Welcome to the
Law Society Tribunal
The Law Society Tribunal is an independent adjudicative tribunal within the Law Society of Ontario. The Tribunal processes, hears and decides regulatory cases about Ontario lawyers and paralegals in a manner that is fair, just and in the public interest.
For the
Public
You can learn more about the Tribunal by reading our Mission and Core Values. If you still have questions you may find them answered among the FAQs. Or, to find out what we accomplished last year, take a look at our 2020 Annual Report.
For parties
Before the Tribunal
Our Legal Resources section includes links to all the Rules of Practice you’ll need, as well as Fillable Forms that you can submit directly through the website. Under Guides, you’ll find a variety of information helpful for parties who currently have a case before the Tribunal.
For the
Media
For the upcoming hearings schedule, take a look at our Upcoming Hearings Calendar. If you need to find a regulatory notice, order, or set of reasons, these can be found in the Case Documents section. And for all recently initiated or recently decided cases, visit our Weekly Update.
What's New
New: “A Guide to Appeals Proceedings” Nov 4, 2021
The Tribunal has a new guide to appeals proceedings! Check it out here.
Weekly Proceedings Update
Message from the Chair
Malcolm M. Mercer
Chair, Law Society Tribunal
On behalf of our adjudicators and staff, I’d like to welcome you to the Law Society Tribunal’s website. Our commitment to transparency, laid out in our core values, is of the utmost importance to us, and nowhere is this better reflected than here on our website, where licensees and licence applicants, the public, and members of the media can learn about the Tribunal– from our cases to our processes to the principles that guide us.
As Tribunal Chair, I work to ensure the Tribunal team has the tools it needs to excel. Our adjudicators undergo comprehensive training, both upon their appointment and at regular intervals during their tenure. The staff in the Tribunal Office, too, work with dedication and conscientiousness to process cases and support the work of adjudicators, all with an eye to our core values of fairness, quality, transparency and timeliness.
We also strive to continually develop and refine our processes. The Chair’s Practice Roundtable, made up of representatives and duty counsel who appear frequently before the Tribunal, as well as Tribunal staff, facilitates dialogue and feedback from stakeholders. Weekly summaries of Tribunal proceedings ensure that public documents filed with the Tribunal are available and comprehensible to anyone who is interested. And the Tribunal Committee, made up of Law Society Benchers, meets regularly in order to review and enhance Tribunal rules and policies.
These are just a few examples of the Tribunal’s efforts towards continuous improvement. Explore this website to learn more, and check back regularly for updates.