KPA Lawyers – September 23, 2020

https://youtu.be/poIU-o_0mSI

Yes, you can. If you want to skip reading this article and go straight to connecting with an Ontario lawyer online, then click here.

 However, if you want to know more about how this stuff works, then read on. These days, you can do just about anything online, from ordering groceries to seeing your therapist. It might make you wonder why more law firms in Ontario aren’t providing their clients with the convenience of a complete virtual experience, or at least as close as one can get in the world of law.  It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that, before the pandemic, most Canadian lawyers were still forcing their clients to call a receptionist, book an in-person appointment, and actually drive to a lawyer’s office to find answers to their questions. Let’s be real, we won’t even do that for food, which we actually need to, you know, live. Most of us would rather have our food delivered to our door than spend the 8 minutes it takes to drive to a restaurant. Granted, there are some things that lawyers must do to screen clients before agreeing to talk to a new client, which you don’t see in most other professions. One important screening task is called a “conflict check”, which basically means that the lawyer needs to verify that they don’t already represent someone else who has interests that are against yours. The lawyer has to do this before they meet with you. As you can imagine, it would be pretty awkward if you paid for a consultation with a divorce lawyer, only to discover that this person has already been hired by your soon-to-be ex to sue you for child support. Fortunately, we can usually perform a conflict-of-interest check online very early in the booking process. And then there’s payment. Some lawyers still prefer to be paid by cheque, and don’t seem to realize that it’s not 1955 anymore. Even the lawyers who accept credit cards might want you to visit their office in person to punch in your PIN number at a terminal.  Lame.  Why not receive a convenient email notification where you can send a secure online credit card payment directly from your phone or computer? Or just send an Interac e-transfer? That’s how we prefer to do things.  Another reason why Canadian law firms seemed to lag behind the rest of the world in embracing technology is because, unlike the comparatively modern justice system in the USA, Canadian courts were still operating in the dark ages until COVID-19 happened. Absurd things like mandatory faxing of documents and in-person paper filings in court were a cancer in the system (and to some extent, they still are).  It’s a little bit suspicious that lawyers would charge for their services based on time spent (billable hours) and then hold on so dearly to inefficient and time-consuming ways of doing things. It’s almost like they financially benefit from resisting innovation (note the hint of sarcasm).  We don’t think things should be that way. At KPA Lawyers, not only do we invest thousands of dollars of our own money creating free legal educational videos, we obsess over using technology to optimize almost every aspect of our business processes. This results in avoiding unnecessary expenses, reduces time spent performing billable tasks, saves clients money, and increases ease and convenience. We prefer to empower our clients so they can educate themselves about the law before or after meeting one of our lawyers. Here are just a few examples… 

• Want to know how legal fees work? Click here 
• Want to know how divorce works in Ontario? Click here
• Want to know how lawsuits work in Ontario? Click here
• Want to know how construction liens work in Ontario? Click here
• Want to know if you can sue about invasions or privacy? Click here
• Do you want to watch a comprehensive, 2-hour, free webinar about Wills & Estates Law in Ontario? Click here
• Do you want to watch a comprehensive, 2-hour, free webinar about Family Law in Ontario? Click here
• Do you want to watch a comprehensive, 2-hour, free webinar about how Mortgages, Real Estate Sales and Real Estate Law works in Ontario? Click here

And if you can’t find what you need online, then feel free to hire one of our lawyers online by clicking here. You can also call us at 905 965 6263 from 9am to 5pm, every weekday except holidays.