Join us online on Thursday, November 5th, 2020 for the 12th annual Solo and Small Firm Conference, hosted by LIANS and NSBS from 9am-4pm. Sessions may be eligible to count towards your annual CPD. Regrettably, the pandemic does not allow us to have an in person event this year. But there is one positive – not needing to rent a venue so significantly reduces the cost that we are hosting this year’s event at no charge to attendees ...
The Canadian Centre for Cyber Security, a federal government agency, has recently released a bulletin on the impact of COVID-19 on cyber threats. No surprise that with the pandemic, threats are increasing.
The key judgments in the bulletin are ...
With our continuing support of the profession we have recently renewed our agreement with Homewood HealthTM, the service provider to the N.S. Lawyers Assistance Program (“LAP”). We have enhanced the program by adding two new services – Depression Care, providing mid- to longer-term, work focused treatment for individuals with moderate to severe anxiety and/or depressive symptoms; and Trauma Care, providing specialized treatment for individuals struggling with acute, or long-term, trauma symptoms ...
An article in the June 5, 2020 edition of the ABA Journal Weekly Newsletter listed 10 common ethics pitfalls and how to avoid them. The ABA asked legal ethics experts for the most pressing ethics traps they currently see for lawyers and some best practices to avoid them.
The issues mentioned follow and we refer you to the article for the best practices and comments ...
Over the past several months, many (most?) lawyers have participated in virtual meetings and hearings.
The following are some of our musings on these, in no particular order ...

In the July 2019 issue of LIANSwers we wrote of a scam whereby a client from out of province (who the lawyer had not personally met or previously known) sent the lawyer funds by cheque and then sought return of those funds when the transaction at issue did not go ahead. But the cheque was fraudulent and in that case, the lawyer discovered the fraud in time. Well here is another one making the rounds.
It is not sophisticated, but it works if you are not diligent ...
Beware the pitfalls of using texting as a means of communication with clients.
A series of texts can be easily lost forever, and the quick convenience of texting could find you glossing over crucial information between you and your client ...
Do you have a minimum of nine years of experience and are interested in volunteering your time to provide support and guidance to another member?
LIANS is currently seeking mentors of all backgrounds for its Mentorship Program, specifically in the areas of Family law, Corporate/Commercial, Wills and Estates, and Criminal law.
Participation could be eligible as a CPD activity ...

"Homewood was selected by Health Canada to be a principal partner in a joint venture to build and deliver Wellness Together Canada (wellnesstogether.ca), a free online portal for all Canadians impacted by COVID-19 to access mental health and addiction support. This program is not meant to replace any employee benefits programs like EAP, it’s meant to provide additional supports to people in need" ...
With a term limit retirement, LIANS is seeking expressions of interest to fill the non-Board seat on its three person Audit Committee commencing October 2020.
The Audit Committee assists the Board of Directors in fulfilling its oversight responsibilities by reviewing LIANS financial information, internal controls and audit processes ...
With term limit retirements, LIANS is seeking expressions of interest to fill two vacancies on its Board of Directors commencing January 2021.
Interested Members are welcome to apply, and are also welcomed to forward this request to anyone they believe would be interested in becoming a member of the Board. LIANS is committed to equity and diversity and we especially encourage Members from historically underrepresented groups to apply ...