Madam Chair, thank you. I am pleased to be here today to present Bill 82, Legal Profession Act.
Bill 82 proposes a repeal and replacement of the current Legal Profession Act, which was passed in 1976 and establishes the Law Society of the Northwest Territories as the body which regulates lawyers in the Northwest Territories. The department has worked in collaboration with the law society to bring forward these amendments and appreciates the time and effort contributed by law society membership both with their initial review of the existing act and with reviewing an engagement draft of the bill. This helped to ensure we were able to bring forward a fulsome new Act that will effectively regulate lawyers in the Northwest Territories.
In 2018, a revision committee was established by the executive of the Law Society of the Northwest Territories to consult on the recommended changes to the Act which had not been extensively reviewed since it was first enacted. The Act as currently written is prescriptive with many issues governed by the Act rather than the rules of the law society. Similar legislation in comparable jurisdictions is often less prescriptive allowing for greater flexibility in the rules and policies of their law societies. The proposed new Act would address contemporary developments in the legal profession in a manner similar to other Canadian jurisdictions.
In addition to addressing errors in consistencies and improving the overall clarity of the Act, proposed changes to the Act generally address the following areas: The purpose and administration of the society, membership, and enrolment; the definition of practice of law; discipline; the assurance fund; trust accounts and custodianship; and, other relevant matters.
This concludes my opening remarks. I'd be pleased to answer questions that Members may have. Thank you.