Process to Attaining a CERTIFICATE of INDEPENDENT LEGAL ADVICE

Your lawyer to advise and provide Independent Legal Advice (ILA).

Schedule an appointment with our law firm at 403-400-4092 or Chris@NeufeldLegal.com

Obtaining a Certificate of Independent Legal Advice is a critical step in many high-stakes, personally-impactful transactions, such that the lawyer's confirmation of having provided objective, unbiased legal counsel is a legal imperative to formalizing the underlying agreement. The purpose of Independent Legal Advice (ILA) is to ensure that the recipient individual fully understand the legal risks, obligations, and consequences of the document they are about to sign, and to confirm that they are doing so voluntarily without any undue pressure. Because the lawyer providing the ILA must be completely impartial, they cannot be the same lawyer representing the other party in the transaction [more on documents requiring ILA].

Step 1 - Finding the Appropriate Lawyer - To begin the process, you must source a qualified lawyer who has the requisite legal experience and knowledge to provide ILA specific to the underlying document that you are being asked to sign off on. It is essential to choose a lawyer who has no prior connection to the other party involved to avoid any "conflict of interest." When reaching out to law firms, explicitly state that you require a "Certificate of Independent Legal Advice." This allows the law firm to perform an internal conflict check immediately and provide you with a quote for their services, once they have had the opportunity to undertake a preliminary review the underlying document and understand what will be entailed in their review and advisement process.

Step 2 - Disclosure to the Lawyer: Once you have retained a lawyer, the disclosure phase begins. You must provide the lawyer with the pertinent documents, which includes not only the underlying document, but also any schedules and/or financial disclosures mentioned within it. The lawyer may also ask for additional information about yourself, your relations with other parties, your personal and financial circumstances, and other aspects, such that they have an appropriate understanding of the circumstances and how they might best shape their meeting with yourself. It is vital to provide these documents and the requested information well in advance of your scheduled meeting. A lawyer cannot provide meaningful advice if they are seeing the contract for the first time during your appointment. Providing the materials early allows the lawyer to highlight potential "red flags" and prepare a comprehensive summary of how the terms specifically impact your future rights.

Step 3 - Prepare & Educate Yourself for the Meeting: While your lawyer will explain the legalities, you should arrive at the meeting having already read the document thoroughly. Highlight any clauses that seem ambiguous or that cause you concern. Coming prepared with specific questions ensures that the session is productive and that you leave the meeting with a clear understanding of your legal standing, rather than just a signed certificate. Furthermore, it is the recommendation of many Law Societies that you provide the lawyer with your understanding of the underlying document as part of the lawyer providing ILA (so when a lawyer asks you to explain the agreement to them, the lawyer is doing so because this is specifically sought by their Law Society).

Step 4 - Meeting with the Lawyer: During the meeting itself, expect to be alone with the lawyer. To maintain the integrity of "independence," the other party or their legal counsel cannot be present. The lawyer will likely walk you through the document section by section, explaining the "worst-case scenarios" and seek to ensure that you aren't being coerced or unduly influenced. To be clear, it is not the lawyer's role to tell you whether or not the underlying arrangement is "fair" in a moral sense, but rather to ensure you know exactly what you are giving up and what you are gaining (if anything) by signing.

Step 5 - Finalizing the Certificate: After the lawyer is satisfied that you understand the document and are signing it of your own free will, they will execute the Certificate of Independent Legal Advice. This is a formal document, often attached to the back of the main document, signed by the lawyer. This certificate serves as a shield for the entire transaction; it prevents a party from later claiming in court that they "didn't know what they were signing." Once the meeting is over, ensure you keep a copy of the signed certificate and the specific version of the agreement that was reviewed for your own records.

Although this process might appear relatively straightforward, it is anything but that, given the lawyer's professional and ethical obligations. The expectations are not insignificant as is evident from the discussions of the Law Societies, with the Canadian Bar Association stating that the lawyer's provision of independent legal advice will typically run from 30 minutes to 3 hours, based on the complexity of the documents that must be opined on [more on time involved with ILA].

Important Note for Anyone receiving Independent Legal Advice: For anyone being asked to receive Independent Legal Advice (ILA), it is crucial to understand the significant financial responsibility and risks involved. If there wasn't serious risk, ILA would not be sought, especially where it is required by statute, such that the government considers the financial exposure sufficiently serious, that the government has legislated in those instances the attainment of ILA [about our law firm providing ILA and controlling cost].

When you are required to a knowledgable lawyer to advise and provide Independent Legal Advice, contact our law firm by email at Chris@NeufeldLegal.com or by telephone at 403-400-4092 to schedule an appointment (including remote video and evening mobile legal services).