Should There Be a Different Code of Conduct for Family Lawyers?

In November 2021, the Child and Youth Law section, the Family Law section, and the Ethics and Professional Responsibility Subcommittee of the Canadian Bar Association (“CBA”) submitted a proposal for two amendments to the Model Code of Professional Conduct to the Federation of Law Societies of Canada. The CBA recommended that the Model Code include a section for non-adversarial advocacy as well as distinct standards for the practice of family law. To be sure, there are unique qualities to family law, but the question is whether family law is so different that distinct professional rules are required for lawyers. In this post, I briefly consider whether family law is different, and I review the CBA recommendations. I suggest that the CBA recommendations fall short of articulating a unique standard for family lawyers and why one is necessary.