The Alberta legislature passed two bills in December 2025 that are particularly important to the regulation of the legal profession. The many separate ramifications of the Justice Statutes Amendment Act, 2025, some of which I have previously written about,[1] are important though perhaps not immediately obvious. The Regulated Professions Neutrality Act, in contrast, has
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Mediators Are Human Too
Back in the day, when I was starting my mediation practice, I received the worst advice ever. It came from someone who, I believe, meant well. The advice was that I should let the world know I was a mediator by modelling neutrality. In everything I did.
Why was this bad advice? Because that is
The Legal Profession’s Weakening Grip on Law Society Governance
In late April, two groundbreaking decisions concerning legal regulators in Canada were announced — one by a court, and one by a law society.
The first decision came from the British Columbia Supreme Court, which ruled that the provincial government’s proposed overhaul of legal regulation in BC was constitutional and could proceed. I thought
Wednesday: What’s Hot on CanLII? – May 2026
Each month, we tell you which three English-language cases and French-language cases have been the most viewed* on CanLII in the previous month and we give you a small sense of what the cases are about.
For this past month, the three most-consulted English-language decisions were:
1. Ahluwalia v. Ahluwalia, 2026 SCC 16
[140] Intimate
The Hidden Economics of Delegation to Law Students
In my last column, I wrote about the hidden economics of law firm student recruitment and the substantial investment firms make in attracting and hiring students. The conclusion was relatively straightforward. Most firms devote enormous attention to recruitment, but the return on that investment is largely determined after students arrive.
That return is shaped
The Legal Cost of Cutting Librarians
On 6 May 2026, Nova Scotia Community College (NSCC) announced that it had eliminated 91 positions, including 45 layoffs, in response to a $15 million deficit. The deficit followed a $9.4 million reduction to NSCC’s operating grant by the Province of Nova Scotia earlier in the year and reduced international tuition revenue, due to previous
“A Security Is What the Law Says It Is”: Legislative Breadth and Judicial Purpose in Canadian Securities Law
Canadian securities law has long resisted narrow or technical definitions of the term “security.” Instead, both legislatures and courts have embraced an intentionally expansive and purposive conception, one designed to capture a wide range of investment arrangements rather than a closed set of financial instruments. The oft‑invoked proposition that “a security is what the law
Ontario v Doe: The 30 Hour Lawsuit
If you think civil lawsuits take way too long in Canada, you’re in good company. But one high-profile suit recently went from claim to final hearing in less than 30 hours. Ontario v Doe was certainly an unusual case, and one that has been widely debated for reasons that have nothing to do with
RECLAIM: L Is for Learning
In previous articles, I introduced the RECLAIM model as a cultural operating system for law firms and explored the first three elements: Respect, Equity, and Clarity. This month, I turn to L: Learning.
In February 2014, Satya Nadella stepped into the role of CEO at Microsoft. The company he inherited was dominant but
There’s Got to Be a Better Way! Law Societies’ Approach to the Regulation of Lawyers With Mental Health Issues
In recent years we have made significant strides in recognizing the prevalence of mental health issues amongst lawyers and attempting to defeat the stigma that discourages lawyers from disclosing their challenges and seeking support.
It is now well-known and accepted that “legal professionals are almost twice as likely to experience mental health issues like anxiety,