ARCTIC OBITER
March/April 2013 - Law Society of the Northwest Territories
March/April 2013 - Law Society of the Northwest Territories
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THE DIRECTOR’S CHAIR<br />
M<br />
y calendar tells me it’s supposed to be spring,<br />
but the sun outside does not hide the –8<br />
degree temperatures lowering to –17 and the nasty<br />
wind that accompanies it. We try to take heart from<br />
the fact that other areas of the country are enduring a<br />
similar or worse fate, but, although some of the snow<br />
is melting, it has not done a lot to improve my sunny<br />
disposition as we process the last of the<br />
annual renewals.<br />
This is where the<br />
cartoon comes into play as I climb on<br />
my “administrative soapbox” and<br />
preach. Unfortunately, in this forum,<br />
the message aimed at a few gets<br />
directed to the whole. Hopefully there<br />
is something to be learned from it all.<br />
RENEWAL FORMS<br />
It may be easier to pass the renewal<br />
forms to someone else to complete for<br />
you, but it is not they who are a<br />
member of the Law Society, or for<br />
whom there could be consequences if<br />
things are not done correctly. Too often<br />
questions are left unanswered, forms are sent without<br />
fees, fees are sent with no forms, et cetera. Then there<br />
is the matter of timing. Canada Post cannot deliver<br />
overnight to Yellowknife, especially on a four day<br />
weekend.<br />
To avoid the high costs associated with snail mail, the<br />
Law Society starting using electronic mail a couple of<br />
years ago. Members now receive an electronic notice<br />
for the annual renewal of membership in mid-January.<br />
Those who do not have email receive it by fax.<br />
Renewal information is also posted on the Law Society<br />
web site, and reminders go out with each weekly<br />
bulletin.<br />
Linda G. Whitford<br />
The requisite forms and prescribed fee are due no later<br />
than March 31 st . If we have not heard from you, a<br />
targeted second reminder goes out at the beginning of<br />
March. Finally, as a courtesy, when the deadline<br />
draws nigh and we still have not heard from you, we<br />
send out a personal reminder in the hopes that we can<br />
avoid suspensions. There is nothing funny about being<br />
told by the Judge in the middle of a trial that you have<br />
been suspended by the Law Society.<br />
The key to all of this working<br />
effectively is our having a current e-<br />
mail address, and you making sure our<br />
emails do not redirect to a spam folder.<br />
All that being said, mistakes do happen<br />
and we work quickly to rectify any that<br />
happen on our end and work with you<br />
when the ball gets dropped on your<br />
end.<br />
INSURANCE CLAIMS<br />
Rule 122 of the Rules of the Law Society<br />
require a member to promptly notify<br />
the Secretary and the insurer under the<br />
group contract of any situation that<br />
may result in a claim being made against the<br />
Professional Liability Claims Fund, or the group<br />
contract entered into by the Society under subsection<br />
61(1) of the Act. In this case, the Insurer is CLIA, but<br />
our claims administration is done by the Alberta<br />
Lawyers Insurance Association. Information on filing<br />
a claim report can be found on our website.<br />
Quarterly, I receive a copy of the Claims Bordereau<br />
listing all claims reported by insured members in this<br />
jurisdiction. Invariably, there is a claim reported that<br />
has not been reported to the Law Society. While our<br />
protocol is to get in touch with the member in<br />
question, there is precedence where members have<br />
(CONTINUED ON PAGE 5)<br />
4 ■ MARCH/APRIL 2013 <strong>ARCTIC</strong> <strong>OBITER</strong>