have no duty of care or duty of good faith to claimants from the public.
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: So, like I said, I'll talk a little bit about our policy today. We're gonna focus mostly on professional liability and negligence today, which is Part A of the policy.
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: So the policy is divided into Part A and Part B. Part A covers indemnity for professional liability. Part B covers misappropriation claims, or thefts, by lawyers of funds in their trust account.
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: We also recently added, in 2022, a universal cyber coverage program. This is administered through a policy by Beasley, so if you did have that sort of claim, you would report it, to Beasley.
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: So we'll talk a little bit about, how we support lawyers and what's in the policy for you.
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: So, as I said, Part A is intended to cover negligence.
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: In the policy, we use the term occurrence to mean an error or related errors, when you are providing professional services as a lawyer.
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: And there are 3 main buckets of assistance that ALEA provides. There is the duty to defend a claim, if there's coverage, so that would be defense of a lawyer.
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: Secondly, duty to indemnify pay damages, on behalf of a lawyer.
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: And number 3 is repairs. So, Leah has the discretion to… to appoint counsel to step in and attempt to repair an error.
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: And obviously, this all is contextual, depends on what's reported to us, but those are the three main ways that Aaliyah might be serving you.
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: And like I said, Part B of the policy covers misappropriation by lawyers, but not others, such as other employees of a law firm.
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: And the other part of Aaliyah's work, is outreach, such as this, loss prevention and education, to lawyers about how we can prevent or reduce claims.
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: So, you do have obligations under the policy as a lawyer covered by ALEA.
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: So I'll just quickly go over those. And of course, if you have any questions, please feel free to reach out after the presentation.
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: So, number one, you must report all claims and potential claims as soon as possible to us, even if you think it's unmeritorious. You must report within the same policy period that you become aware that there is a claim or potential claim.
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: And our policy period is July 1st to June 30th each year.
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: And like I said, you need to report anything which could reasonably be expected to give rise to a claim, or constitute an occurrence, as defined under the policy.
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: Secondly, you have to cooperate with Aaliyah. It may be self-explanatory, but
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: It's very hard to provide a full strategic defense if a lawyer's not cooperating with us, such as providing records or detailing what happened, and obviously poses an issue for assessing coverage under the policy.
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: Number 3, you are not to make any settlement offers or payments without ALEA.
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: The settlement of claims that would be covered under ALEA's policy is within our sole discretion. We obviously want to work with you for resolution, but, you cannot make those offers or payments without speaking to ALEA.
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: Fourth, making no admissions of liability, so not admitting that you may have made a mistake or did make a mistake.
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: The practice advisors are also a great resource for how you may want to, advise your client that this has arisen. Obviously, you're going to want to consider
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: recommending independent legal advice and possibly ceasing to act for your client. This is difficult to navigate,
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: And so, the practice advisors are your resource for direct client communications, and are experts on the code of conduct, obviously.
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: And lastly, the payment of a deductible or surcharge. This comes into play when ALEA starts to incur costs, whether those are defense costs, or a settlement payment, or a judgment of some sort that we have to pay.
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: And the deductible is a no-fault deductible, which helps us to keep the annual levy for all lawyers low.
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: Our website has further details on how the surcharge works as well.
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: So I know that's a lot of information. I thank you very much for listening and for being here. And of course, if you have any further questions, we have lots of resources on our website, aliyah.ca, or you can reach out to us, info at aliyah.ca.
Colleen Bonnyman, ALIA: And I'm going to pass it on to our last presenter today, Mark Adler with ASSIST.
Marc Adler, Assist: Hi, my name is Mark Adler. I am currently program director for the Alberta Lawyers Assistance Society. I've held that role since last year. I also, teach Canada's first mental health and legal profession course.
Marc Adler, Assist: to third-year law students at U of C since 2025. So if I have any students in the crowd, former students, hello, it's nice to see you again. And thank you everyone for being here, and thank you for the Law Society for putting on this important program.
Marc Adler, Assist: So, ASSIST Vision, for those who don't know, the top line is what I focus on, what we focus on primarily, because it's the top of the chain.
