Canadian Elder Law Conference 2019 Day 2

Course Chairs
Jan Goddard — Goddard Gamage LLP, Toronto
Hugh S. McLellan  — McLellan Herbert, Vancouver
Geoffrey W. White — Geoffrey W. White Law Corporation, Counsel, Clark Wilson LLP, Kelowna & Vancouver

About the Course Chairs

Jan Goddard is the founding partner of Goddard Gamage LLP in Toronto, which has been named four times as one of the top trusts and estates boutique law firms in Canada by Canadian Lawyer magazine. She is a frequent speaker at continuing professional development programs on elder law, capacity, guardianship, powers of attorney, substitute decision-making, and estate issues.

Jan was the co-director of Osgoode Professional Development's Certificate in Elder Law from 2015-17. She was a member of the advisory group to the Law Commission of Ontario's landmark project on Legal Capacity, Decision-making and Guardianship. She is former counsel to the Office of the Public Guardian and Trustee of Ontario. Jan has a long history of volunteering with Woodgreen Community Services, one of Canada's leading social service agencies, and is a distinguished Fellow of the Canadian Centre for Elder Law. In 2015 and 2017, Jan co-chaired the Canadian Elder Law Conference, and she looks forward to doing so again in November 2019 in Vancouver.

Hugh McLellan, a partner in the law firm of McLellan Herbert, practices in the areas of estate litigation, estate planning, and elder law. He is a former Chair of the CBA Wills and Trusts (Vancouver) Subsection. He is the founding Vice Chair (and past Chair) of the CBA National Elder Law Section and the founding Chair of the CBA BC Elder Law Subsection. He is a member of the Estate Planning Council of Vancouver and the US National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys. He has served on various committees dealing with law reform in the areas of adult guardianship and wills and estates. He was awarded the CBA BC Community Service award in 2004 for his involvement with mental health and elder issues.

Hugh is the author of numerous articles on estate litigation, estate planning and elder law, co-editor of Financial and Estate Planning for the Mature Client in British Columbia (LexisNexis, 2000), a contributor to BC Representation Agreement Act, Adult Guardianship Act and Related Statutes (Carswell, 2000), and is an associate editor of the Estates and Trusts Reports. He is a frequent lecturer for various professional and community programs.

Geoff White has 20+ years of expertise in wills, trusts, estates, and elder law matters. He acts as counsel for Clark Wilson LLP and assists clients both in Vancouver and at his "heritage" office in Kelowna. He is a frequent author and lecturer for both the legal community and others.

Geoff is currently: the Chair of the Law Foundation of BC, the past Chair of the CBA National Elder Law Section, and the Founding Chair of the Okanagan Chapter of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners. He is an editor of the CLEBC BC Probate & Estate Administration Practice Manual, which is acknowledged as the primary source for all estate matters in the province, and he helped to design the lawyer education programs for BC's Wills, Estate and Succession Act, which took effect in 2014.

Planning Committee
Krista James — Canadian Centre for Elder Law, Vancouver

Faculty
The Honourable Thomas A. Cromwell, CC — Borden Ladner Gervais LLP, Ottawa & Vancouver
Jennifer Baumbusch, RN, PhD — Associate Professor, School of Nursing, University of BC, Vancouver
Emily Clough — Clark Wilson LLP, Vancouver
John W. Conroy, QC — Conroy & Company, Abbotsford
Menachem Freedman — HHBG Lawyers, Vancouver
Mario Gregorio — person living with dementia, Burnaby
Deidre J. Herbert — McLellan Herbert, Vancouver
Al Jina, CEO — Park Place Seniors Living, Vancouver
Dr. Shelly Johnson/Mukwa Musayett — Canada Research Chair & Associate Professor and Director, Centre for Indigenizing Higher Education, Faculty of Education and Social Work, Thompson Rivers University, Kamloops
Kyla Lee — Acumen Law Corporation, Vancouver
Barbara J. Lindsay — Director, Advocacy & Education, Alzheimer Society of BC, Vancouver
Jane E. Meadus — Advocacy Centre for the Elderly, Toronto
M. Ashley Mitchell — Miller Thomson LLP, Vancouver
Kirsten Hume Scrimshaw — Ally Workplace Law Corporation, Vancouver
Dr. Kenneth Shulman — Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, University of Toronto, Toronto
Kevin R. Smith, LLM (Elder Law) — Consultant, Vancouver
Laura Tamblyn Watts — Fellow, Institute for Lifecourse and Aging, University of Toronto, Toronto
Laura Track — Community Legal Assistance Society, Vancouver
Dr. Ivan Zinger — Correctional Investigator of Canada, Ottawa

Click here for full faculty bios

Friday, November 15, 2019

Welcome and Land Acknowledgement

Alec Dan — Musqueam Knowledge Keeper, Musqueam Indian Band
Jan Goddard — Goddard Gamage LLP, Toronto
Hugh S. McLellan — McLellan Herbert, Vancouver
Geoffrey W. White — Geoffrey W. White Law Corporation, Counsel, Clark Wilson LLP, Kelowna & Vancouver

Access to Justice for Older People in Canada

• what progress have we made in improving access to justice?
• why is more not being done?
• what are the particular access to justice challenges facing the elderly?

