Chief Financial Officer

ABOUT THE LAW SOCIETY OF ALBERTA

The Law Society of Alberta (LSA) regulates the legal profession in the public interest by promoting and enforcing a high standard of professional and ethical conduct of Alberta Lawyers. We derive our authority from the Legal Profession Act of Alberta and set out standards through a Code of Conduct and the Rules of the Law Society of Alberta.

THE ORGANIZATION

The Law Society of Alberta is the regulator of all practicing lawyers in the province of Alberta and is financed and maintained by lawyers at no cost to the public or government. A legal profession regulated in the public interest is fundamental to a free and democratic society. We believe this is best achieved by way of an independent and independently regulated legal profession.
aw Society of Alberta

In addition to the regulatory aspects of our work, the Law Society is actively involved in helping improve the way legal services are delivered in Alberta, through continuing professional education, practice advisory services and access to justice initiatives. All of these efforts are aimed at making high-quality legal services accessible to all Albertans.

Mission

Serve the public interest by promoting a high standard of legal services and professional conduct through the governance and regulation of an independent legal profession and upholding the rule of law.

Vision

The Law Society will be recognized as a model for protecting the public interest and preserving the fundamental principles of justice through an independently regulated and trusted legal profession.

THE INSURANCE PROGRAM

ALIEX

ALIEX is a reciprocal insurance exchange licensed and regulated by Alberta’s Superintendent of Insurance under the Insurance Act (Alberta), much like a typical insurance company. It was formed by an agreement between ALIA, the Law Society and its members in 2014 and replaced the Law Society’s previous Assurance Fund. ALIEX writes the actual insurance policy and retains ALIA to administer all claims against insured Alberta lawyers. Although ALIEX has no employees (it operates through ALIA), it has its own board of directors who have significant experience in the insurance industry, and which conducts itself as if were a corporate board.

Alberta Lawyers’ Insurance Association (ALIA) Overview

Established in 1988, ALIA is a member-funded, non-profit corporation with its own board of directors. Although ALIA is a wholly-owned subsidiary corporation of the Law Society of Alberta, its financial operations are actually larger than the Law Society. Each of the approximately 6,600 lawyers in private practice in Alberta must purchase a base level of Professional Liability and Trust Safety insurance through ALIEX.

For lawyers who want insurance above the minimum mandatory $1 million in professional liability insurance provided through ALIEX, additional insurance coverage is available through various providers, including the Canadian Lawyers Insurance Association.

ALIA manages the indemnity program by acting as Principal Attorney of the Alberta Lawyers Insurance Exchange (ALIEX). ALIA’s Board of Directors is comprised of four ex officio Directors who are responsible for overseeing the operations of the indemnity program that have not been transferred to the ALIEX Advisory Board.

ALIA and ALIEX Mission
Provide the best form of financial protection to lawyers and the public, at the optimum cost.

ALIA and ALIEX Vision
The Law Society of Alberta’s indemnity programs will be recognized as a leading model for protecting lawyers and the public.

THE OPPORTUNITY

The successful candidate will act as the CFO for the Law Society of Alberta, ALIEX and ALIA and will report to the Executive Director and CEO of the Law Society, who also serves as the CEO of ALIEX.
The CFO is a member of the Law Society’s Executive Leadership Team (ELT). The CFO interacts regularly with the boards of both the Law Society and ALIEX including attendance at all formal meetings. The CFO is the senior staff member responsible for reporting to the audit committees of both the Law Society and ALIEX. The CFO is also a member of the ALIA Board of Directors and the Law Society’s Pension Committee.

KEY RESULT AREAS:

