What the CBABC Can Offer You

by Miriam Maisonville

Many years ago an articled student headed downtown to start her articles. One of the first things she was urged to do by her principal was to become active in the Canadian Bar Association. “Join a Section” I was told and that was it. At those meetings I met the leaders of the Bar in Vancouver, judges and other articled students and made numerous friendships, many of which I hold dear to this day. I learned defence counsel and Crown Counsel have many issues in common, as do plaintiffs’ counsel and defence in civil matters. I was hooked.

The CBA, however, I learned slowly is so much more than the Sections (although with membership a Section comes free). We are the “voice of the profession.” What does this mean? We can advocate strongly for our members, lawyers for lawyers, from advocating for a decrease in high tuition fees, requesting legislative amendments to enable RRSP protection, to

seeking the abolition of the Social Services Tax. Our views matter. The CBA is routinely consulted for input on new legislation at both the national and provincial levels. We are a resource, both for our members practising in the large downtown and national firms to the sole practitioner barrister or solicitor, and those who practise in the rural areas of our province. And incredibly, almost all of the makeup of our resources is through you – our volunteers.

In terms of resources, a prime example is the Conflicts of Interest: Final Report, Recommendations & Tool Kit unveiled and adopted by CBA National Council at the Annual National CBA Conference in Quebec City. The Report advocates that the present restrictive lawyer conflict rules be relaxed. Additionally, the Report offers a tool kit to help counsel navigate the maze of client, near client and non client relationships to avoid conflicts. The Report is the culmination; across Canada work by a stellar group chaired by Scott Joliffe and included in its members a Past President from this Branch, Robert Brun, QC.

The CBA also offers professional development opportunities. With advances in technology and the investments the B.C. Branch has made, we can now offer Section attendance, achievable in remote areas by teleconferencing and Webinars. Courses are also offered through Webinars. The CBA offers Conferences uniting lawyers with common areas of interest. The CBABC Women Lawyers Forum is but one example. Offering everything from mentoring to tips for a successful practice in an era when the attrition rate for women in the profession is at an all time high, membership in the Forum can only help to stem this tide of losing women in the profession. Both nationally and throughout B.C. the Chairs of both Sections and Conferences are leaders in their practice areas.

Nor does the CBA just offer legal resources. Through the Canadian Bar Insurance Association and the Canadian Bar Association Financial Services we offer insurance and financial services for lawyers and their families.

It is my hope, as President of the Branch for the next 12 months, that we can continue to be the premier association for lawyers. I hope to increase membership particularly in rural areas and for those practising in smaller firms. I also hope that more public sector lawyers will join our ranks. The CBA has much to offer you nationally and provincially. I am happy to talk with you about all aspects. My e-mail is President@bccba.org. I look forward to hearing from you throughout the year.

This article was published in the October 2008 issue of BarTalk. © 2008 The Canadian Bar Association. All rights reserved.