IBA Annual Conference Toronto 2025
2 Nov - 7 Nov 2025
Session information
RULE OF LAW SYMPOSIUM: Civility and the legal profession
Friday 7 November (1115 - 1230)
Committee(s)
Rule of Law Forum
(Lead)
Description
The modern era of smart phones and social media has coincided with a coarsening of discourse, political polarization, and campus radicalization. Social isolation resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic and continued work-from-home practices have eroded the bonds between people from diverse backgrounds that further contribute to these trends. The legal profession is not immune from these trends, with charges of “lawfare” and “existential threat” to the rule of law from across the political spectrum. On the other hand, the profession also has the potential to help fix what is broken, given opportunities for international dialogue, reconciliation, fairness, and objectivity inherent in legal practice. Join our panel who will offer their views regarding how the current environment is fuelling societal conflict, what steps have and can be taken to ameliorate the situation, and how lawyers and regulation can help (and hurt) those efforts.