Risk Management & Claims Prevention
Building a better clientele
The impact of poor client selection and sloppy client service will be magnified in trying economic times. In response, you want to proactively take steps to build a retain a better clientele. Here are some pointers to help you meet that goal: Get a retainer up front: The best way to ensure that you get… Read More »
Categories: Communication Errors, Risk Management StrategiesIs it safe to serve on a client’s board of directors?
It can be very rewarding, both personally and financially, to be asked to serve on a client’s board of directors. It’s also easy to understand why a client might make the request: the lawyer may have worked closely with the corporation’s founders to establish the company, and will likely have a solid understanding of the… Read More »
Categories: Conflicts of Interest, Corporate Law, LAWPRO Errors and Omissions CoverageTop reasons files stall
Whether you run a lean and mean or volume-oriented personal injury practice, certain files are more prone to languish than others. What’s the real cost of running a file for too long? Work-in-progress accumulates with little to show for it, expert reports grow stale and need to be updated (which significantly increases disbursements), witnesses’ memories… Read More »
Categories: Civil Litigation, Limitations ClaimsRECO issues public advisory regarding John Van Dyk
The Real Estate Council of Ontario (RECO) is warning members of the public not to engage in real estate transactions with John Van Dyk, of Chatham, Ontario. Neither he nor his company J. Van Dyk Realty Inc. are registered to trade in real estate. In order to trade in real estate in Ontario, salespersons and… Read More »
Categories: Fraud PreventionThe importance of reporting letters
From both a client communication and a claims prevention perspective, reporting letters may be among the most important documents in a lawyer’s file. Reporting letters support client communication by describing the work that has been completed and the results achieved. Good reporting letters should also communicate whether any issues remain to be resolved or tasks… Read More »
Categories: Communication ErrorsSelf-Represented Litigants: A Survival Guide by Carol Cochrane
Why do we all shudder on learning that our client’s adversary is self-represented on a litigation file? So often we fail to appreciate opposing counsel – until we hear those dreaded words from our client: “You know, the other side won’t be getting a lawyer.” It is only then that we realize and appreciate the… Read More »
Categories: Civil Litigation, Family Law, Risk Management StrategiesNew practicePRO resource: The franchise law malpractice claims fact sheet
With such a large amount of claims prevention information available in LAWPRO Magazine articles and practicePRO resources, we had the idea to create simple fact sheets that CPD providers and others could use in developing their program material for specific areas of law. The eighth in our series of “malpractice claims fact sheets” covers franchise… Read More »
Categories: Communication Errors, Risk Management StrategiesRecent increase in spear phishing emails targeting Ontario firms
LAWPRO is seeing an increase in spear fishing email frauds targeting lawyers and law firms. The spearfishing messages we are seeing are very sophisticated. They include information personalized for the firm. Spear fishing messages are created to appear that they are from senior partners or management and they are being sent to senior financial staff…. Read More »
Categories: Fraud Prevention