Malcolm Mercer appointed as Chair of the Law Society Tribunal
TORONTO, Oct. 22, 2020 /CNW/ - Malcolm Mercer has been appointed as Chair of the Law Society Tribunal.
"Mr. Mercer's expertise and commitment to issues of legal ethics, professional responsibility and the public interest will ensure that the Law Society's independent Tribunal is well-positioned to continue to advance its commitment to a hearing process that is transparent, fair and effective for both the public and the affected licensees," said Law Society Treasurer Teresa Donnelly. "I am very pleased to welcome Mr. Mercer to this important role."
The Law Society Tribunal is an independent adjudicative body that hears and decides regulatory cases about Ontario lawyers and paralegals.
"I look forward to furthering the Tribunal's work as a leader in the administrative justice community, and to ensuring a process that is fair, impartial and in the public interest," said Mercer.
Mercer is the Tribunal's second full-time Chair, succeeding David A. Wright. Treasurer Donnelly also extends her thanks to Wright, who was initially appointed as Tribunal Chair in 2013.
"Mr. Wright has been integral to the development of the Tribunal's distinct independent identity," said Donnelly. "On behalf of Convocation, I want to extend our sincere thanks for his service and for his foundational work to build an organization based on the core values of fairness, quality, transparency and timeliness."
Mercer, who assumes his duties as Tribunal Chair on November 16, has dedicated much of his career to issues of legal ethics and legal services regulation.
A practising lawyer for more than 35 years, Mercer received his B.Sc., in systems design engineering in 1977 and his LLB from the University of Toronto in 1982. He was called to the Ontario bar in 1984.
Mercer was a partner with McCarthy Tétrault LLP, where he practiced from 1984 to 2020. He was a co-leader of the National Litigation Practice and acted as the firm's General Counsel.
He was elected as a bencher to the Law Society in 2011 and served as Treasurer from 2018 to 2020. He was a member of the Hearing and Appeal Divisions of the Law Society Tribunal and was instrumental in the development of the Law Society's Rules of Professional Conduct and effective professional regulation.
In 2013, Mercer was recognized by the Canadian Bar Association with the prestigious Louis St. Laurent award. He is the past Board Chair of the Victorian Order of Nurses Canada. In 2014, he was voted one of the Canadian Lawyer's Top 25 Most Influential Lawyers. He has been a member of the Immigration Appeal Division of the Immigration and Refugee Board and is a frequent speaker, teacher and writer on legal ethics and legal services regulation.
More information about the Law Society Tribunal is available at www.lawsocietytribunal.ca.
The Law Society regulates lawyers and paralegals in Ontario in the public interest. The Law Society has a mandate to protect the public interest, to maintain and advance the cause of justice and the rule of law, to facilitate access to justice for the people of Ontario and act in a timely, open and efficient manner.
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SOURCE The Law Society of Ontario
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