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To reserve a table or seat at the 100th Anniversary Gala Dinner or register for the 100th Anniversary conference, please visit the Law Society of Alberta’s website at www.lawsocietyalberta.com, 100th An-niversary.

A Welcome for Honourary Bencher

Alastair R. Lucas
Acting Dean of the Faculty of Law
University of Calgary

The Law Society of Alberta benchers welcome Professor Alastair R. Lucas, acting dean of the Faculty of Law at the University of Calgary, as an honourary bencher.

He replaces Dr. Patricia Hughes who has ended her term as Dean of the Faculty of Law on June 30, 2006. Dr. Hughes has accepted a position as Executive Director of Education (Alberta) and Scholar in Residence with Bennett Jones LLP.

Changes to Advertising Rules Effective February 2007

by Mona Duckett, QC, President, Law Society of Alberta

Three amendments were made to commentaries in the advertising chapter (chapter five) of the Code of Professional Conduct at the September Bench-ers’ Convocation. These changes were made after almost one year of experience with the advertising rules which were significantly revised in December of 2005.

In summary, the amendments will remove the:

restriction on advertising by former judges,
blanket prohibition on use of stock photographs, and
blanket prohibition on use of statistical or per-formance data in advertising.

Last December, the advertising chapter of the Code changed significantly in an effort to ensure that while the public has access to information about legal services, lawyers who advertise do so in a professional manner. Since the changes to the ad-vertising rules were made, the Law Society and, in particular, the Professional Responsibility Commit-tee, the Benchers, and the Practice Advisors have received feedback from some members and firms, and also from some professionals who provide mar-keting services to lawyers.The September changes, which come into effect February 1st, 2007, are not a departure from the intention that lawyers’ adver-tising be professional and informative for members of the public in need of legal services. No changes have been made to the Rules in chapter five.

All members are urged to immediately assess their own advertising and their advertising commitments to ensure that all necessary changes are made to comply with chapter five of the Code and the new commentary amendments which are effective Feb-ruary 1, 2007. The changes to the commentaries are outlined below:

1. Chapter five commentary C.1, the second-last paragraph which reads as follows is deleted:

An advertisement may not make any reference to a lawyer’s status as a former Master, Justice, or Judge, except with respect to former Masters, Justices, or Judges who restrict their practices to mediation or arbitration.”

2. Chapter five commentary C.1(c), the sixth bullet dealing with advertising strategies is amended to read as follows:

Use of any advertising strategy which undermines the serious purpose of legal services and the judicial system or has the potential to bring the profession into disrepute is unprofessional and is prohibited. The prohibition includes the use of in-flammatory statements, undignified comments, or similar material unrelated to the selection of coun-sel. It also applies to the use of photographs or other depictions of: dramatic scenes, accidents or injury victims, as well as dramatizations, emotional appeals, sound effects, hawkish spokespersons, celebrity endorsements, or slapstick routines.

3. Chapter five commentary C.1(b) is amended. The second half of the second paragraph of that com-mentary will now read as follows:

“Advertisements or other claims that convey an impression that the ingenuity of the lawyer, rather than the merits of the matter, is determinative to the outcome of the claim are likely to mislead, confuse or deceive a member of the public. The use of statistical data or other information of past performance must not convey a prediction of future success because it has the potential to be decep-tive as it ignores the specifics of the matter.”