In July, I was counsel in a voir dire in BC Supreme Court, where four police officers testified over three days. While the officers gave evidence, I took over 30-pages of handwritten notes. I could capture verbatim maybe 30 percent of what was said. The rest of the time — when answers went on for too long or counsel and the witness talked over one another — I got only the gist of it. Yet, precision was key.

At one point, we stood down for over an hour for the court clerk to go through the recording to find a . . . [more]

I recently watched a series on Netflix, called Truth Be Told.

In one of the episodes, the main character tells a story about a time when she physically lost her voice due to trauma she experienced in foster care.

Losing one’s voice is something that is not new to those going through the system whether judicial or otherwise.

I have heard so many self represented litigants say that they don’t have a voice; that they are not being heard; that no matter how hard they prepare they are drowned out by the complicated and bureaucratic machine of the legal system. . . . [more]

Sheriff of Nottingham: “Locksley! I’m gonna cut your heart out with a spoon.”

Robin Hood: “Then it begins.”

Later, Sheriff of Nottingham’s cousin, Guy of Gisbourne, asks a good follow-up question: “Why a spoon, cousin? Why not an axe? Or…”

Sheriff of Nottingham: “Because it’s DULL, you twit. It’ll hurt more.”

(Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (1991))

There are a few surprising issues worth discussing: 1. Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves is nearly 35-years old; 2. Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves only has an IMDB rating of 6.9/10 (I wholeheartedly disagree); 3. The Sheriff of Nottingham, though a character derived . . . [more]

I dream of a society free from bugs. Nothing ruins a fire on a summer night more than a swarm of mosquitoes and blackflies, pricking me, injecting poison, freeing my blood from its rightful domain. Who welcomes the skin-critters prompting you to slap yourself on the face for a modicum of peace? Not me, and I venture, not you, my dear reader! What sins did I commit to warrant the devil’s plague? Put me instead in a white glass box, protected from the bugs, air conditioned, quiet, an entirely civilized and human invention. Surround me with the plush pleasures of . . . [more]

Author’s Note: After I wrote this column, but a couple of days before it was published, Open AI upgraded its GPT Chatbot from version 4 to version 5. Among the negative reactions to the change was a sense that ChatGPT-5’s artificial personality had becomes more distant and less complimentary. As you’ll see below, I don’t think that’s a problem. But there are early indications that Open AI might tweak the model again to reintroduce the earlier version’s “warmth,” which would make my warnings below more relevant again.

Something that many people have expressed concern about, when it comes to using . . . [more]

Succession is a critical yet often ignored component of business strategy that left undone can lead to unfortunate outcomes from client and legal talent departures to law firm failure. Best to act now because it’s not how you start; it’s how you finish.

Do you plan to work forever? Or live forever? For your sake, I hope not. After all, as Bugs Bunny—probably the world’s most famous cartoon rabbit—says: “Don’t take life too seriously. You’ll never get out of it alive.”

Because change happens throughout our lives is exactly why succession and the planning of it is a critical business . . . [more]

Recently I visited the Vanderbilt Mansion in Hyde Park, New York.

For those of you who are movie buffs and enjoy American history, Franklin Delano Roosevelt had his family estate there and returned to Hyde Park on a regular basis to relax and recharge.

In fact, the Vanderbilts and the Roosevelts were neighbors and their estates are now part of the New York State Parks.

The era to which these families belonged was called the Gilded Age. I had heard of this time period before, however I never really focused on its real meaning until the tour guide explained it . . . [more]

Perhaps, you say, it is akin to the hockey player, who skates with the puck again and again into the offensive zone, only to be met with a stick here, a shoulder there, caroming into the boards or sliding splayed out into the ice, but upon another foray sneaks one way around a stick while pushing the puck the other, then erupting forth past a shoulder, gathering the puck and looking up to find only a wide-eyed squid between heaven and hell. A sudden rise in heat, pressure transforming into euphoria, but not quite yet, the sensation of success and . . . [more]

This month’s column is aimed at Gen-Xers like me and the Boomers who preceded us in the legal profession. Readers in your 20s, 30s, and 40s – I’ll catch you next time out.

Preparing a talk the other day, I realized with a mild shock that last month, I celebrated the 30th anniversary of my call to the bar. Although maybe “celebrated” isn’t quite the right word – “commemorated”? “Glossed over with mild discomfort?” “How the hell did that happen?” 1995 was also the last year in which I engaged in anything like the practice of law, so I suppose . . . [more]

Once espoused by a US Supreme Court Justice in the historical Jacobellis case, the iconic “I know it when I see it” principle doesn’t only apply to censorship. I would argue that we can apply it to well-constructed legal documentation as well.

Have you ever looked at a document, any document, and felt overwhelmed by the amount of information coming at you? For example, think about the last time you emptied your mailbox of fliers. Did you look at one of those fliers and think, “Argh! There are so many random pictures of produce, numbers and words and I don’t . . . [more]

As a child living in remote Northern B.C., my dad had a dog sled team made up of several Siberian Huskies. Huskies are working dogs prized for their strength and endurance. They require significant exercise and mental stimulation. A Husky without a task is easily bored and can be destructive. In the summertime, my dad would harness his dogs to a small cart to keep them occupied and happy. Without their cart, they would howl their displeasure.

I’m afraid I might be a Husky. I love to work. I love setting tasks and completing them, whether I’m paid for it . . . [more]

Ontario’s Civil Rules Review Working Group has proposed the most comprehensive reform of Ontario’s Rules of Civil Procedure since their introduction in 1985. The Consultation Paper released in early April weighs in at 122 pages, with recommendations affecting every major element of civil litigation within the province.

The Working Group’s overarching goal is to get “all cases heard within two years.” This is certainly not unambitious, given that the status quo average is between four and five years. Quicker times to disposition, the Working Group hopes, will generate lower legal bills and better access to justice.

There seem . . . [more]