As we approach the end of the year – often considered ‘the season of giving’ – we asked members to share one way they enjoy giving back, whether to their local or professional communities or to the broader public.

The 2022 Toronto International Film Festival opened with the world premiere of The Swimmers, a film based on the true story of two sisters who escaped from Syria after the start of the war in an effort to make it to Germany. For this immigration lawyer, it was a worthwhile reminder of the realities faced by many refugee claimants not just on their physical journey, but also once they have reached their destination.

Despite the meteoric rise of cryptocurrencies, the first tax legislation to specifically address them – an addition to the Excise Tax Act drafted to address crypto mining’s GST/HST treatment – was proposed in 2022, over a decade after Bitcoin’s creation. While a good first step, there are still significant uncertainties as to their proper treatment in other situations that will only become more problematic as blockchain and cryptocurrencies are used in novel ways.

Learning as you teach, engaging with your community, improving access to legal info, and raising the profile of your practice are just a few of the reasons that make participation in OBA Speakers Bureau public seminars during November – and beyond – so worthwhile.

A special achievement marred by a stereotypical statuette sparks a candid conversation between two leading human rights lawyers – one a non-binary, trans person and the other a first-generation immigrant South Asian woman – about the rigid expectations and barriers related to gender identity that persist in the legal profession, and what we can do to create space for diverse people while better serving the trans community.

Two top employment lawyers shed light on emerging trends, intriguing developments, and unexpected professional challenges and rewards found at the centre of a practice area that continues to offer indispensable advice amid swift and sweeping change.

For many lawyers, time is everything. But time is hard to manage, particularly when you are busy dealing with a slew of phone calls, emails, invoices and document preparation. Sukhi Hansra offers innovative ideas for growing your business efficiently, cost-effectively and with savvy application of technology.

With the arrival of September, and the energy, excitement and, occasionally, anxiety that back-to-the-books season brings (and inspired in part by Meg Ryan’s exclamation in You’ve Got Mail, “Don’t you love New York in the fall? — it makes me wanna buy school supplies”), we asked members what they love — or look forward to — most about the law in the fall.

As I launch into the final six months of my extended presidential term – a term that presented twists and turns even before it began when our incoming president was appointed to the bench – I find myself embracing the opportunity to advance my OBA Link mandate even further and to “lean in” to the opportunity for reinvention.

It’s never too early – or too late – to find your fit in law and forge a path that is meaningful and rewarding; the first step is remembering why you went to law school in the first place.