Your LSO Annual Report Asks About Your Contingency Plan — Here's What You're Confirming
The March 31, 2026 LSO Annual Report deadline is the first time Ontario lawyers in private practice will be asked to confirm compliance with the client contingency planning requirement under By-Law 7.1. The obligation itself has been in force since January 1, 2025. The Annual Report is where you confirm you've met it.
Here's what you need to know before you file.
Who Has to Report
Every licensee who practises law or provides legal services in private practice — unless you fall into one of the exemptions. You are exempt if you practise exclusively within government (federal, provincial, territorial, municipal, or Indigenous), in-house, at a Legal Aid Ontario-funded clinic, or if you are in the non-practising category.
If you practise through a firm that is a sole proprietorship you don't own, or through an ordinary partnership or LLP, you report through the firm — not individually.
Everyone else reports.
What You're Confirming — Sole Practitioners
If you practise on your own, you are confirming three things:
1. You have a contingency plan that meets the minimum requirements of By-Law 7.1.
2. Your plan has been reviewed within the preceding 12 months.
3. You have obtained the written consent of your administrator to act.
That's it — but each of those statements carries weight. "Meets the minimum requirements" means your plan includes all four mandatory components: the appointment of an administrator, the location of and access to all client property, the location of and access to all trust accounts, and the location of all accounting records with bookkeeper and accountant contact information.
If any of those four pieces are missing, your plan does not comply — and confirming that it does on your Annual Report is a problem.
What You're Confirming — Firm-Based Licensees
If you practise in a firm, you are confirming three things:
1. Your firm has a contingency plan in place.
2. The plan meets By-Law 7.1's minimum requirements.
3. The plan includes a contingency for the scenario where no members of the firm are able to carry on the firm's professional business.
That third point is the one that catches firms off guard. It's not enough to have partners who can cover for each other. The plan must address the catastrophic absence scenario — what happens if everyone is out — with an identified external administrator or escalation path.
What If Your Plan Isn't in Place Yet
You are already late on the underlying obligation, which took effect January 1, 2025. But you can still get a compliant plan in place before you file your Annual Report on March 31.
The LSO has said its compliance approach will prioritize education and guidance over enforcement. Audits are not expected to begin in earnest until after the March 31, 2026 filing deadline. That is not a reason to delay — it's a window to get compliant.
What a compliant plan actually requires is more involved than most lawyers expect. It's not a one-page form. It's a working document that covers administrator designation, trust account access authority, digital credentials and two-factor authentication bypass, file locations for every licensee, fiduciary role documentation, and insurance notification protocols. Every system protected by a password or 2FA needs a documented bypass mechanism — otherwise your administrator can't actually do anything when the plan is activated.
What Happens After You File
Filing is not a one-time event. By-Law 7.1 requires that your plan be current at all times and reviewed at least once every year. You will be asked to confirm this again on every future Annual Report.
The practical implication: build the plan properly now, and the annual review is straightforward. Build it poorly — or not at all — and you're starting from scratch under pressure every March.
Need Help Getting Compliant?
Preserver prepares By-Law 7.1 compliant client contingency plans for Ontario law firms — solo practitioners, small firms, and multi-partner firms. The service includes a thorough intake process, a fully documented plan, administrator designation structure, trust account authority guidance, and technology access protocols.
[Learn more about our contingency plan services →](https://www.preserver.ca/clientcontingencyplanning)
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Shona Bertrand, Preserver
This post is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Licensees are responsible for ensuring their plan meets all applicable requirements of By-Law 7.1.
