Steinecke Maciura LeBlanc is a law firm that focuses on the regulation of professions and industries including related appeals and civil litigation. There are about forty professions in Ontario that regulate themselves under statute. In addition, many other professions participate in voluntary self-regulation. Regulatory activities include:

• Registration, including accreditation and examination
• Complaints and investigations
• Discipline for misconduct or incompetence
• Incapacity and impairment matters
• Standard and rule setting
• Quality assurance, peer assessment and inspection programs
• Client relations and public education
• Respect for human rights and the Charter of Rights and Freedoms
• Compensation issues for dishonesty or breach of trust (not for negligence)
• Prosecuting unregistered persons engaging in unauthorized practice or use of title

All of these regulatory activities require a fine balance of legal correctness, the public interest and professional values. Legal advice must be expert, sensitive, practical and innovative to enable regulators to maintain an appropriate balance and to assist their members in practicing their professions effectively. Regulators and members who wish to obtain legal services from a firm that is exclusively dedicated to the complexities of professional regulation full time choose Steinecke Maciura LeBlanc.

With the advent of the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act, the firm became increasingly involved in advising regulators, associations and practitioners on how to establish and maintain acceptable privacy policies. Steinecke Maciura LeBlanc can do an audit of an organization's information handling practices, help it develop a workable privacy policy, provide staff training and support, and conduct annual reviews and refresher courses. Or, clients can purchase written materials from the firm and do it themselves. See our privacy webpages.

Founded 1997

Steinecke Maciura LeBlanc formed in 1997 when a group of three lawyers decided to create a firm that was dedicated to professional regulation, something that still does not exist anywhere else in Ontario. The firm is also unique in its commitment to training, education and writing. It conducts regular seminars, workshops, lectures and conferences for those involved in the field of professional regulation. Since 1997, the firm has grown to include six lawyers. Several of the members have published articles (see publications), spoken to professional groups and published legal textbooks in the field. The firm has three electronic newsletters, Grey Areas (begun in 1992), Professional Practice and Liability on the Net and Administrative Law and Practice Points. The firm produces training sessions for many regulators, even those that have in-house or other counsel.

Breadth of Experience

A further distinction for Steinecke Maciura LeBlanc is the breadth of its exposure to professional regulation solutions. Its clients range across all types of professions (new and old, health, financial, service, technical). This permits cross-pollination of ideas and answers; there are few problems the firm has not seen before. Many regulators who have in-house counsel call upon Steinecke Maciura LeBlanc when they wish to have a comprehensive perspective.

Another difference is that Steinecke Maciura LeBlanc has seen complaints and discipline issues from all sides. With some professions it acts as general counsel and prosecutor. For others, the firm acts as independent legal counsel to their hearing committees.