Jeffrey W. Lem

EXPERIENCE:

I am a solicitor who practises real estate law and allied disciplines such as secured lending and insolvency. I have been a partner in the Toronto office of Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg LLP for the past decade. Before that, I was the partner responsible for real estate in the Toronto office of Heenan Blaikie LLP. I began my career with articles at Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP, where I was hired back and remained as an associate for four years. Although I come from a big firm background, I have also had experience as in-house counsel and in a small-firm working environment.

I have been very active in my service to the legal community and the community at large. I have been an editor of the Real Property Reports for almost twenty years, and have been a member of the Real Property Executive of the Ontario Bar Association for the past decade. I have also been an advisor to a number of Chinese-Canadian community and professional organizations throughout my career.

In addition to my current role as the Director of the LL.M. Program specializing in Real Property Law at Osgoode Hall Law School, I have also taught in the Bar Admission Course and continue to be very active in continuing legal education. I co-chaired for many years the Six-Minute Commercial Leasing Lawyer, the Six-Minute Real Estate Lawyer, and the real estate program of the OBA's Annual Institute. I have been a speaker at over one hundred continuing legal education programs over the years, for various legal and real estate organizations.

I am also a prolific writer on legal affairs. In addition to research papers for my various speaking engagements and my regular columns on real estate law in Building Magazine and Law Times, I was also the legal editor for China Business Monthly, an Associate Editor of the Digest of Real Property Law, and a frequent contributor to Lawyers Weekly. Over the course of my career, I have contributed many papers to various law journals and magazines on a variety of legal matters.

ELECTION STATEMENT:

I am hoping that Convocation will benefit from the diversity that I would bring to the bencher ranks, both in terms of cultural and ethnic diversity and in terms of diversity in practice.

Many of the incumbent benchers with solicitor practices are now "termed-out" and prevented from running for re-election after sixteen or more years of service. Convocation should reflect the actual balance between barristers and solicitors in practice. If elected, I would bring such a solicitor's perspective to Convocation.

Convocation should also reflect the rich cultural and ethnic diversity inherent in the membership of the Law Society. I am a past president of, and have the support and endorsement of, the Association of Chinese Canadian Lawyers of Ontario (the lawyer division of the Federation of Chinese Canadian Professionals).

Naturally, given my professional background, I have a deep-rooted interest in all issues affecting practice conditions for solicitors, especially those practising in real estate. On a broader scale, I am also concerned about the new Continuing Professional Development requirements recently imposed on all lawyers. While I think that the train has already left the station on the issue of CPD, I am hoping that my extensive hands-on experience with continuing legal education over the past two decades will help to at least improve the quality and relevance of the CPD that will be available, and will help to ensure that such CPD will be delivered efficiently, conveniently and affordably to all of our members, especially those practicing in smaller firms or at more remote locations (including the large number of our members practising as in-house counsel or as sole practitioners).

I have had a long history of service to the legal community and wish to continue that service as a bencher. Thank you for your consideration of my candidacy.