BarTalk February 2003
Volume 15, Number 1

CBA National: Professional support and service

by John Hoyles

This is the second of a two-part series on what the CBA does for members. In my last column I described the work of the CBABC. In this column, my colleague John Hoyles, National Executive Director, describes the work of the National side of our organization.

“Why,” I was asked at the December 2002 meeting of the CBABC Council, “does $230 of my annual membership fee go to the National CBA? What is this portion of my fee doing to benefit me?” My plain and honest answer: Plenty!

Each day, the National Canadian Bar Association provides professional, personal and practice support to all our members. The information box that accompanies this article provides more information, but examples include our public perception campaign and our widely praised Lawyers Care Initiative, not to mention our advocacy on behalf of lawyers on Parliament Hill on everything from legal aid funding to solicitor-client privilege, and our Supreme Court of Canada interventions.

“But is my money well spent?” you ask. And so you should. As responsible business people, you have a right to the response. The answer is yes, and I can personally attest to it. Many of you might not know this, but my first 13 years in this profession were spent first as a sole practitioner in New Liskeard in Northern Ontario. I learned first-hand about the realities and pressures of practice: meeting client needs (as they say today, clients are a 24/7 commitment), trying to generate billable time, paying staff salaries, maintaining overhead, and at the end of the week, taking home the (rapidly disappearing) leftover draw.

I learned back then that looking after the pennies meant that, in most cases, the dollars would follow. Some months were pretty thin, and I made sure – because I had to – that every expenditure was justified. It was an experience that I’ll never forget, and that I’ve kept foremost in my mind as Executive Director of the CBA.

In everything we do on your behalf as lawyers and members, we push our professionals to be the best and to stretch our resources, just as you do in practice. The acid test is: Are we using your dollars in the best way possible? That thinking pervades the financial decisions of our loyal and dedicated staff, professionals who take their responsibilities to you very seriously. The result is a culture of vigilance at the National CBA, as we meet the formidable challenges that define not only our association, but also the practice of law and the way Canadians see our profession.

Let’s not overlook how important that last issue is. In a world defined by instant communication, a B.C. occurrence – take the Robert Pickton case as an example – is news not only in Winnipeg and Halifax, but in capitals around the world. Or consider the Martin Wirick affair, an incident that affects public perception of lawyers not only in B.C., but across the country. When it comes to professional issues, I am convinced that our profession needs a strong national and international presence to represent and defend it; an authoritative voice that speaks with credibility, a proven track record and the clout of more than 100 years of speaking out on behalf of the profession.

B.C. lawyers benefit when the CBA uses its national profile to defend lawyers vilified without cause, or to react when our system of justice and judicial independence are attacked. B.C. lawyers benefit when the National CBA stands up for client rights as the federal government proposes laws and registries that would restrict them. And as the impact of change ripples across the country, B.C. lawyers and the clients they serve need a national champion more than ever.

How do we ensure that the National CBA is working to further your goals and priorities? We constantly seek our members’ opinions, here in B.C. and across the country. National CBA invests in research and member surveys on current and emerging issues, collecting data to help inform policy decisions (see President’s Column, page 2).

This data confirms that National CBA and the CBABC are getting it right. Three Ipsos-Reid member polls over the past six years report that the relevance to members of, and their satisfaction with, CBA activities and positions remain high – in the 80 per cent range at minimum. Encouraged by this positive feedback, the Branch Executives that make up the national Board of Directors set policies and priorities that are voted on by the elected national Council. This Council, like the CBABC counterpart is an open, democratic body. We listen to our members because without our members, there is no CBA.

But as successful as we’ve been, we must continue to do more for less, using the tools at our disposal. National CBA’s investment in database technology is an excellent illustration. All CBA member information is centralized and secured on our National CBA database. Both the CBABC and individual members can access, edit and update their files as needed. One centralized technology investment brings financial savings and cost efficiencies.

Let me conclude by citing a timely example of National CBA value. As you may recall, CBA President Simon Potter recently shared with our members (via e-mail) the letter he wrote to the U.S. Securities Exchange Commission attacking proposed rules that would hurt Canadian lawyers and their clients. Within days, his inbox was flooded with e-mails from members across the country, offering overwhelming support of the CBA advocacy for solicitor-client privilege and member interests. It is the most recent demonstration of the beneficial circle that makes our Association unique: members like you from B.C. and elsewhere provide resources and priorities to the professionals at National CBA. We act on them, quickly and responsibly, to meet the needs and concerns of our members and to justify the faith you continue to place in us.

Got a question or comment? Call me! 1.800.267.8860 or e-mail johnh@cba.org.

The National CBA
National advocacy (68 submissions annually)
Solicitor-client privilege, Money laundering, Legal aid, Anti-terrorism, Immigration consultants

Representing many interests
38 thousand members, 30 Sections, 24 Committees, 10 Conferences, 5 Companies

Member services

• Provide Continuing Legal Education and professional and practice support

• Defend the public image of lawyers

• Offer national awards of excellence

• Lobby government in our professional interest

• Track trends and developments and provide e-news

• Facilitate member networking and peer support

• Offer member-only preferential insurance & investment programs

• 68 submissions to Parliament annually

Professional benefits

• Annual Justice Canada and National Sections meetings

• Young lawyers practice guides

• Model Code of Conduct (update ongoing)

• Fight for higher RRSP limits for lawyers

• Monitoring of changes in world trade rules

• Professional assistance for lawyers

• Protection of judicial independence

• Production of award-winning legal publications

Branch and member support

• Maintain online national member records

• Supply continuous online access for members and Branches

• Offer centralized Internet technology support

• Provide national media presence

• Daily interaction, sharing among Branch professionals

A strong, nation-wide organization of lawyers working for lawyers

This article was published in the February 2003 issue of BarTalk and is subject to the copyright by the British Columbia Branch of the Canadian Bar Association, 2005, all rights reserved.