As part of the Law Society’s early intervention approach to regulation, each new sole practitioner and each new small firm (generally three lawyers or fewer), are required to complete the New Sole Practitioner/Small Firm Practice Program. This free program contains two components:   

1. Practice Management Course
2. Practice Review with a Law Society Practice Advisor 

Practice Management Course 

This course is self-paced and self-testing and covers practice management topics that are fundamental to running a legal practice. The course reviews core concepts of practice management ranging from trust accounting to retainers to fraud avoidance. Modules feature text materials, a short quiz, and related resources. Continuing professional development hours can be reported based on actual time to complete the course to a maximum of 12 hours, all of which qualify as ethics hours. The firm’s Designated Representative is responsible to complete the course on behalf of a small firm. 

As an additional component of the Practice Management Course, new sole practitioners and small firm practitioners are required to complete the Federation of Law Societies of Canada Anti-Money Laundering Course. Upon completion of the Anti-Money Laundering Course, continuing professional development hours can be reported based on actual time to complete the course to a maximum of 3 hours and 45 minutes, all of which qualify as ethics hours.  

Practice Review 

A Practice Review will occur after completion of the Practice Management Course (including the Anti-Money Laundering Course) and a few months after the commencement of the firm to allow the new sole practitioner or new small firm to begin to set up the necessary systems and processes to establish their firm. A Practice Advisor is assigned to complete the review and assist on a short-term basis with advice, guidance, and mentorship regarding set-up and practice management. This includes review of the law office and practice management systems that are in place and assistance and recommendations to develop an efficient and low-risk practice. 

Practitioners who have gone through a Practice Review have indicated it was advantageous to their practice and that the advice and assistance provided were very useful in developing their practice management systems and processes.  

Resources – Sole Practitioner/Small Firms 

• Part 15 Accounting Rules 
• Opening a New Trust Bank Account – Checklist 
• Client Identification and Verification 
• Client Intake Decision – Making Checklist 
• Retention, Storage and Disposition of Client Files 
• Cloud Computing Checklist and Best Practices 
• Succession Planning 
• Successor Listing 
• Checklist and Approval of Law Practice Succession Agreement by Bank 
• Trust Safety FAQ 
• CDIC Annual Reporting Requirements 

Resources – Continuing Professional Development (CPD) 

The Law Society provides ongoing training related to practice management through webinars and Bite-Sized CPD. To access past webinars, visit the Recorded Versions Shop and search “practice management” or related terms in the search field.  

Please direct any inquiries to [email protected].