2018•The Canadian Bar ReviewOpen access

LAWYERS’ MONOPOLY? THINK AGAIN:: THE REALITY OF NON-LAWYER LEGAL SERVICE PROVISION IN CANADA

Lisa Trabucco

Abstract

The statutes that govern the legal profession across the country reserve the practice of law for lawyers, giving rise to lawyers’ claim to a monopoly over legal services. However, those same statutes, and many others, also allow non-lawyers to engage in practice-of-law activities. Non-lawyers provide legal assistance, advice, and representation across Canada in a range of settings. The privilege of self-regulation imposes on law societies a duty to govern in the public interest. The public interest is often cited to support lawyers’ monopoly, which is a useless fiction. Arguments by lawyers to restrict or limit non-lawyers’ provision of legal services are essentially quality arguments. This article asserts that lawyers’ claims for a monopoly are inconsistent with both the extent and quality of non-lawyer legal service provision in Canada.

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Key concepts: Monopoly, Legal ethics, Legal profession, Law, Statute, Practice of law, Privilege (computing), Political science