BarTalk October 2002
Volume 14, Number 5

Civil Liability Review

At its September 21, 2002 meeting, CBABC Provincial Council considered Attorney General Geoff Plant’s request for input on the Civil Liability Review.

Upon reviewing research by Law and Legislation Reform Officer Stuart Rennie and the Law Society of BC, and hearing oral presentations by the Trial Lawyers of BC, Council members debated the issue at some length. Council considered, following debate, the following resolution which was adopted by majority vote:

“CBABC opposes the government’s plan to legislate sweeping changes to the law of civil liability and recovery without full consideration, consultation and a demonstrated need.”

The resolution has been communicated to Attorney General Geoff Plant, and to all members by e-mail and facsimile. Any members who did not previously provide input on this issue but who wish to do so are encouraged to contact their local CBA representative. A complete list of representatives is available at www.bccba.org.

CBA Fee Debated at Law Society AGM

Two-thirds majority confirms universality
The Annual General Meeting of the Law Society of BC was held on Friday September 20, 2002, at the Four Seasons Hotel in Vancouver and in eight other audio locations in the province. More than 500 members attended to debate and vote on four key resolutions before the membership.

The AGM proceedings began by acclaiming Bencher Peter Keighley to the position of Second Vice President of the Law Society. In keeping with the focus of the meeting resolutions, Victoria lawyer Sandra Harper asked Mr. Keighley whether or not he supported universal membership in the CBA. Mr. Keighley responded that he did.

Resolution #2 was considered first, as an amendment to Resolution #1, seeking to remove the inclusion of the CBA fee in the Law Society practice fee. The resolution was moved by Gail Davidson, seconded by Tony Vecchio, and addressed by the largest number of speakers to the meeting. CBABC President David Paul, past TLABC president Jim Murphy, past Law Society Treasurer Warren Wilson, QC and Sandy Jakab-Hancock spoke against the amendment and in favour of universal membership. Dugald Christie, Anders Ourom, Cameron Ward and others spoke in favour of the resolution. The amendment was defeated by a two-thirds majority.

The practice fee, which includes “an amount equivalent to the CBA fee,” passed with little opposition, as did Resolution #3, moved by CBA past president Eric Rice, QC and CBABC past president John Waddell, QC. That resolution called on the Law Society to work cooperatively with the CBABC to address the matter of Law Society members who do not wish to be identified as CBA members. Resolution #4, moved by Lloyd Duhaime and seconded by Cameron Ward, which called for a referendum on universal membership, was withdrawn by the movers.

“This has been a difficult time, but also an uplifting one, in speaking with so many members who care passionately about the CBA and its value to the legal profession as a whole,” said President Paul. “Now, we must reflect on what we can do as an Association to resolve the concerns of those members who are not as happy with the CBA, and who want us to do a better job of being responsive to their needs. If there is one thing this past year has taught us, it is the need to work to consult members more broadly on important issues and policy decisions of the Branch.”

These articles were published in the October 2002 issue of BarTalk and are subject to the copyright by the British Columbia Branch of the Canadian Bar Association, 2005, all rights reserved.