1.Omar Ha-Redeye, Fleet Street LawOct. 26, 2012Law Society of Upper Canada (LSUC)

2. 1. Pros/Cons of Association vs. Sole Practice2. Leveraging Internet and Social Media 3. LSUC, Guide to Opening Your Practice - forlawyers, September 2010: There is no specific legal definition of an association. Lawyers who choose to practise in association with otherlawyers usually operate their separate practices from thesame location, with an agreement to share the overheadcosts. Available at: http://rc.lsuc.on.ca/pdf/practiceGuides/openingYourPracticeGuide.pdf 4. Legal liability is technically the same as solepractice (but see warnings below) Often has a management or shell company forlease, marketing, overhead expenses Members of association pay dues, rent, or otherarrangements to cover expenses Can be co-located, or not Ability to share resources, mentor each other 5. Tiago v. Meisels, 2011 ONSC 5914 (Summary Jmotion) 6. lawyers choosing to practise in associationare obliged to clearly identify the nature of therelationship between the associated parties toclients and the public at large. LSUC, Guide to Opening Your Practice - for lawyers 7. Determine responsibilities of each party in theassociation and clearly define them Consider preparing a written association agreement Consider whether association could beperceived as a partnership Courts have used various tests to differentiate a trueassociation from an apparent partnership, such as whether the parties share premises and resources the use of a single firm name on pleadings sharing of bank accounts 8. Clearly state the association relationship onyour letterhead, business cards, signage andadvertising How much is enough? Consider confirming this for clients in yourretainer agreement Lawyers practising in association may notshare trust accounts. must deposit client money into a trust account inaccordance with By-Law 9 under Law Society Act 9. The failure to directly respond to the uniquechallenges, concerns, and recommendations of theracialized law community is indicative of the factthat the contemporary legal profession in Canadaembodies a dichotomy between a theory ofequality and the practice of cultural hegemony.So, while law schools and law societies areexpressly committed inclusiveness, many havebecome the first line of defense against trulyleveraging multicultural diversity in theprofession. Lorne Foster, Lawyers of Colour and Racialized Immigrants with Foreign LegalDegrees:An Examination of the Institutionalized Processes of Social Nullification,International Journal of Criminology and Sociological Theory, Vol. 2, No. 1, June 2009, 189-217. Available at:http://pi.library.yorku.ca/ojs/index.php/ijcst/article/viewFile/22159/20813 10. Clayton Ruby (dissent): [49] ...Reflections on the effect of our disciplinaryproceedings are not only appropriate, butessential. We cannot close our eyes to thedisproportionate number of black lawyers whomwe find before us faced with very graveprofessional misconduct allegations. Law Society of Upper Canada v. Selwyn MilanMcSween, 2012 ONLSAP 3, available at:http://canlii.ca/t/fpnmz 11. Ability to consult, communicate, assist eachother Ideally would reduce cases of discipline in blackcommunity Exceptions to confidentiality provisions Ensure this is stated in retainer agreements Consider Proposed Amendments seek to adoptelements of the Federation of Law Societies ofCanadas Model Code of Professional Conduct Also consider higher LawPRO fees 12. Purposes of social media and internet marketing:1. Lead generation2. Reputation management 13. Lead generation is a marketing term used, oftenin Internet marketing, to describe the generation ofconsumer interest or inquiry into products orservices of a business There are many tactical methods for generatingleads. These methods typically fall under theumbrella of advertising, but may also include non-paid sources such as organic search engine resultsor referrals from existing customers. Wikipedia, Lead Generation, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lead_generation 14. Reputation management is the practice ofunderstanding or influencing an individual orbusiness reputation.It was originally coined as a public relationsterm, but advancement in computing, theinternet and social media made it primarily anissue of search results. Wikipedia, Reputation Management,http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reputation_management 15. Lawyer Locate Advice Scene My Law Bid Legal Linkup My Support Calculator And more 16. Possible returns: New business Better client satisfaction Higher fees Avoid trying to quantify returns directly Inherent difficulties with Internet quantification Keep financial investment low by developingstrategies yourself True cost is in time 17. Phone: 416-546-7412 E-Mail: Omar@FleetStreetLaw.com Facebook:http://www.facebook.com/TO.Lawyer LinkedIn: ca.linkedin.com/in/torontolawyer Twitter: @OmarHaRedeye