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Why Should Lawyers Care About the Rules of Professional Conduct and the Regulation of the Legal Profession?

Why Should Lawyers Care About the Rules of Professional Conduct and the Regulation of the Legal Profession?

By:

Posted January 26, 2024

On July 17, 1797, ten lawyers were present at the Wilson’s Hotel in Newark, Upper Canada, to read “An Act for the better regulating the Practice of the Law” and to form the Law Society of Upper Canada. At the time, these lawyers represented two-thirds of all the lawyers in Upper Canada.

As of April 30, 2023, the Law Society of Ontario has over 57,000 lawyer licensees and nearly 11,000 paralegal licensees. My fellow articling students and I hope to add ourselves to this count following the successful completion of our articles.

Adherence to the Rules is a requirement of all licensees in Ontario. That is reason enough to care about what they mean and their impact. Understanding those Rules and being involved in continued critical discussion of the regulation of our profession is an important piece of holding ourselves to a high ethical standard in our practice and in the administration of justice.

The legal profession has been self-regulated since its inception, but this is not to be taken for granted. In the 1968 McRuer Report, the Royal Commission looked at the merits of self-governing professions in Ontario and recognized that self-regulation is a privilege that must be justified by benefits to the public interest. One such benefit is the separation of state from the regulation of a profession that will often be tasked with defending or suing state actors.

The Law Society of Ontario must be able to justify its mandate as an appropriate and fair regulator of lawyers. There is the potential for conflicts of interest and echo chambers that must be safeguarded through institutional measures.

In addition to self-regulation, lawyers and paralegals hold positions of trust and expertise throughout our society. The nature of these varied roles means that lawyers often hold power in professional relationships with clients, other parties, students, or with more junior lawyers, that must not be abused.

To abuse the power entrusted to one as a lawyer, or to act negligently, risks not only bringing harm to the individual parties involved, but also to the larger societal sense of trust in the administration of justice. This is especially important given the well-chronicled concern of public distrust towards the legal profession.

Engaging in discussion about the Rules or diving deeper into Continued Professional Development training can also enrich one’s practice by encouraging skill sets like cross-cultural communication, client management, and critical thinking. It can also increase awareness within the profession of equity, inclusion, and diversity initiatives and best practices for increasing access to justice.

The Rules are a living document that grows with the legal profession and should be amended when necessary to adapt to societal changes. Licensees in Ontario should do their utmost to keep up to date on important discussions regarding the Rules and the regulation of our profession.

This blog post was written by Meghan Boyer, Articling Student, and K. Scott McLean, General Counsel and Director of Practice Development.  Scott can be reached at (613) 369-0375 or at scott.mclean@mannlawyers.com.

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Meghan Boyer

Meghan Boyer

I work as a lawyer in the Family Law Group at Mann Lawyers. I strive to develop creative and contextually informed strategies to resolve clients’ family law issues. I want to help people navigate the family law system, which can be overwhelming during an already challenging period in someone’s life. I was called to the Ontario Bar in June 2024 after completing the summer student and articling program here at Mann Lawyers. During my articles, I gained experience in a variety of family law matters, both contentious and non-contentious, and I am eager to use these skills to advance the interests of my clients. I obtained my Juris Doctor and Bachelor of Civil Law from McGill University in 2023. During my studies, I worked with the Legal Information Clinic at McGill where I researched and provided legal information to students and the wider Montreal community. With this organization, I additionally... Read More

Read More About Meghan Boyer
K. Scott McLean

K. Scott McLean

After 43 years of commercial and related litigation experience, I joined Mann Lawyers in 2020 as General Counsel and Director of Practice Development.  While I continue to be involved in complex commercial disputes, providing advocacy support and strategic advice, I am predominantly involved in supporting the development of our lawyers and their practices, including the recruitment and retention of associates, mentorship in enabling our associates to reach their professional goals, and the provision of structured training programs.  In these roles I enjoy the opportunity to reflect and write, under the heading Practice Management, on the importance of supporting junior lawyers. After completing an honours degree at Carleton University in 1973, I completed my law degree at Windsor Law School in 1975 and an M.A. in political studies in 1976.  I was admitted to the Ontario Bar in 1977.  Since 1977, I have appeared at all trial, judicial review and appellate... Read More

Read More About K. Scott McLean