The CFO has the following specific responsibilities:
Business planning and budgets:
• In collaboration with other members of the ELT and department managers, oversees the development of detailed budgets, prepares the annual business plan and budget documents and presents the annual business plans and budgets to the committees and boards for ultimate board approval.
• As part of the annual budget process, coordinates and reviews submissions for annual funding from related organizations including Alberta Law Review, Pro Bono Law Alberta, Alberta Lawyers’ Assistance Society and the Legal Archives Society of Alberta.
• Works with the recently hired CEO of CPLED (a joint venture between the law societies Alberta, Manitoba and Saskatchewan) to determine the financial model and funding formula for the future, redesigned bar admission program.
Financial reporting and controls:
• Oversees the development and preparation by the Finance and Accounting staff of detailed quarterly financial statements.
• Presents quarterly financial results to the audit committees including a detailed analysis of actual results to approved budgets.
• For ALIEX, prepares a quarterly estimate of the key regulatory performance indicators – the Minimum Capital Test (or MCT) score and the Reserve and Guarantee Fund calculation.
• Oversees the preparation by the Finance and Accounting staff of the annual audited financial statements working closely with our external auditors (PwC) and appointed actuary (Willis Towers Watson).
• Presents year end audited financial statements to the committees and boards for ultimate approval by the boards.
• For ALIEX, prepares the annual regulatory filing for submission to the Superintendent of Insurance, the Property and Casualty (or P&C 1) submission, including the formal MCT score and Reserve and Guarantee Fund calculation.
• Regularly reviews and assesses financial controls and make changes as required.
• Recommends to the boards any changes to our financial reporting polices under the Accounting Standards for not for profit organizations (ASNPO) for the Law Society and ALIA and International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) for ALIEX.
• Currently leads a project to convert ALIEX to the new IFRS 17 reporting standard that will significantly change the structure of those financial statements. This change, subject to board approval, may require the conversion of ALIA from ASNPO to IFRS. This new reporting standard is effective for the 2021 fiscal year with conversion commencing for the 2020 fiscal year to facilitate comparative figure presentation.
Investment management:
• Working directly with our Investment Manager (currently Mawer Investment Management), oversees the management and performance of a combined investment portfolio of about $200 million.
• Attends quarterly meetings with the Investment Manager to review portfolio performance and compliance with the board approved investment policies and reports quarterly results to the relevant board committees.
• On an ongoing basis and working with the Investment Manager and, on occasion, independent investment consultants, reviews the investment policies and recommends changes to those policies to the relevant committees for ultimate approval by the boards.
• At regular three to five-year intervals, engages an independent investment consultant (most recently Mercer) to review the performance of the Investment Manager and the appropriateness of the portfolio asset mix and makes any recommendations for change to the Board committees.
Corporate insurance and risk management:
• Oversees the annual renewals of the following polices;
− Property and casualty;
− Crime (including Social Engineering Fraud);
− Travel Accident;
− Cyber;
− Errors and omissions; and
− Directors and officers.
• Works directly on an ongoing basis with our insurance broker (currently AON) to assess the
appropriateness and adequacy of corporate insurance coverage.
• Reviews on a regular basis the recently developed Enterprise Risk Management Risk Register with ELT, make any required revisions, and present the ERM Risk Register to the audit committees on a semi-annual basis.
Facilities project:
• Currently leads a project to secure and design new or existing space in Calgary as our lease in ATCO Centre II expires on December 31, 2019.
• Negotiates commercial real estate lease for ultimate approval by the CEO.
Pension plan management:
• Oversees the operations of our defined benefit (DB) and defined contribution (DC) pension plans.
• Works directly with the plan actuary (currently Pension Strategies Inc.) and trustees (Canadian Western Trust for the DB plan and Great West Life for the DC plan), to develop and revise when necessary pension policies including the governance, funding and plan text.
• Provides the Pension Committee with semi-annual reports including a DB fund financial statement, DB fund investment returns, annual administration and other regulatory reports.
Staff supervision:
• Leads and supervises two direct reports:
− Manager, Finance and Accounting (responsible for a team of five); and
− Executive Assistant.

THE PERSON

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS:
• Professional accounting designation (CPA) and at least 10 years of related senior management experience in a complex organization.
• MBA a definite asset.
• Experienced team leader with the ability to manage, motivate and supervise staff.
• Broad skillset in areas of accounting, audit and tax within a regulatory environment.
• Exposure to insurance industry including statutory guidelines, regulations, and reporting would be an asset.
• Not-for-profit, committee and board experience a definite asset.

COMPETENCIES and PERSONAL CHARACTERISTICS

 Personal Leadership – Advocate for open, empathetic and respectful communication. Ability to work collaboratively across the organization. Develop, inspire and motivate their team. Excel at fostering strong working relationships with all stakeholders; especially the board members of LSA and ALIEX.
 Management - Ability to provide clear direction, set high performance standards, contribute to a culture of empowerment and accountability.
 Operational Leadership - Clear focus on strategic and financial planning/reporting. Seek cost and process efficiencies. Play an active role in examining the organization to seize opportunities and mitigate risk.
 Communication and Presentation Skills - Express thoughts concisely and effectively both verbally and in writing. Ability to present complex financial information to diverse groups. Actively listens in a manner that fosters cooperation and support.
 Organization and Political Savvy- Politically astute yet not political. Ability to gain the trust of team, ELT, Boards, and all other internal and external stakeholders. High emotional intelligence. Ability to use humour appropriately. Demonstrated ability to be courageous – not afraid of the truth.
 Self Initiative – Demonstrates a proactive approach to resolve issues prior to conflicts arising. Initiate activity, follow-through and bring closure to projects that protect the financial health and sustainability of the Law Society of Alberta and ALIEX as premier organizations.
 Technically Competent- Possess significant financial management experience in a complex organization. Seeks to stay current in their profession with ability to recognize emerging issues and potential impact on the organization.
 Professional and Ethical- Professional yet approachable demeanor with unwavering integrity. Demonstrated track record of maintaining the highest level of ethical and professional standards.
 Committed to Personal Excellence - Intellectually curious. Understands organizational challenges and is a "progressive idea person" committed to excellence and innovation in the workplace. Inspires and encourages others to achieve personal excellence.

COMPENSATION

A competitive compensation package will be provided including an attractive base salary and excellent benefits. Further details will be discussed in a personal interview.

FOR INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT

Allan Nelson or Laura Youngberg or Caleb Herrick
Davies Park
530, 1000 – 7 Avenue SW
Calgary, AB T2P 5L5
Phone: (403) 263-0600 Fax: (403) 269-1080
Email: calgary@daviespark.com