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As a professional association, it is the mandate of the BC Notaries Association (BCNA) to Advocate, Educate, Promote and Support Notaries throughout British Columbia. We recognize the importance of aligning our efforts to the broader public interest, in order to retain the trusted relationship that BC Notaries have with their communities and clients.

Practising BC Notaries are legal professionals currently regulated by the Society of Notaries Public of BC. Graduation from the Simon Fraser University Masters in Applied Legal Studies program, a period of practical training and examinations, along with annual continuing education requirements, ensures that BC Notaries are competent in the areas of non-contentious law in which they are regulated and insured to practice.

Following years of advocating for change to the Notaries Act, the BCNA is supportive of the legal professions’ modernization undertaking, to align legal service providers under new legislation with a single regulator. Through an ongoing dialogue with government, we are optimistic that the Ministry of Attorney General recognizes that BC Notaries are well positioned to improve access to a variety of noncontentious legal services throughout British Columbia.

The BCNA is advocating to ensure that new legislation will expand the scope of practice for BC Notaries in areas congruent to their current practice rights, in order to ensure British Columbians have broader access to the provision of qualified non-contentious legal services in the following areas; the ability to provide advice to prepare testamentary trusts and life estates, the ability to provide advice to prepare and file probate documents in the court’s registry, and the ability to provide advice to incorporate and maintain records of companies in B.C.

BC Notaries can contribute to improving access to justice for British Columbians by providing access to legal services to citizens throughout the province. Getting the help of a legal professional, as opposed to using DIY internet templates can prevent problems down the road, which provides peace of mind, and may avoid the potential for future conflict. Many BC

Notaries practice in dense urban environments where there is high demand for legal services, and others practise in rural or remote communities where legal service providers are underrepresented. Additionally, many provide services in foreign languages, making BC Notaries a convenient and accessible option for those seeking noncontentious legal services.

Throughout this process, the Ministry of Attorney General has committed to retain the unique role of BC Notaries in new legislation, and the BCNA will continue to provide our perspective to government on the structure of a new regulatory Board. We are hopeful that legislation will be clear and concise, in order to avoid the potential for regulatory misinterpretation of legislative intent.

The Legal Professions Regulatory Modernization initiative has provided opportunity for an open dialogue in the province on the future of legislation and regulation of the legal professions. The BC Notaries Association appreciates the engagement we have had with the CBABC and the BC Paralegal Association, as we work together with the Ministry of Attorney General to ensure that future legislation and regulation is in the best interests of British Columbians, while providing the public with increased access to professional legal services.

CBABC members enjoy exclusive access to meetings and events in practice areas ranging from Administrative Law to Wills & Trusts, and interest groups like Young Lawyers and Public Sector Lawyers.

With 95% of meetings held virtually, get your CPD when and where you want it. Enjoy connecting with colleagues in-person? Section members regularly get together for socials and events.

Activities are organized by dedicated volunteers. Being a Section Executive can build your profile, expand your network and connect you to the latest practice developments.

This year, 66 Sections hosted over 200 meetings and socials. Here are some of the highlights:

Celebrating the benefits of hybrid meetings, the Wills & Trusts–Vancouver Section hosted a case comment led by Doe Kyung Lee, Fasken, on Simpson v Zaste, 2022 BCCA 208. Members also heard from Roger Lee, DLA Piper,

Mark Weintraub, Clark Wilson LLP and Tara Britnell, Hamilton Duncan, about how to manage complex estate litigations and how to build your toolkit. This meeting brought together over 100 online attendees and 33 in-person to engage with speakers and gather key takeaways.

The Aboriginal Law & Natural Resources Law Sections hosted a much-anticipated presentation from Maegan Giltrow, KC, Partner at Ratcliffe LLP and co-counsel on the 160-day trial, Vahey V British Columbia. Members were given an overview on the case starting points, key issues and the implementation agreement for this landmark decision.

Worth the wait! New lawyers enjoyed a sneak peek at a day in the life of a Supreme Court Master with the return of our sell-out Master Shadowing program. Now offered in Kelowna, Victoria and Vancouver, participants attend an informal dinner with the Master followed by a full day of learning the do’s and don’ts of Chambers practice.

Get all the latest Programs and Events at cbabc.org/Events

To celebrate National Indigenous Peoples Day, the CBABC Aboriginal Lawyers Forum holds an online auction raising funds for the Warrior Project. This year’s auction runs from June 16-24.

The Warrior Project funds articling positions for Indigenous students and is sustained by the success of the online auction and generous donors.

Don’t miss out! Donate an item, bid on an item, support your community, and share the auction with your friends and colleagues. Visit cbabc.org/warriorproject

In April, the CBABC Women Lawyers Forum held their biennial awards gala at the Fairmont Waterfront, bringing together members who strive towards empowering women lawyers and honouring three brilliant women with distinguished awards. We were honoured to host the Honourable Niki Sharma, KC, Attorney General of British Columbia, as our keynote speaker.

The WLF Award of Excellence was given to Myrna McCallum, a passionate proponent of educating professionals on Indigenous inter-generational trauma, risks of vicarious trauma for lawyers and trauma-informed lawyering.

The Debra Van Ginkel, QC Mentoring Award was presented to Cheryl D’Sa, who has given her expertise to those new to the profession through the University of British Columbia, Federation of Asian Canadian Lawyers Ladies Social and the Women Lawyers Forum.

Finally, we presented the new Rising Star Award to Julia Lockhart Lockhart for her exceptional work and achievements in under 10 years of call.

The gala was a huge success and a welcome change, providing connection and community after such a long hiatus.

By Sarah McCalla (she/her), CBABC SOGIC Co-Chair

We celebrate Pride to recognize and honour the many people who have worked and are working tirelessly, and often at great personal expense, to strengthen our 2SLGBTQ+ community and to claim the rights and freedoms that we were historically denied. We also celebrate Pride to recognize that the work is not done. Our community, and our trans community in particular, is increasingly facing barriers, violence, exclusion and hate (see e.g. your favourite news source or the Report of the Inquiry into hate in the COVID-19 pandemic — bit.ly/bt0623sogic1). During Pride, we come together and collectively raise our voices against discrimination in its many forms. We hope you will join us!

This year, SOGIC will be participating in the Vancouver Pride Parade on August 6. We also plan to participate in the Victoria Pride Parade on July 9, and in the Kamloops Pride Parade on August 27. More information on how to join us, and Pride-related resources, will be circulated closer to those dates.

You can also celebrate Pride by taking opportunities to make your practice more inclusive, including by using gender-inclusive language (Practice Resource on Inclusive Language — bit.ly/bt0623sogic2) and sharing your pronouns in and out of court (Pronouns in Court Toolkit — bit.ly/bt0623sogic3).