ByLawyers News and Updates

Attend the 2019 Small Law Industry Summit hosted by LEAP

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On the 14th of March, LEAP Legal Software will be hosting the inaugural Small Law Industry Summit in Sydney. The summit will be the first event of its kind, with a sole focus on the future of the small law industry.

The summit presents a valuable opportunity to discover the latest innovations in legal practice, equip your firm with the necessary tools to succeed in a rapidly evolving industry and make connections with like-minded innovators in other small law firms.

The summit will feature a number of essential presentations from industry leaders including:

  • Keynote Speaker – Dr Alana Maurushat – Professor of Cyber Security and Behaviour at Western Sydney University – speaking on the role of cyber security in mitigating risk.
  • Christian Beck – Founder of LEAP Legal Software – presenting on getting the best out of human capital, a firm’s most valuable asset.
  • Rose Dravitzki – Head of Chambers at Clarence Chambers – will discuss methods of innovation through strategic business sourcing and structuring.
  • Therese Linton – Founder and Principal Consultant of The BASALT Group – examining ways that small law firms can transform the way that they work to significantly increase productivity.
  • Donna Cooper – Ethics Consultant at Ethics4Lawyers and By Lawyers contributing author – presenting on how firms can manage their ethical responsibilities in a technology-based world.

The event will be fully catered and 50% of each ticket sold will go towards supporting cyber security education through a scholarship at Western Sydney University.

Register HERE, claim 6 CPD points and automatically enter the draw to win a private harbour cruise adventure for you and up to 10 guests of your choosing.

By Lawyers will be attending the Summit – please make yourself known to our team on the day; we love to meet our clients and we value your feedback on our content.

New article by Donna Cooper on Wills and POAs – VIC

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By Lawyers is pleased to be able to share with you Donna Cooper’s article, Should you hand over a copy of a will to an attorney under power?, published in the Reference material folder in our Will, Powers and Estates VIC publications.

Donna’s article commences:

Consider the following common ethical dilemma: You have a long standing elderly client whose adult son telephones to say that he’s moving his mother into a nursing home and would like to come in to a collect a copy of her will from your office this afternoon.  You know the adult son and you are aware of the fact that he is the sole attorney under power for his mother as well as the sole executor of her estate.  He tells you that his mother has recently lost capacity and is not capable of managing her affairs.  Should you hand over a copy of the will to him when he arrives this afternoon?

Donna’s article considers:

  • the duty of confidentiality a solicitor owes to the principal;
  • the application of the Powers of Attorney Act 2014 (Vic) to various scenarios;
  • the options available to a solicitor when approached by an attorney seeking access to the principal’s will; and
  • guidance including the 2013 Succession Laws Report from the Victorian Law Reform Commission and Ethics Committee Ruling R4839, published in 2015 by the Law Institute of Victoria’s Ethics Committee.

Donna Cooper is an Ethics Consultant with ethics4lawyers and an Australian legal practitioner. Donna’s very practical and considered article first appeared in the Institute of Legal Executives September-October 2018 journal, The Legal Executive.

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