LCO Blog Preliminary Thoughts on Being the ED of the LCO

.links { display:none; } As the year winds on, I'm already experiencing "the last" of whathappens at the LCO - most recently, that meant the last student orientation atthe beginning of May. There'll be more, of course, as we get closer tomid-December when I'll finish just over eight years in this position.As the LCO searches for a new Executive Director, to begin in the fall, Ithought I'd jot down a few thoughts about what the position entails, at leastas I have done it.Before I do, I will say very briefly here (I may squeeze in another blogtowards the end!) that it has been a fabulous job. Of course, it has had itschallenges, its ups and downs, but overall it has been a wonderful opportunityto contribute not only to law reform in an everyday sense, but to creating a particular way of approaching it that has emphasized (to differentdegrees of success) community involvement, multidisciplinary approaches andviewing the law through different theoretical lenses. But it's time for newcreativity and different skills to help the LCO continue to enhance its work,and time for me to consider other avenues.It's hard to identify the most important part of the role, so the followingobservations are in no particular order.Project work: Not surprisingly, I've spent a great deal of the pasteight years supervising the projects, from preparing project proposals for theBoard's approval (or not) to participating at launches of major final reports.And in between: deciding which project the LCO can undertake at any given timeand whom to identify as the head of the project; reviewing every document,usually for the discussions papers, interim and final reports, more than once,both for (grammatical) editorial consistency and consistency of substance andthemes (or noting why we're not being consistent), discussing the projects withproject heads on an ongoing basis on substance, but also in relation tochallenges of various kinds that might arise (and one can assume they will injust about every project!); assisting with the creation of advisory groups foreach project; stepping in when for whatever reason work cannot be completed bythe project head (an infrequent occurrence, I hasten to add); speaking aboutfinal reports at confences or other events when the project heads who wereresponsible for them are no longer with the LCO; updating the Board on theprogress of projects, and deciding when it would be helpful for the projecthead to speak to the Board; being ready to discuss the interim and finalreports when we take them to the Board, although the project head will leadthese discussions. The LCO's projects cover a range of legal areas and while the project headacquires the real expertise in the areas in which they work, the ED needs tobecome sufficiently conversant with all the areas to talk about them bothprocedurally and substantively, based on a good appreciation of the law. Thisis crucial to being able to work usefully with the project heads. And while theLCO's project heads might not agree that I've been able to do this, it requiresthe ED to give the project heads a good deal of discretion in how they dealwith projects. They are given the responsibility, after all, and they developan increasing expertise as they go through the various stages. At the sametime, it's important to maintain an overall understanding of the projects andapproaches and only the ED is really in a position to do that. And there aretimes the ED must be frank that some aspect of the project needs a differentapproach or more work. The ED approves documents either before they reach thepublic or before they go to the Board for final approval. Outreach: Lots of time spent here, too. While obviously, there areoccasions when the chair of the Board of Governors or another member of theBoard needs to speak about the LCO at a conference or meet with a particularperson, Board members are volunteers and aren't always available, andinevitably will not have the scope of knowledge about the different projectsthat the ED has. For the ED, it's part of the job to ensure ongoing contactwith funders and the law schools, meeting with community groups, talking topeople about possible projects, addressing concerns or taking them to the chairof the Board when necessary. Usually the project head will do outreach aboutthe projects for which they are responsible, both through consultations andspeaking at conferences or otherwise participating in the activities of otherorganizations, but the ED will do so when it's necessary to talk about all theprojects.Another form of outreach occurs through working with other organizations,alongside others concerned with access to justice or a particular area of thelaw in which the LCO has undertaken a project. There have been many of theseopportunities over the years. I know they have brought benefits to the LCO andI hope from the LCO to others.I've been lucky to have continued some scholarly writing since takingthis position, to some extent in my own area of constitutional law or labourlaw and gender, but also on access to justice and law reform more broadly. Insome ways, my own academic interests have coincided with the underlying mandateof the LCO and that has made it easier to continue my own writing and makingpresentations. And bringing some of the insights gained through that process tothe LCO's own approaches.Administrative: This includes personnel and budget matters, and themyriad of issues that arise for any administrator. I'm lucky to have had thebenefit of two very able executive assistants, Janice Williams who started withme, and her successor Laura Caruso. And we've also been fortunate to have hadtwo other assistants who are computer savvy and well-organized in steering theprojects through the various stages, Amanda Rodrigues and, while she is onmaternity/parental leave, Andrew Seo (this position is the Project and WebCoordinator). For me, I admit, this is "must do" work - and it doesneed to be done if the LCO is to function smoothly.This area can require somedifficult decisions, which every administrator has to make from time to time.While the ED must make these decisions, it has from time to time been helpfulto discuss them with the chair of the Board or at least alert him about thesituation. I also, in consultation with the chair, determine the agenda of the Board of Governors' meetings and prepare the appropriate materials (and the same applies to Board committees). These meetings are a regular opportunity to keep the Board apprised of developments, address questions and concerns and, of course, assist with whatever the members need. I also send irregular updates about LCO appearances in the media, and generally about various developments in which the LCO is involved. And the chair and I meet regularly or as needed to discuss a wide variety of issues and, indeed, to seek advice from each other on different matters. Lauren Bates, the LCO's senior lawyer, is a big support for hiring our legalresearchers, and has responsibility for our student program, doing a wonderfuljob of planning student events, coordinating with the project heads on studentsupport and with some of the law schools whose interns spend their placementwith us. This has allowed me to play a supervisory role, work with Lauren toselect a final short list of candidates after she reviews all the applicationsand otherwise be available if needed. Lauren as the longest-serving projecthead has also served a mentoring role with newer researchers.These are the three big areas of responsibility for the ED. This is howthey've actually played out (and will play out) during this month.In relation to projects: reviewing a major discussion paper in one project,reviewing chapters for the interim report in another and reviewing the draftfinal report in a third; discussions with all the project heads about someaspects of their projects; and meeting with the advisory group in one project,along with individual conversations with some members.Outreach: meeting with the LCO's funders as a group; drafting lettersrecognizing personnel changes at a funder and an organization with which we'vehad considerable contact; meeting with the "new" dean at U of T Law,Ed Iacobucci; attendance at a symposium on Targeted Legal Services and at thecelebration of Asian and South Asian Heritage Month at the Law Society; twomeetings of "collaborative" initiatives in which the LCO is involved;attendance/particpation in a conference organized in relation to the subjectmatter of one of the LCO's final reports, since the different project heads areno longer with the LCO; attending the annual dinner of the community legalclinics; writing a blog for the newsletter for the Canadian Forum on CivilJustice, of which I'm a Board member. Administrative: review of the final report on funding sources and discussionwith the consultant; ongoing contact with the admin assistant and the projectcoordinator; preparing for the posting of the next Ministry of the AttorneyGeneral Counsel in Residence; a meeting with a Board committee; and the bitsand pieces that barely register, they are so much part of the job. We also havetwo advisory groups, one community-based and the other composed of reps fromthe law schools - they will play a larger role as the new projects getunderway.That gives some sense of how I've approached the job, having discussed withthe Board the work that needs to be done and my own approach to it. It remainsto see whether the Board has different ideas with a different ED who will bringher or his own thinking and experience to the position. Regardless, the new EDwill be able to rely on a great group to work with, both staff and Board, andthe two advisory groups, as the LCO continues to be innovative with excitingprojects in the wings. _____________________________________________________________To read more of Patricia Hughes' blog, please click here.