The Lawyers Weekly - November 4, 2011

THE LAWYERS WEEKLY
November 4, 2011 | 23

BUSINESS
CAREERS

While the uncertain economic climate has made hiring lawyers a potentially expensive proposition, one national firm is giving entrepreneurs information at no cost over the web.

Over the past year, Fraser Mil-
ner Casgrain (FMC) LLP has cre-
ated specialized microsites—
DoingBusinessinCanada.com
and TechStartupCentre.com —
that provide a guide to the legal
and business issues facing for-
eigners interested in setting up
shop here (such as recent mer-
gers-and-acquisitions activity)
and for those already here want-
ing to launch a technology com-
pany (giving them info on such
details as understanding intellec-
tual property rights).

“Our lawyers involved in these
issues also have the greatest know-
ledge base to answer questions and
interact with people who want
more information.”
The microsites provide a direct
link to FMC’s main website, and
serve as a more subtle marketing
tool for the firm.
See Microsites Page 24
Avoid
ANNOUNCEMENT
Internet
gaf fes

ANWAR ALI

When Chris Bennett needed feedback on a troublesome client, who’d done something “that wasn’t all that bright,” he sought the counsel of a fellow partner.

Bennett forwarded an e-mail from the client to his colleague by attachment. He added his comments in the body of the message.

The other lawyer, unwittingly, opened the attachment and responded to that message, instead of Bennett’s. In so many words, he called the client an idiot.

“He realized the mistake after
it was too late and back-pedalled
a little bit,” says Bennett, an intel-
lectual property & technology
lawyer at Davies LLP. “The client
was totally ticked off. I think (he)
moved on pretty quickly. Who
wouldn’t, right?”
Just like speaking off the cuff,
the instantaneous nature of email
can get us into hot water. Surpris-
ingly, it’s still misused a couple
decades or so after teenagers and
executives alike salivated over its
emergence as a mainstream
mode of communication. The list
of gaffes is endless, from errone-
ous recipients to incriminating
typos. Formatting and formality
vary situationally, complicating
things further.

“I don’t think you should be using all sorts of hip-hop abbreviations,” says Thomas Farley, author of Modern Manners: The Thinking Person’s Guide to Social Graces.

“It doesn’t speak well for you
as a professional to do what a
13-year old might do.”
That’s not to say each mes-
sage should start with a proper
salutation and finish with a
sign-off reserved for only the
most revered. Sometimes, that’s
impractical.
See Email Page 25

As of November 1st, 2011 we are moving to the 9th and 10th floors at 150 Dufferin Avenue, London.

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