Marc Adler, Assist: in this spiral of despair, call it a vortex, but preventing stress from becoming distress is what ASSIST Vision is all about. And, as early career lawyers, it's really incumbent upon
Marc Adler, Assist: You to really understand what that means, because you've heard it, and you're going to hear it lots of times, law is stressful.
Marc Adler, Assist: But, what we've uncovered, and what all research shows, that stress is not the problem.
Marc Adler, Assist: Stress is protective and adaptive and automatic, and it's trying to help us.
Marc Adler, Assist: prepare for a challenge. It's just not understanding how we function, and how our physiology works, and what happens when we're, when we encounter stress.
Marc Adler, Assist: And we inadvertently…
Marc Adler, Assist: turn it into distress. So distress is learned. So there are, it's really important when we're starting out to understand that, and to… we can help with that. We have people, we have counselors, I'm going to get into it, and give you a high-level overview of what we can do to help
Marc Adler, Assist: You feel better while facing the pressure and the stresses that law entails.
Marc Adler, Assist: So we help everyone, lawyers, our clean students, law students, and their dependent families as well, which is really, really important to remember, because our… our well-being does affect those around us, for sure.
Marc Adler, Assist: You may not know this, but ASSIST has been around for 30 years now, and counting. Completely free, 100% confidential.
Marc Adler, Assist: And independent from the Law Society, and we've helped thousands of lawyers over the years. I really want to stress the confidentiality. The Law Society never receives any personal information from anyone who contacts ASSIST.
Marc Adler, Assist: Full transparency, Law Society is a major funder of ASSIST.
Marc Adler, Assist: We have an independent board.
Marc Adler, Assist: pride ourselves on our independence. There's never been an issue in 30 years. You can rest assured that if you contact ASSIST, the only
Marc Adler, Assist: way any confidentiality would be ever breached is if you're in imminent harm, and we call 911 in that case. That's all. Okay? So, I want to stress and put any fears aside that by calling assist, that will somehow get out and around, and it will not, okay?
Marc Adler, Assist: There's four pillars of support through ASSIST. Our most well-known pillar is our professional counseling, which I'll talk about in a second, but we also have peer support, education awareness, and community programs. I'm going to highlight those now, starting with counseling.
Marc Adler, Assist: So this, what we offer, is four sessions per person, per issue, and I bolded those two words because an issue
Marc Adler, Assist: can be almost anything, so please don't let the four sessions per person, throw you and think that's not worth it. Plus, so much can be done in four sessions that you would be amazed. So, again, all lawyers, arguments, and family members.
Marc Adler, Assist: Well, it's free. It's also available 24-7, and all the counselors are registered psychologists. They have about 10 years of experience, and they're also fully vetted and experienced in the unique stressors
Marc Adler, Assist: And issues that arise out of the legal profession. So that's really important, and that is also hard to find.
Marc Adler, Assist: Okay?
Marc Adler, Assist: And…
Marc Adler, Assist: Our other three pillars I want to mention, like I said before, is peer support. So I run that program. We have over 150 volunteers.
Marc Adler, Assist: Excellent, well-trained, experienced.
Marc Adler, Assist: peers who you can be matched with with one phone call. And these are people that have perhaps been through what you're going through right now. They've, you know, walked on all the landmines, as I like to say, and they can tell you where they are.
Marc Adler, Assist: It's so helpful, something I wish I would have done earlier in my career, so this is available to everyone, and it's a wonderful program.
Marc Adler, Assist: Education and awareness. We have a weekly newsletter that is very helpful because it lets you know what's going on in the profession and what's coming up, webinars and the like. We also put on webinars for law firms and other organizations in the community. We do walks for Wellness every September.
Marc Adler, Assist: And under the community, the red box, that's my job as well, and I want to tell you about those right now, because these are programs that can make an immediate impact on your well-being, literally in one day.
Marc Adler, Assist: Redmaw Coffee Circles. What that is, is it's an online community where, you can join. It's free. It's every Monday at noon, and we have experienced lawyers discuss, open discussion.
