About LAWPRO
Lawyers’ Professional Indemnity Company (LAWPRO) is owned by the Law Society of Upper Canada and is licensed to provide professional liability insurance and title insurance in numerous jurisdictions across Canada. Through its malpractice insurance program, LAWPRO insures over 25,000 practising lawyers in Ontario, as well as providing them with risk and practice management information under the practicePRO banner.
LAWPRO's Posts
The mysterious magic of routines
As a child, did you step carefully over every sidewalk crack? Tap each post of the hockey net before settling into the crease? Wear your lucky socks to every law school exam? Even those of us who scorn superstition rely on routines and rituals for our own protection: we swallow a daily multivitamin, fasten our… Read More »
Categories: Risk Management StrategiesRecognizing the red flags of real estate scams involving corporate identity theft
Frauds targeting real estate lawyers are getting ever more sophisticated. LAWPRO has seen several attempted frauds involving corporate identity theft. The properties involved may be commercial or residential, but are always owned by a corporation. How these frauds work These frauds start with the fraudsters changing or stealing the identity of corporate property owners. This… Read More »
Categories: Fraud PreventionGood Practice Habits: Taking Instructions & Giving Recommendations
Lawyer/client communication-related claims are the number one source of malpractice claims in all areas of practice. These claims can arise when there is a mis-communication or no communication at all. The lawyer and client can be confused over who is doing what. Were instructions received but ignored? Was the lawyer supposed to do something which… Read More »
Categories: Biggest Claims Risks, Communication Errors, Law Practice Management, Risk Management & Claims PreventionpracticePRO.ca: Time for a new look
It’s been nearly 20 years since the launch of the original practicePRO.ca website. While the site was basic by today’s standards, it offered the high quality risk management articles, checklists and precedents lawyers would come to expect from the program. In its first few years, practicePRO.ca averaged 30,000 visitors and 7,000 downloads per year. By… Read More »
Categories: AnnouncementsA Few Good Practice Habits: Examination for Discovery
An examination for discovery often marks the point in which you really sink your teeth into a case. The parties and opposing counsel come to a face-to-face meeting, and key evidence comes out, warts and all. Much of the exploration in an examination for discovery will uniquely depend on the specific witness and the answers… Read More »
Categories: Civil LitigationA Simple Habit To Avoid Missing Deadlines
Here at Claims Prevention & practicePRO we often talk about “baby steps”. The big idea is that taking baby steps can help make you a more effective lawyer. There isn’t necessarily One Big Thing that will magically turn you into a great lawyer. The elements of a habit are explored in Charles Duhigg’s The Power… Read More »
Categories: Biggest Claims Risks, Civil Litigation, Law Practice Management, Legal Technology, Practice Aids, Risk Management & Claims PreventionWhat kinds of PPSA claims does LAWPRO see?
What kinds of PPSA claims does LAWPRO see? Problems with registrations under personal property security legislation (such as the Ontario Personal Property Security Act (PPSA)) are common causes of claims against corporate/commercial lawyers, and indemnity costs associated with these claims can be high. Approximately ten claims involving allegations of PPSA-related mistakes are reported to LAWPRO… Read More »
Categories: Real EstateOntario dusts off the escheats rulebook – time to dust off your advice?
Most lawyers practising today remember the Ontario Escheats Act – if at all – as a terse one-page statute of limited application. However, surprise! While there’s no reason to anticipate a boom in property forfeited to the Crown, when it does happen, it will now be more complicated. This is thanks to the replacement, in… Read More »
Categories: Real Estate