Bite Size CPD Series: Mental Wellness
For more than three years, the Law Society of Saskatchewan has developed the Bite Size CPD Series. These informative under-10-minute video episodes cover a variety of topics and are available for all to view on the Law Society website. A new episode is released each Thursday.
The Potential for Reducing Claims with Plain Language
The focus of my career has shifted from primarily creating legal information for those without legal representation to now include risk management and loss prevention for lawyers. This expanded focus has also broadened my view on the importance of plain language for our profession.
New Lawyer’s Guide to Avoiding Mistakes: The Vacation of Least Disruption
Vacation time for lawyers is both critical to our well-being and unfortunately, disruptive. Young lawyers at our firm often struggle with how to plan their vacation time, deciding how available to be during vacation, and how to adequately prepare their files for their vacation.
Funds Transfer Fraud Alert
About to pay out trust funds? Stop and read this first!
CLIA Subscriber jurisdictions and our partners continue to see claims involving hacked emails.
The Wellness Docket: Limit Interruptions to Decrease Anxiety and Increase Productivity
If you follow me on LinkedIn you know that I hate email. At the height of my personal struggles, thinking about checking email would elicit so much anxiety that I might as well have been preparing to fight a tiger. I have read several books and articles lately that have led me to conclude that the reason I hate email is the overreliance on it and other communication tools in the modern workplace and the impact it has on our ability to concentrate and produce high quality work. Let me give you a short summary of the recent literature that informs my thinking.
What To Expect from Us in 2025
With our first year under our belt, the CLIA team is looking at how to improve the blog for 2025. We’d like to let you know what to expect in 2025 and welcome and suggestions you may have on topics, content or format.
CLIA Board Chair Report 2024
It is hard to believe another year has passed but here we are in 2025. I am very pleased to be able to report to you for the first time as Board Chair, on the year that was 2024. CLIA faced some challenges in 2024, such as the retirement of a longstanding Board member and leader, the implementation of a new accounting standard, the implementation of a new claims management system and navigating a suboptimal investment environment. As I will report below, through the collaborative work of staff, the Board and the subscribers, these challenges were met head on.
Wellness Toolkit Sneak Peek
As noted by the Federation of Law Societies of Canada, “legal professionals are at higher risk of experiencing stress, anxiety, depression and substance use than are other professionals”.
Cyber Awareness Resources
CLIA and our Subscriber law societies take cyber awareness seriously. CLIA administers a Mandatory Cyber insurance program.
Loss Prevention Online Repository Sneak Peek: Will and Estates
CLIA acts as a central hub for our subscribers by offering one-stop-shopping for those who need a quick source of loss prevention resources.
Not So Risky Business Named One of the Best Legal Blogs of 2024
On December 31st, the 19th Annual Canadian Law Blog (Clawbie) Awards honoured the best online Canadian legal content from the past year.
Not So Risky Business: First Year in Review
The Not So Risky Business blog launched November 30th, 2023 with our aptly named post, Welcome to the CLIA Blog. That introductory post promised that each Wednesday you could expect an informative post on topics to better help you manage your practice, avoid errors and better understand your insurance coverage needs. We hope through our 66 posts this year that we delivered on that promise.
First 24 Hours : Effectively Responding to a Cyber Attack
Responding to a cyber attack can be challenging for any organization. It can be particularly devastating for a law firm given the confidential nature of the data it holds about its clients. While the operational, financial and legal impacts flowing from a cyber attack can be quantified, the reputational impact is more difficult to ascertain and arguably, more pronounced for a law firm given the “trust” relationship lawyers have with their clients.
Follow Up to the Importance of Early Reporting
In follow up to the October 9, 2024 CLIA article “Importance of Early Reporting” by Melanie Hodges Neufeld, we write this note in our capacity as Practice Advisors with the Law Society of Saskatchewan (“LSS”). For a number of decades, the LSS has had the Practice Advisor Program.
Missed Limitation Periods: Claim Examples and Resources
Missed limitation periods continues to be one of the most common claims areas for CLIA Subscriber jurisdictions. Some reasons for missing a limitation period are inadequate office systems, human error and applying the wrong legislation. To help avoid these claims in the future, here are three examples of real claims:
Bite Size CPD Series: Recent Videos
For over three years, the Law Society of Saskatchewan has developed the Bite Size CPD Series. These informative under-10-minute video episodes cover a variety of topics and are available for all to view on the Law Society website. A new episode is released each Thursday.
New Lawyer’s Guide to Avoiding Mistakes: Dear Diary
A lawyer’s diary system can be a critical tool for organization and practice management. While we are encouraged from a very early point in practice, usually during articling, to begin using a diary system to track our work, many young lawyers find themselves unsure of what to track in their diary, why it is so important, and what type of diary system to implement for their practice.
Considering Excess Coverage?
Did you know that new customers to our Voluntary Excess Program (VEP) can apply for coverage anytime? While the policy period for the VEP runs from July 1st to June 30th, new applications can be received throughout the year. Applications submitted after July 31st will be prorated. Note: Cyber coverage cannot be prorated.
The Wellness Docket: You’re Not The Only One Struggling To Lead in a Modern Law Firm - Why Running a Law Firm Is So Difficult
This summer I attended an executive education program for law firm leaders at Harvard Law School’s Center for the Legal Profession. The audience was made up of lawyers from all law firm sizes, all different practice areas and from fifteen different countries. It was enlightening to see how despite all our differences, we struggled with the same issues as leaders: the mental health of our people (including our own), difficulties managing through change and managing workplaces with multiple generations chief among them. My main personal focus throughout the program was on how I could use what we had learned to improve mental health in legal workplaces.
Meet Our New Board Member: Catherine Gaulton
Catherine Gaulton has joined our Board to replace outgoing Board member, Allan Fineblit. She serves as the CEO and Attorney-in-Fact for the Healthcare Insurance Reciprocal of Canada (HIROC).