JOB PURPOSE

Counsel, Licensing Examinations is responsible for activities related to the licensing examinations for lawyers and paralegals. This includes acting as a legal and operational resource in the areas of examination accommodations, examination administration, and special projects related to licensing examinations. Counsel assists with the development, implementation, and ongoing administration of processes, policies, rules and protocols relating to the development, transfer, administration, delivery, scoring, and storage of examinations and examination production materials.

QUALIFICATIONS REQUIRED:

• Requires an LL. B or J.D and a class L1 licence from the Law Society of Ontario.
• Requires a minimum of 5 years of related experience working in a firm, in-house, regulatory or educational environment (or equivalent), and preferably with some operational experience. Other experience in human rights law and accommodations in a legal or law-related capacity will be considered.
• Solid understanding of the Law Society’s mandate, services, and legislation
• Solid understanding of licensing process policies and protocols
• Excellent understanding of Ontario human rights laws and principles
• Clear, accurate, concise, and persuasive written communication skills
• Excellent oral communication skills in both one-on-one and group situations
• Familiarity with equity and fairness principles and initiatives
• Reasons through, interprets, and applies spoken and written information
• Familiarity with best practices for high-stakes licensing examinations is an asset
• Familiarity with professional regulation and investigations in an asset
• Proficiency in French is an asset
• Microsoft Office Suite / 365 (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, etc.)

*By submitting your application for employment, you agree to a clearance check of your regulatory history with the Law Society, and to the use of this information in assessing suitability for employment at the Law Society.

Client / Customer Service Planning 

• Develops and implements programs, procedures, and policies that are designed to ensure entry-level competence of lawyer and paralegal candidates in accordance with the Law Society’s mandate and authority under By-law 4.

• Researches, recommends, and implements strategies and processes to support licensing process protocols, primarily focused on licensing examinations, and maintain defensibility of entrance requirements.

• Remains abreast of best practices and new developments in professional licensing, high-stakes assessments and human rights principles in a professional licensure context.

• Monitors the market for trends in lawyer and paralegal licensing and recommends appropriate regulatory responses.

• Provides research and report writing support for special projects in the licensing area, as required.

Client / Customer Service Delivery

• Provides guidance and support to team members on a variety of licensing issues and requirements, statutory obligations, and policy issues.

• Provides analysis, reports, and recommendations to the Managers and the Director regarding licensing process and licensing examination trends and areas requiring further policy direction or process enhancements.

• Provides guidance, oversight and implementation assistance and supervision to Examination Administration team members.

• Recognizes and addresses the interaction between by-laws, guidelines, rules, and policies, and their operational implementation.

• Monitors program operations against metrics and makes recommendations designed to increase the effectiveness of the examination administration and accommodation processes.

Team Membership

• Works closely with the entire Licensing and Accreditation department and other departments to ensure the effective flow of information amongst stakeholders and between management and Convocation.
• Applies knowledge of licensing examination administration and accommodations to engage in project planning and problem solving with a full array of team members, contributing to continuous improvement.
• Provides leadership by facilitating training and sharing knowledge on high-stakes examination best practices with team members and other staff members of the department.
• Provides assistance to Licensing and Accreditation with respect to all stages of the licensing process, including application, licensing examinations, experiential training, good character, and licensure.

Policy Development

• Develops, interprets, and implements policies, procedures, practices, and guidelines pertaining to the licensing process, examination administration, and examination accommodations.
• Maintains currency of online content to reflect changes to policy and procedure and respond to emerging issues in a professional licensure context.

Relationship and Alliance Building

• Communicates the requirements of the Law Society’s licensing process to prospective candidates, members of the profession, and other stakeholders through both informal dialogue and consultation and formal delivery of workshops and presentations.
• Liaises with law schools, law firms, government legal offices, and not-for-profit organizations to promote collaboration and build support.
• Attends meetings and conferences through relevant professional associations and maintains a network of relevant contacts and resources.

The Law Society has introduced a Distributed Workforce Model to leverage flexibility and agility, and to maximize employee productivity and engagement.  Work arrangements will be determined by role and departmental requirements.  The working arrangement for this position has been classified as hybrid, where the employee will regularly flex their work location between home and office.  The specific application of this will be communicated to applicants contacted during the recruitment process.

The Law Society of Ontario values and respects diversity.  We are committed to creating an accessible, barrier-free and inclusive workplace in compliance with the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA).  Please make any requirement you may have for accommodation during the recruitment process known when contacted.  If you are unable to apply to this position due to the requirement for an accommodation of any kind, please email us at hr@lso.ca or call 416-947-3475.