The Honourable Thomas A. Cromwell, CC — Borden Ladner Gervais LLP, Ottawa & Vancouver

A New Made-in-Canada Model for Elder Abuse Response?

• BC and Ontario elder abuse response models
• ethical challenges for lawyers and others
• themes in research on effective model world-wide
• ideas for Canada to consider

Laura Tamblyn Watts — Fellow, Institute for Lifecourse and Aging, University of Toronto, Toronto

Break

Debate: Be it Resolved that Long-Term Care Residents Should be Permitted to Use Cannabis in their Homes

Pro:
Jennifer Baumbusch, RN, PhD — Associate Professor, School of Nursing, University of BC, Vancouver
John W. Conroy, QC — Conroy & Company, Abbotsford

Con:
Al Jina, CEO — Park Place Seniors Living, Vancouver
Kyla Lee — Acumen Law Corporation, Vancouver

Referee:
Geoffrey W. White — Geoffrey W. White Law Corporation, Counsel, Clark Wilson LLP, Kelowna & Vancouver

Role of Indigenous Elders in Justice

• overview of First Nations courts in BC and Canada
• Indigenous Elders as decision-makers
• Indigenous problem-solving approaches to conflict resolution and healing

Dr. Shelly Johnson/Mukwa Musayett — Canada Research Chair & Associate Professor and Director, Centre for Indigenizing Higher Education, Faculty of Education and Social Work, Thompson Rivers University, Kamloops

Networking Lunch (Provided) with Keynote Speaker:
Report on Aging and Dying in Prison

• demographics of federal correctional facilities
• challenges to addressing the health and medical needs of older adult offenders in custody
• safety issues of older adult offenders living in custody
• end of life care in prison
• duty to accommodate older offenders

Dr. Ivan Zinger — Correctional Investigator of Canada, Ottawa

Human Rights for People Living with Dementia

• introduction of Alzheimer Society of Canada Charter of Rights for People Living with Dementia
• how all of us shift our practice to give life to these rights
• reframing health care and service access issues through a human rights lens
• how to file a human rights complaint in BC

Moderator: Emily Clough — Clark Wilson LLP, Vancouver

Mario Gregorio — person living with dementia, Burnaby
Barbara J. Lindsay — Director, Advocacy & Education, Alzheimer Society of BC, Vancouver
Jane E. Meadus — Advocacy Centre for the Elderly, Toronto
Laura Track — Community Legal Assistance Society, Vancouver

An Elder Law Toolkit

• a tour of a curated collection of various checklists, handouts, and resources to support your practice
• review of key booklets and other resources to which to refer your clients

Kevin R. Smith, LLM (Elder Law) — Consultant, Vancouver

Break

Undue Influence—"Please," "Unless" or Something Else?

• legal analysis
  • making wills
  • making gifts
• medical analysis
  • role of the medical expert
  • vulnerability, susceptibility—subversion of will
  • cognition, mental health issues that impact on undue influence

Deidre J. Herbert — McLellan Herbert, Vancouver
Dr. Kenneth Shulman — Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, University of Toronto, Toronto

The Inter-Generational Workplace

• an update on the law of age discrimination in employment
• how family status discrimination applies to employees with elder care responsibilities
• the intersection between age discrimination and disability
• how inter-generational conflict can manifest in bullying and harassment issues
• how to accommodate older employees and properly consider both performance management and bona fide occupational requirements
• how the prohibition on age discrimination affects pension and health benefits

Menachem Freedman — HHBG Lawyers, Vancouver
M. Ashley Mitchell — Miller Thomson LLP, Vancouver
Kirsten Hume Scrimshaw — Ally Workplace Law Corporation, Vancouver

Closing Remarks

Jan Goddard — Goddard Gamage LLP, Toronto
Hugh S. McLellan — McLellan Herbert, Vancouver
Geoffrey W. White — Geoffrey W. White Law Corporation, Counsel, Clark Wilson LLP, Kelowna & Vancouver