On March 28, 2019, the Coalition Avenir Quebec government tabled Bill n°21: An Act respecting the laicity of the State to fulfill an election promise to ensure the religious neutrality of the state and prohibit many public sector employees from wearing religious symbols at work. The proposed legislation is being studied in parliament at this moment.

After the failed attempts of the Parti Québécois with its charter of values in 2014, and the Liberal Party with Bill 62 in 2017 with an Act to foster adherence to State religious neutrality and, in particular, to provide a framework for requests for . . . [more]

Periodically on Thursdays, we present a significant excerpt, usually from a recently published book or journal article. In every case the proper permissions have been obtained. If you are a publisher who would like to participate in this feature, please let us know via the site’s contact form.

Happily Ever After: Fostering the Role of the Transactional Lawyer as Storyteller
20 Tenn. J. Bus. L. 491 (2019)

Karen J. Sneddon, Professor of Law, Mercer University School of Law and Susan M. Chesler, Clinical Professor of Law, Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law

Excerpt: Parts I through Part V, . . . [more]

We all know the power of personal branding – what it is that makes you unique, stand out or differentiate from the rest. We know that personal branding is huge in our business. The question is how can we help clients make that connection to you? Your brand is a great place to start.

Personal branding is about you. More specifically it is about embracing aspects of who you are rather than changing who you are. Often I hear lawyers talk building their brand while failing to realise that what they are trying to achieve is not part of their . . . [more]

Several times each month, we are pleased to republish a recent book review from the Canadian Law Library Review (CLLR). CLLR is the official journal of the Canadian Association of Law Libraries (CALL/ACBD), and its reviews cover both practice-oriented and academic publications related to the law.

Everyday Exposure: Indigenous Mobilization and Environmental Justice in Canada’s Chemical Valley. By Sarah Marie Wiebe. Vancouver: UBC Press, 2017. xx, 260 p. Includes forward by James Tully, bibliographic references, photo essays, index, and appendices. ISBN 978-0-7748-3263-2 (hardcover), $95.00. ISBN 978-0-7748-32649-9 (softcover), $32.95.

Reviewed by Nadine R. Hoffman
Natural Resources, Energy . . . [more]

In the last five years, the engagement, skill and experience of individuals representing themselves in the justice system has changed in a number of very important ways. NSRLP has a number of data points to reinforce this observation, including the 2015/16 Intake Report and the 2017 Intake Report which noted:

“Last year we were struck by the growing sophistication and nuance of the tips offered by SRLs to others who face similar circumstances. In 2017, we continue to see very detailed advice offered to other SRLs. Respondents offered personal experiences with preparing court documents, preparing for appearances, how to research,

Each Wednesday we tell you which three English-language cases and which French-language case have been the most viewed* on CanLII and we give you a small sense of what the cases are about.

For this last week:

1. Toronto Transit Commission v Amalgamated Transit Union, Local 113, 2019 CanLII 22225 (ON LA)

Turning to the Wigmore criteria, my conclusion is that the TTC has not met its onus of establishing that these documents should be considered privileged on a case-by-case basis. As noted above, all four criteria must apply for the privilege to attach on a case-by-case basis. As . . . [more]

Here are excerpts from the most recent tips on SlawTips, the site that each week offers up useful advice, short and to the point, on practice, research, writing and technology.

Research & Writing

Flab
Neil Guthrie

Your prose should be tight, toned and vigorous if you want to engage rather than repel your reader. …

Technology

Consider Client Confidentiality–Disable Message Previews
Emma Durand-Wood

Today’s tip is to consider whether reminders or message previews on any of your devices could compromise client confidentiality. … . . . [more]

When most lawyers think of administrative law, we think of administrative decision makers and tribunals, or the judicial review process. However, there is an adjunct to the administrative law process that is not technically an administrative tribunal or traditional decision-making body, yet which shares many of the concerns of administrative law. This is the Ombudsman, an administrative agency that may seem obscure to or misunderstood by some.

The Ombudsman is often a place of last resort for citizens who have exhausted all decision making remedies or for whom there is no administrative or legal process that can address their concerns . . . [more]

The conduct of federally-appointed judges in Canada is governed by the Judges Act and by Ethical Principles for Judges, guidelines released by the Canadian Judicial Council. The Council is responsible for addressing complaints about judicial conduct under both the legislation and the Principles. The CJC has initiated a review of the Principles and is seeking input through a survey and freestanding submissions. It has published a short background paper to assist those wishing to provide their views. . . . [more]

And farm-hands, servers, warehouse workers, lifeguards, and so much more.

If the feedback of a couple hundred of lawyers and other legal professionals are to be believed, a very significant proportion of us got our start delivering the local news paper or watching the neighbourhood kids. And most of us had a wide variety of pre-law experiences that forged a formidable work ethic from an early age.

correlation is not causation, but the evidence is mounting of strong links between a first job being a paper route and a career in law! https://t.co/bfFlMQ6txR

— Colin Lachance (@ColinLachance) March 28, 2019

The law firm newsletter has long been a mainstay of client engagement and business development at law firms. As firms moved from paper brochures to electronic communications, readership statistics became increasingly accessible, but the news was not always good.

Whenever there is a significant case or legislative amendment, law firms race to send out an update, but we hear an increasingly common lament, “nobody reads our legal updates”. According to Mailchimp benchmarks, the legal industry is slightly above average with a 21.14% open rate and 2.71% click through rate. While not the worst statistics – there are industries which fair . . . [more]