Advocacy & Government Relations

Each Section should appoint a member of its Executive to act as the Advocacy & Government Relations Liaison. This individual is responsible for monitoring legislation which is of interest to your Section and he/she will receive regular updates from the Advocacy & Government Relations and Communications Department, to be distributed to the Section Executive. 

How to Form a Sub-Committee and Organize Your Brief

When forming a sub-committee to develop a legislative brief on behalf of OBA and your Section, you should consider the importance of a balanced committee, providing a variety of perspectives. For example:

• Crown and defence
  
• urban and rural
  
• large firms and sole practitioners
  
• male and female
  
• debtor and creditor
  
• representation from outside of Toronto
  

The composition of your sub-committee should be identified in the report, and if there is a divergence of opinion about the situation or its solution, this should also be clearly stated along with your conclusion. Long reports should include a table of contents and an executive summary.

It is important that Section Executives keep their membership informed on the activities of the Section. This can be done through reports at meetings or through newsletters or other written materials mailed out with the notice of meetings. The membership should be solicited for ideas and volunteers!

Submission Index

This index has been prepared in order to provide OBA members and others with an easily accessible guide to the submissions made to government, The Law Society of Upper Canada and various other bodies by the Association.

In particular, it is intended to be a resource to the Members of the Advocacy and Government Relations Committee, Section Chairs, Committee Chairs, Members of the Executive, Council and the Network.

The index lists submissions by subject area (followed by OBA fiscal year) and by chronological order.

The OBA Submissions Index is updated regularly and current copies are available.

The Approval Process for Briefs and Submissions

Please note that no briefs, resolutions, submissions or public statements may be made by the Section on behalf of OBA until they have been approved by the OBA Executive Committee or Council.

The normal process for briefs and submissions from Sections includes approval from the following groups:

1. The sub-committee or working group
   which prepared the report should present it to the entire Section Executive.
2. Except where there is not sufficient time, the Section membership at large should be allowed to vote on the proposed brief; this can be done at a Section meeting or through general distribution of the brief in a regularly scheduled mailing.
   
3. The Submission Review Committee then reviews the brief for format, content, consistency with other CBA and OBA statements and for balanced composition of the group that drafted the submission.
   
4. The brief then goes to the OBA Executive Committee for review and approval.
   
5. Depending on the timing, major policy issues may be referred to the OBA Council.
   

The Section Chair or Advocacy Government Relations & Communications Liaison should plan on attending the OBA Executive and Council meetings to present and explain the material, and to note any requested changes. The Section Chair or Advocacy Government Relations & Communications Liaison should inform the Director of Advocacy, Government Relations & Communications of all submissions or resolutions being prepared.

In extraordinary circumstances where it is important to ensure the timeliness of the brief, resolution or public statement, the Director of Advocacy, Government Relations & Communications, can arrange with the OBA President and the Chair of the Submission Review Committee for prompt review of the submission.

Once approved, the resolution, brief, submission or public statement will be forwarded by the Executive Director on behalf of OBA in the approved format.

Appearances Before Legislative Committees

OBA's policy, as adopted by its Executive Committee is:

That the Chair or another representative of the Section involved in the preparation of a brief should be present when a submission is made to a legislative committee and that either the OBA President, Vice President or Past President also be in attendance.

Advocacy before the Government

When an issue becomes of such great importance that members of the Section Executive want to start approaching government employees or representatives directly, it is crucial that the Chair of the Advocacy and Government Relations Committee, or the Director of Advocacy, Government Relations & Communications be contacted immediately. This is important for a number of reasons, not the least of which is to ensure that all areas of OBA know what is going on in other areas. Good communication with other areas of the Association results in a well-coordinated effort.

The Advocacy and Government Relations Committee will do everything possible to assist the Section.

The purpose of this framework is to demonstrate what should be considered when approaching the government. If an issue presents itself, your Section, in conjunction with the Advocacy and Government Relations Committee, will determine the best course of action using the guidelines and tools found in the Strategic Framework. While the framework is an important resource, it is still imperative that Sections not move forward without consulting with the Advocacy and Government Relations Committee.

News Releases

If a Section Executive feels that a story should be publicized in the public press, it should contact the Director of Advocacy, Government Relations & Communications.  Once the content of the news release has been approved by the President, it will be printed on OBA letterhead and sent to the media.

If a Section Executive wishes to exclude the media at a Section Program/Meeting, the Director of Sections must be informed in writing before the notice is printed.