BarTalk August 2003
Volume 15, Number 4

Member Dispute Resolution Program

Stressed out from conflict or poor communication with a colleague or opposing counsel? Feel like you need some help resolving the problem, but it’s not serious enough to call in the Law Society? The CBA has a new Member Dispute Resolution service, run by lawyer volunteers who will talk to you on a confidential basis to help work out disputes that aren’t reportable Law Society matters. This is your chance to talk the issue through with a lawyer mediator, and seek discreet counsel on how to handle it.

For more information, call the Member Dispute Hotline at 604.646.7864 or visit the CBABC Web site www.cba.org/BC/Practice_Resources/main/mdr.aspx.

Membership Protocol

As directed at the last Law Society Annual General Meeting in September 2002, the CBABC developed and approved a protocol to respond to those members of the Law Society who do not wish to be recognized as a member of the Canadian Bar Association. The full wording of the Protocol is available at www.bccba.org (Lawyer Lounge).

The Protocol was developed in response to the concerns of some members that there be a respectful option for members who, for reasons of personal principle, do not wish to be associated with a position or action of the Association.

The Membership Protocol was approved by the CBABC Executive Committee and Provincial Council, and was forwarded to the Executive Committee of the Law Society of B.C. on April 17, 2003. To date, no formal response has been received. However, the CBA is operating on the basis that the Protocol is a CBABC policy.

These articles were published in the August 2003 issue of BarTalk and are subject to the copyright by the British Columbia Branch of the Canadian Bar Association, 2005, all rights reserved.