As we enter September, we asked members of our Young Lawyers Division Executive to reflect back to their earliest days of legal learning to find out, with the benefit of hindsight, what they might say to their ‘new-to-law-school’ selves to more nimbly navigate the challenges or make the most of the experience.

In this case comment with a twist, the author discusses the Ontario Superior Court's decision R v K.P. to grant an application to challenge prospective jurors for cause on the ground of transphobia and includes insights from Neha Chugh, the Ontario lawyer who argued the application, resulting in the first opportunity for the lower courts to test the Supreme Court's obiter comments in R v Chouhan regarding the efficacy of the recently enacted challenge for cause mechanism in the criminal code.

For more than 20 years, point-first writing has been touted as one of the most powerful legal writing techniques. But, what does it really mean to write point first – and why should you do it?

In the face of mounting challenges exposed by the COVID-19 pandemic, the OBA continues to demonstrate its commitment to improve justice and work to ensure more accessible legal proceedings for Ontarians. Lawyers from across the province have united under the leadership of the OBA, exploring innovative solutions to address the short-term backlog in the courts and spearheading efforts for meaningful long-term civil justice reform.

When advising clients whose families include special needs beneficiaries on establishing a Will or getting insurance coverage, there may be obligations to make special considerations, such as homecare services requirements, in which cases life care planners can be a good addition to the team of advisors.

It occurs to me there are some lessons we would do well to revisit even well into our legal careers. It’s easy to become so busy – once we’ve established ourselves in practice, advanced in our field, assumed a rapidly expanding roster of clients, cases or responsibilities – that we find ourselves operating on auto-pilot and losing sight of some questions fundamental to our success and satisfaction.

Colleagues and social media friends, Robin Leighton and Bobbi Olsen share personal perspectives on how a devastating diagnosis led to a life-changing decision, an act of genuine selflessness, and an everlasting bond.

Assisted reproductive technologies have been revolutionary for people and families facing infertility issues, and for single people and queer families wanting to achieve a pregnancy and have children. Read about what happens with frozen embryos with a separation.

Woven into the fabric of the profession, mentorship connects lawyers to those who came before and those who follow, empowering them to be vulnerable and victorious, to learn and develop, and to pursue a path singularly rewarding but never solitary.

With OBA’s annual TECHxpo just days away, we wanted to know the latest technologies and tactics lawyers in different practice areas are finding most useful in their day-to-day work. We asked members to tell us one recently adopted tech tool or newly discovered way of using their existing technology that they now consider indispensable.