Marc Adler, Assist: About, various topics of interest, all ranging from finding an articling position, all the way to, you know, what's the best thing I can do to invest in my own well-being, and…
Marc Adler, Assist: not only just survive this profession, but how do I thrive in it? How do I… how do I do that?
Marc Adler, Assist: Mindfulness is one way to do that, and that's every Tuesday at noon at 15 minutes only. It's online as well. You don't even have to turn your camera on, you don't have to say a word, you don't have to introduce yourself, you can just be there and listen in your office at noon.
Marc Adler, Assist: we have…
Marc Adler, Assist: a profound teacher in mindfulness who's been trained all over the world, has lived in India, actually grew up in Calgary, though.
Marc Adler, Assist: But…
Marc Adler, Assist: call him a guru, or a master, or whatever label you want to put on him. His name is Matthew Kellerman, and he's been doing this for a number of years, and he's absolutely phenomenal.
Marc Adler, Assist: He donates his time, and if we could get more people out to this program, it… mindfulness is not a stress management technique. It's not something to just make you feel a little bit better. It's actually…
Marc Adler, Assist: kind of a gateway or a doorway to freedom and feeling… having inner peace and calmness while the world is blowing up around you. That's what mindfulness can do for you. It's the gateway to that experience. Yoga, as well is a life-changing experience.
Marc Adler, Assist: It's every Wednesday. We have a justice who is a yoga instructor, we have other retired lawyers who are yoga instructors, and they donate their time. This is also…
Marc Adler, Assist: live streamed, but it's also live. If you're in Calgary, it's every Wednesday at 1210 in the Knox Church, downtown Calgary, but you can also join online, and please email me to receive the links to those recurring programs, and check out our newsletter as well.
Marc Adler, Assist: Okay, so who uses ASSIST? Everyone, pretty much. There are some…
Marc Adler, Assist: As you might expect, the associate category is our…
Marc Adler, Assist: is our biggest user of assist services. Next come order clean students and law students. But there are partners, in-house counsel, and solo practitioners as well. So, it is not, it is a very well-used program, and just to prove that.
Marc Adler, Assist: And this should help break the stigma. We hope that 1 in 3 lawyers have used our program since… since 2008.
Marc Adler, Assist: And, there was a landmark study in 2022 in Canada on legal wellness.
Marc Adler, Assist: And so you should check that out. I don't have enough time to go into it right now, but one key stat from there was they… there was about 8,000 lawyers that they surveyed, and again, this was Canada's first foray into why is there a mental health crisis in the legal profession, and they found
Marc Adler, Assist: that, about 5% Actually think mental health is a weakness.
Marc Adler, Assist: But they think of… 60%, they think that other people think that, and that's part of the problem. And for us in today's society to still believe that mental health is weakness, or somehow a character flaw.
Marc Adler, Assist: or somehow kind of a moral failure is, in my view, actually absurd, because mental health and physical health are one and the same. The mind and the body is totally connected.
Marc Adler, Assist: And in fact, our physiology is what really drives our well-being, and that's the missing piece, in my view. And so it's really imperative that as new lawyers, you get in the good habit of focusing on your physiology, understanding how you function physically, biologically.
Marc Adler, Assist: And you'll understand that it's… it'll shift your paradigm for you from a calm mind
Marc Adler, Assist: calm body paradigm into the reverse, because it's actually a calm body mind. That's how it works.
Marc Adler, Assist: It's been proven over and over for decades now, it's just culture isn't… hasn't adopted it yet. So it's incumbent upon us
Marc Adler, Assist: Well-being is…
Marc Adler, Assist: Maybe not necessarily a moral issue, and not necessarily your fault, given the structure of the legal system. However, it's our responsibility. Our internal well-being is our own responsibility, and there are many things we can do to, not only just survive
Marc Adler, Assist: Law, but to thrive in it, and to still be being a kind, caring, compassionate human being, and also being a highly effective lawyer is absolutely possible.
