View From the Legislature

In one of my first duties as Manitoba’s new Minister of Justice and Attorney General, I was honoured to be able to join the virtual 2022 Mid-Winter Conference of the Manitoba Bar Association (MBA) this past Saturday morning. The Association represents lawyers, judges, notaries, law teachers and law students in Manitoba and is active in advocating for the profession and providing training and information to members.

Over the past two years, virtually every profession and industry has been challenged to adapt and to do things in new ways through the pandemic. I have written about the adaptation that the Manitoba Legislature has undergone with more work being done virtually as well as the ability for the public to view more proceedings online. No doubt, some of these adaptations will find a permanent place in the operation of the Legislature as they have increased accessibility to the public as it relates to democracy.

In a similar way, the legal profession, which like the Legislature is very much bound by tradition and precedent, has had to be adaptive. This has been particularly important because so much of our society, whether we recognize it or not, relies upon the efficient delivery of many legal matters. As an example, over the last two years the real estate market has been exceptionally busy with, in many cases, record sales. This is also true for the construction industry. All of these transactions rely on efficient legal work that, in the past, often involved a good deal of in person witnessing and commissioning.

In 2020, under the Emergency Measures Act, there were provisions put in place that allowed for some transactions to not require in person witnessing and commissioning. These are changes that had already been happening in some jurisdictions and contemplated in Manitoba but were accelerated during the early days of the pandemic. It then quickly became apparent, and supported by the legal profession, that these changes should be made permanent as they increased efficiency while still having provisions that ensure the proper diligence and oversight needed for many of the transactions. It also reduced barriers for legal services for those who may be in remote communities.

As a result of legislative changes last fall, many of these temporary measures did become permanent through legislation when the State of Emergency ended in the province. It is just one example of how the legal profession adapted and became flexible during the past two years to help to ensure important transactions continued and, in the process, has also found better and improved ways to provide service.

I look forward to working with members of the legal profession as we continue to seek ways to modernize law and legal transactions for those who both practice and rely upon them.