"AvoidAClaim" Blog

practicePRO’s claims prevention and law practice management resources continue to grow in popularity with lawyers. In 2009 almost 150,000 copies of our articles, checklists and precedents were downloaded.

We’ve compiled the list of the forty most popular downloads for 2009. Many of them are consistently popular year to year, such as Peg Duncan’s e-discovery reading list, limitation periods charts, retainer precedents and various technology articles. There were a few interesting developments though:

• The Sample Budget Spreadsheet came in in the top spot, with twice as many downloads as last year. A sign of lawyers taking a closer look at their finances in a tough economic year?
• The LawPRO Fraud Fact Sheet had 2,500 downloads, and has proven to be a very popular resource for lawyers looking to avoid becoming victims of the ever more sophisticated frauds targeting them.
• Lawyers love their BlackBerrys. Our BlackBerry 101 tips article from the summer of 2008 is still in the top ten a year later.

The top downloads list is a good indicator of what’s of interest to lawyers year over year, and what issues are concerns in certain years in particular. We’ve tracked the top downloads for each of the past four years.

See the forty most popular downloads for 2009 for tools and resources you can use to reduce your risk of a malpractice claim. The top downloads of 2008 and 2007 are also posted on this page.

The current #1 on the New York Times most popular articles list is an item that appeared in the Technology section on the weekend: The 3 Facebook Settings Every User Should Check Now.

In terms of complexity, the Facebook privacy settings lie somewhere between the calculations behind a space shuttle launch and figuring out what the Maple Leafs need to do to win a Stanley Cup. These things are simply beyond most of us mere mortals. I think it is safe to say that most Facebook users do not appreciate all the nuances of Facebook privacy settings, especially when it comes to third-party apps.

This is the clearest explanation of the basic Facebook privacy settings I have ever come across. If you are a Facebook user you should read this article and tweak your privacy settings.

Cross posted on Slaw.ca

I am pleased and honoured to have AvoidAClaim recognized with a Canadian Law Blog Award (AKA “CLawBie”) in the Practice Management category. There was actually a tie in this category and I am pleased to share the podium with my fellow practice management advisor and friend David Bilinsky and his Thoughtful Legal Management blog.

The Canadian law blogging community continues to grow and evolve and I am pleased to be part of it with AvoidAClaim and to participate on SLAW which won the Best Canadian Law Blog CLawBie. The CLawBies are in their fourth year now. See a full list winners and nominations at www.clawbies.ca.

Serving as a director of a charitable or not-for-profit corporation can be a rewarding but potentially risky experience. A director can be held personally liable for his or her own actions or failures to act, as well as jointly and severally liable with the other members of the board of directors. Directors with specialized knowledge and expertise, such as lawyers, are held to a higher standard of care. LAWPRO’s standard professional liability insurance policy provides coverage only for the “professional services” that a lawyer provides as a lawyer. It does not provide coverage for liability arising as a result of a lawyer’s actions as a director.

Accordingly, here are some questions you should ask yourself before serving as a director on the board of a charity or not-for-profit organization.

1. Does it engage in activities that have an especially high risk of attracting legal liability?
2. What are my motivations for joining this board – business, personal, community service, etc.?
3. Will I be able to devote my time and energy to ensure that I fully meet my obligations in this role?
4. Do I understand the risks and responsibilities that come with directorship? Am I aware of the statutory and common law liabilities that I may be exposed to?
5. Does my firm have a policy regarding its lawyers serving on the boards of charities and not-for-profits?
6. Is the charity or not-for-profit organization a client of my firm? If so, does my firm have a policy regarding its lawyers serving on the boards of charities and not-for-profits that are clients of the firm?
7. Will the charity or not-for-profit organization agree to indemnify me for liability arising out of my role as director?
8. Does the charity or not-for-profit organization maintain directors and officers (D&O) insurance to protect me from personal liability arising out of my role as director?
9. If so, what are the details of this D&O insurance? What policy terms, conditions and exclusions are likely to apply? What are the limits of liability per claim and in the aggregate?
10. Is there an outside director liability (ODL) insurance policy in place that may respond to claims against me arising out of my directorship? If not, should I purchase such insurance, whether from the Canadian Bar Insurance Association (CBIA) or through my insurance broker?
11. Is there any other insurance in place or optional coverage that may be purchased that may cover my activities as director? Have I consulted my insurance broker? (Note: LAWPRO’s optional excess insurance policy does not provide incidental D&O coverage, but some excess professional liability insurance policies may do so. If so, does that coverage “drop down” to afford primary protection?)

If you are contemplating sitting on a non-profit board, please consider the above questions so you can understand and assess the risks of doing so.

An Acrobat PDF version of this checklist is available on the LAWPRO website.