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Alberta Family Lawyers Association - FREE MEMBERSHIP

Emma Benarzi Executive
  Benarzi Law
   Airdrie, Alberta


We are pleased to announce the recent formation of the Alberta Family Lawyers Association ("AFLA").

Our three primary and time-sensitive priorities are:
1. to get family bar voices at the table with Legal Aid Alberta in relation to certificate management, tariff modernization and adequate funding for family coverage (contact Justine Fallu: jfallu@gunnlawgroup.ca);
2. to seek opportunities to collaborate with the Courts on procedures affecting the family bar; (contact Moosa Jiwaji: moosa@settleassist.ca or Ashley Cox: acox@brownlawgroup.ca); and
3. to speak out about the family bar’s needs with various levels of government related to funding. (contact Wayne Barkauskas: wayneb@divorceinc.com)

Meetings will be arranged quickly to discuss these topics so please reach out to the coordinator if you want to be included in the meeting.

Through these initiatives we will strive to make our work as family lawyers more efficient, cost-effective for the clients, and to ensure access to justice is systemically facilitated within our specialized field. We are hopeful that the AFLA will create an opportunity to fill in the gaps we see to better serve our family law colleagues and clients at large.

To build a large and diverse membership base among the family bar, Membership is offered free. All that is required is signing up and confirming if you do or don't want to be subscribed to email announcements / information sharing (see link: https://familycounsel.ca/afla.php ). We encourage you to forward this announcement to any Family Lawyer in Alberta who may be interested in joining as a member, volunteering, or simply learning more by contacting one of the steering committee members above.

We invite you to join us in building an association of family lawyers for family lawyers in support of the work we do for and with Alberta families.


5 16 months ago

Justine Fallu Executive
  Gunn Law Group
   Edmonton, Alberta


The subcommittee for those interested in getting involved with Legal Aid and the tariff modernization efforts will be meeting on November 7, 2022, at 5:00 p.m. via zoom. Please contact me at jfallu@gunnlawgroup.ca if you wish to attend, join the subcommittee, or send me any information or questions you may have.

4 16 months ago

Anonymous 2017
   Edmonton Region, Alberta


Questions.

Are we simply just another band of people making ourselves mobilized for some collective job action?

I would like to see a greater development of pride. Not egoism, but actually something that helps solidify who we are. Not slime. And not second-rate lawyers. These are the traditional knocks against family lawyers.

We all have our examples of people we do not enjoy practicing with or against. They are not born, they are made - and made through the travails of cynicism that slowly erode into the core of a person who lacks either the personal strength or the collective will of his/her peers to steer them from it.

Each of us could ask ourselves what we think our training lacked when we first became called and what, if anything, a new group could do to continually be a source of encouragement and inspiration.

It comes to a key question. As this group progresses, is it a group of "muscle", or is it a group of tradition, respect, and dignity. "Muscle" might try to bend a government to change policies. The other may discover a potential it did not know it had.

Wouldn't it be great if one aspect of banding together was simply a focus on reimagining". What help do people in the public need in their lives? How are we best able to provide that? We quickly reduce these to new rules, new tools, and more money. When we demand more of the same, though, watch out because that's usually what you will get.

Engage with lawyers. How many practice with a sense of quiet desperation? How many have talents that are unfulfilled and unexpressed? Does more money and more voice really address the actual rots we find in our own house?

Dissatisfaction is not created by government or the judiciary, and therefore cannot be cured by them. There are annoyances to address, to be sure. But it is reflection, purpose, leadership, grit and imagination that will be the bedrock of this profession.

Only connect. Live in fragments no longer.

Finally, a point of order. Is it the Alberta Family Lawyers Association? Or the Alberta Family Lawyers' Association? And yes, perhaps the end of all my apostrophizing is to conclude with a question about an apostrophe.


0 16 months ago

Emma Benarzi Executive
  Benarzi Law
   Airdrie, Alberta


I can't speak for AFLA as a whole but you make a lot of good points! If you are able to join as a member and attend some meetings I think you will find a lot of your concerns are shared among the steering committee members and many members who have joined thus far.

We are trying to get family lawyers and our vital work for our clients considered and respected on larger platforms. Many of us are concerned about access to justice for clients and what it could mean to them for us to be more vocal about changes being made at higher levels that will impact them drastically (and not always for the better). However the mandate of AFLA will be broad with room to work on congeniality and professional connections through our peers and to seek like minded colleagues to share information and practice tips with.

As for the final question, there was consideration given to having the apostrophe at the end of lawyers in the association title of course.

Ultimately for user friendly aspects such as future website considerations, emails etc. the apostrophe was determined to not be needed to depict the objectives of the association (as lawyers we are generally sticklers for grammar).

I hope this helps to address some of your questions on a base level.


2 16 months ago

Justine Fallu Executive
  Gunn Law Group
   Edmonton, Alberta


The next meeting for the Legal Aid subcommittee is at 5:30 p.m. on November 21, 2022. Anyone who wants to participate is welcome, and we encourage anyone that's curious about what's happening and who has questions about Legal Aid and any next steps to attend. Here's the link!
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89729803286
Meeting ID: 897 2980 3286
Passcode: 314205
Meeting ID: 897 2980 3286
Passcode: 314205


2 16 months ago

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