CBA Lobby Successful
BC Attorney General Petter, responding to what he acknowledged were “issues of great concern” to the CBA, has recently made three announcements of significance to the Bar. Enduring power of attorney will now remain a legal option until September 5, 2001 (a one-year extension). The Legal Services Society will receive an extra $1.4 million for the provision of duty counsel and arraignment court services. The Crown Counsel Association (CCA) will become the formal bargaining agent for crown counsel, and a new working agreement will include incentives to help attract and retain good lawyers in the public service. “We are very pleased that the Attorney General has responded so positively and quickly to our concerns, and we look forward to working with him on these and other issues in the future,” said Mr. Mayland McKimm, CBABC President.


BarTalk Design Gets Updated
As you may have noticed, BarTalk has a new “look” as part of a redesign of all CBABC materials. There have been very few changes to BarTalk’s design over the past years, and it was felt that it was time to update it to fit the look of the upcoming Web site, Directory and other publications being launched this Fall. The old stylized scales of justice have been modernized in design and humanized with the addition of a real hand, symbolic of the CBABC as a collective of people, not just an institution. This more realistic version of our old scales of justice design is based on the sculpture of the statue of justice at the Vancouver Law Courts, an image that has been featured on the cover of both the 2000 and 2001 Directories.


Freedom of Information and Privacy Law Section
The Freedom of Information and Privacy Law Section was approved at the June 24, 2000 Provincial Council meeting bringing the number of active CBABC Sections to 71. The mandate of this Section is to provide a forum for the exchange of information, networking and education of lawyers practicing or interested in the area of freedom of information and privacy law. The current Section Chair is Allan A. Macdonald of MacLeod & Company. To enroll and participate in this new Section complete the 2000/2001 enrollment form mailed to you in July.


Important Notice Re: Enduring Power of Attorney
Enduring power of attorney will remain a legal option available to British Columbians until September 5, 2001 (a one-year extension). The CBABC is continuing to lobby the government to ensure that enduring power of attorney remains in the “toolkit” of options available to the public and businesses of BC.


New Chief Judge
The October BarTalk will feature an interview with new Chief Judge Carol Baird Ellan. Judge Baird Ellan, who replaced Chief Judge Robert Metzger in July will organize the assignment of duties to more than 150 Provincial Court judges and almost 400 justices of the peace, in addition to supervising 80 employees and managing a budget of $30 million. “We are very pleased with the appointment of Chief Judge Baird Ellan, and we look forward to working with her to support and improve the provincial court system,” said CBABC President Mr. Mayland McKimm.


Section Enrollment 2000/2001
Have you completed and returned your 2000/2001 Section Enrollment form to the CBABC office? Special registration forms were mailed to every member in July.

New this year! Enroll in three Sections and receive one free. Plus, if you enroll before August 25, 2000 you are eligible to win one of four CLE courses. If you have not received your enrollment package with the form and return envelope, please contact the Branch office and one will be faxed to you. There are 71 Sections to choose from!

Keep abreast of current developments of the law, hear worthwhile practice tips, and attend meetings where members share their experience and knowledge. Register today!


Crime Prevention Manual Available
The BC Crime Prevention Association, through a donation from the Mounted Police Association, has produced a series of crime prevention presentation manuals. Each presentation is easy to use and designed to adapt to meet the needs of local communities.

The eight presentation manuals look at robbery prevention, dating violence, elder abuse, seniors safety, fireworks safety, personal safety (including youth and special needs persons), home security, and crime prevention in the workplace. All manuals include a diskette with both PowerPoint and Presentation files, speaking notes, overhead transparencies, a list of resources, and handouts.

Until July 31, the presentation manuals are available (for the first 50 sets) for a special pre-publication price of $125 per set. Additional copies of the presentation manuals will cost $50 per manual, or $350 for a set of eight.


BCCLS: Consolidated Table of Reported BC Cases
The BC Courthouse Library Society is publishing a Consolidated Table of Reported BC Cases in electronic format. The Table starts with cases reported in 1999 and includes civil and criminal cases from all BC court levels together with those BC cases that have gone to the Supreme Court of Canada. Neutral citations from the courts are included for cases reported in 2000.

The Table is available by subscription. Delivered to your desktop via email, the Table may be printed out or kept in electronic format. Each month the entire consolidated table is reissued. To subscribe please contact Susan Whalen at the Vancouver Courthouse Library at 604.660.2910 or 1.800.665.2570, or email adm@bccls.bc.ca.


Lawyers Assistance Program
The Lawyers Assistance Program Office is located at 415 - 1080 Mainland Street, Vancouver.

The Options for Lawyers workgroup meets the third Wednesday of each month at 12:15 pm at the LAP office.

The Women Lawyers Support Group meets the first Wednesday of every alternate month at 12:15 pm at the LAP office. Contact the LAP office for the next meeting date.

“Lawyers in AA” meetings occur every Thursday at 12:30 pm at the LAP office, and every Thursday at 5:45 pm in White Rock. For information on location, call 604.685.2171.

We have a Lawyers’ Accountability Group which meets Thursday at 5:45 pm at the LAP office.

We have a Co-Dependents Anonymous Group which meets Monday at 5:30 pm at the LAP office.

These articles were published in the August 2000 issue of BarTalk. © 2000 The Canadian Bar Association. All rights reserved.