Marc Adler, Assist: And it starts with, in my view, our physiology. So, please call us if you want to learn more about that. Go on our website. Lots of resources there for you as well in our Knowledge Hub, or just email me, and we can go from there, so…
Marc Adler, Assist: Remember, do not suffer in silence. It is not just you if you're not feeling well right now. 7 out of 10 Articlean students are experiencing, distress and burnout, and so it is not just you if you are feeling burnt out right now as a new lawyer, so please call us. That's what we're here for, and we can help, and
Marc Adler, Assist: I wish everyone the very best, and thank you for your attention. Here's our contact information.
Marc Adler, Assist: My phone number is there. Also, Lorraine Champion, she's the Executive Director, you can reach out to her as well, and look forward to hearing from you. Thank you, everyone.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: Alright, so, with the presentations, finished, we have a few more items to get to on the agenda. We're going to start by talking about some upcoming events in the legal community, then we will have a draw for door prizes, and then finally we have a Q&A session.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: And just to remind you, there's still time to fire off a question into the chat. Please do so in the Q&A section that you'll see at the bottom of the screen.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: But, first we'll talk about upcoming events, and, I believe, Lisa and Chris have some events to announce, so, whoever would like to go first, we can start with that.
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: Sure, I'll just mention a few events that we've got in the immediate future. Our programming does typically take a bit of a break over the summer months in July and August, but within the next couple of weeks.
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: We have an event coming up on this Friday, May 29th. The program that we're offering
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: just building off of what Mark was talking about, the program is called Brain Story, the Resilience Scale Masterclass, so that's something focused on mental health and well-being.
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: The following week, so next week, on Tuesday, June 2nd, we have a program called The Leading Edge for Lawyers.
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: And compassion in practice.
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: And the following week after that, on June 10th, our employment section is putting on a view from the Bench session, dealing with litigating employment cases in the Alberta Court of King's Bench. We have some justices who are joining us for that session.
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: So, for details on those programs and all of our professional development offerings, you can visit cba-
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: alberta.org, O-R-G, slash PD, and that will give you our full PD calendar, and you can get details on those events and all the other ones that we offer as well.
Chris Samuel, CBA-Alberta: Thank you, Michael. Kelsey, I think you had some events as well?
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: Yeah, thanks, Chris. So as I mentioned, you can view our full program LISA calendar, on our website to find programs that are relevant and interesting to you and your practice area.
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: Like Chris, I'll just note a few upcoming, programs for Lisa. We are also having our program year winding down at the end of June, but for our 2026-2027 year, which will start July 1, 2026,
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: We have a few upcoming multi-day programs that I thought I would mention for those interested.
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: We're hosting a litigation conference in Kananaskis this fall. It has a really great list of presenters already queued up, so I encourage any of you who do litigation, regardless of practice area, to look into that.
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: We also have a family law refresher coming up next year, in spring, which will be in Victoria, BC.
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: So a great reason to get away. And, our annual intensive advocacy program we hold every year in Calgary in June. This is a really great trial, training program, so if you find yourself in litigation, particularly if you have any trials kind of coming on the horizon, this is a really in-demand program, and it's a really excellent one.
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: So a few good ones to look into. We are also continually developing new resources, so new self-study courses, new publications, and currently we have a new practice manual on employment law that is in the works, which is going to be published
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: June, July of this year, so coming pretty soon. So keep an eye out for that as well.
Kelsey Dick, Legal Education Society of Alberta: Thank you.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: Well, I am being advised that that's all we have time for today. Thanks, everyone, for your questions, and apologies to anyone.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: Whose question we didn't have time to get to. We appreciate everyone for joining us on today's webinar, and we hope that you took away some valuable information. I'd like to thank my co-presenters for taking the time
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: to participate in this event, and for sharing their knowledge with everyone. Again, the webinar was recorded, and a version of it will be posted to our website. This might be particularly valuable to you if you'd like to review anything, or if you know someone interested in the information presented today who wasn't able to attend.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: Again, if you have any questions at all, don't hesitate to reach out to any of the organizations who presented today. We are all here to help. Before we sign off, please take a couple minutes to complete the exit survey, which will pop up on your screen at the conclusion of today's webinar.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: The survey is short, and your feedback helps us improve future new lawyer events.
Michael Oxman, Law Society of Alberta: Thanks again for joining us, and I hope you have a great day.