Risk Management is central to good corporate governance of the Legal Practitioners Fidelity Fund (“the Fund”). It is a process the Fund adopts to achieve the right balance between innovation and change. Risk management is key in the avoidance of shocks and crises that may arise in the macro environment. The purpose of our policy is to provide a framework for the Fund, to adopt an appropriate balance between risk and reward giving full and due consideration to the legitimate and fair expectations of all stakeholders, resource constraints and sustainable development.

The Fund aims to have an effective risk management system that reduces uncertainty by identifying and treating risks. This gives the Fund an opportunity to pursue its Vision, Mission and Goals while operating within its risk appetite.

The Fund is mandated by the Legal Practice Act to protect the public against losses as a result of theft of Trust funds by Legal practitioners. The protection provided by the Fund encourages the public to confidently use services provided by legal practitioners.

The Fund adopts Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) as a process, effected by the Board of Control, Management and other personnel, applied in the corporate strategy across the Fund. The strategy is designed to identify potential events that may affect the Fund and manage risks to be within its risk appetite and to provide reasonable assurance regarding achievement of its objectives. The ERM undertaken by the Fund is a continuous, proactive and dynamic process to identify, understand, mitigate, communicate, monitor and report risks to stakeholders (both internal and external) that may impact the Fund’s objectives.

The ERM process of the Fund is not operated in isolation but instead is also embedded within daily processes as part of the ongoing operations of the Fund. The Fund ensures that risk management is integrated with all business processes. Depicted below are the underlying processes that the Fund follows in Enterprise Risk Management:

• Setting of Strategy and objectives
• Risk event identification
• Risk assessment
• Risk treatment
• Risk reporting
• Risk communication and training
• Risk performance monitoring

The Fund promotes a risk aware environment and culture which is integrated into decision making at all levels within the Fund. The Fund adopts the following principles:

• Its philosophy guides strategic and operational decisions.
• Encouragement of an open and honest environment.
• Risk management is integral to management and future direction of the Fund.
• Ownership and management of the risk is retained within the unit where the risk originates.
• Empowerment of all individuals within the Fund to report any perceived risks or opportunities without fear of retribution.
• The Chief Executive Officer plays an oversight role in supporting effective implementation of the Fund’s Risk policy and Framework.

The Legal Practitioners Fidelity Fund’s objective in monitoring and compliance is to provide feedback regarding the adherence to and effectiveness of the ERM framework and processes. The distinct forms of monitoring involve participation by employees on an ongoing basis. The Fund has a dedicated Risk Management department that assists in coordinating and establishing ERM initiatives.

TRUST YOUR ATTORNEY

TRUSTLINE is a joint initiative of the Legal Practitioners Fidelity Fund and the Legal Practice Council.

Legal Practitioners are officers of the court and well-trained professionals. They are bound by the rules of professional conduct of the Legal Practice Council where their firms are based. We trust legal practitioners to serve their clients professionally and ethically.

Should you be concerned about unethical or fraudulent conduct of an attorney you can lodge a complaint with the attorney’s provincial Legal Practice Council, or call or email Trustline.

Trustline has been set up by the Legal Practitioners Fidelity Fund as a service to the public. You can report unethical or fraudulent conduct by a legal practitioner anonymously. You need not remain anonymous if you wish to receive feedback on your complaint.