35 Years, 35 Voices: Meet James Scarfone
35 Years, 35 Voices highlights the members who have contributed to the Ontario Trial Lawyers Associations (OTLA) growth, strengthened access to justice and supported a collaborative plaintiff-side community across Ontario over the past 35 years.
Meet James Scarfone, OTLA Past President and founding member since 1991.
Member Profile
Name: James Scarfone
Firm: Scarfone Law
Year called to the bar: 1975
Joined OTLA: 1991
We asked James to reflect on his time with OTLA, the role the Association has played in his career and what being part of the OTLA community means to him.
What motivated you to join?
A group of us from Hamilton and Burlington had been meeting since the early 1980s to share ideas about trial practice and experts.
Eventually, we folded the group, known as the Plaintiff’s Law Association (PLA), into the Hamilton Law Association as the Civil Litigation Section. However, when the Liberal Government introduced the Ontario Motorist Protection Plan (OMPP), the provinces first no-fault automobile insurance legislation, we decided to restart the PLA. This organization later became the Ontario Law Association. Around the same time, other advocacy organizations including PAIN and FAIR, were also formed.
If you’ve been a member for more than five years, what has inspired you to renew your membership?
I have been a member since the beginning and am the fourth President after Hillyer, McLeish and Nolan. During my time with OTLA I have chaired The Litigator Board and several conferences. I was also a governor at Association of Trial Lawyers of America for several years after my presidency.
Do you have a memorable OTLA moment or story you’d like to share?
The most memorable moment for me was the meeting with Lily Munroe and then Liberal Cabinet Minister at a restaurant called Lo Prestis in Hamilton to seek to persuade her government to withdraw the legislation. After meeting with her we decided then and there to take the PLA provincially in scope and we founded OTLA. We asked Bruce Hillyer to be the first President.
What is something you learned at an OTLA event that you still use in your practice today?
The most significant benefit over the years as been the sharing of information about experts, including how to retain and consult with them and how to benefit our clients at trial with expert evidence.
Networking is thus the most significant aspect of OTLA. At the outset we borrowed significantly from the ATLA’s experience. Trial lawyers such as Howard Nations, an early member of ATLA, provided valuable guidance and support.
Have you made any meaningful professional connections through OTLA? If so, who or in what way?
Yes, hundreds as highlighted by all my fellow Board Members and Past Presidents.
How has OTLA influenced your practice or contributed to your career growth?
OTLA has been essential to my practice.
What advice would you give to new OTLA members or lawyers just starting out?
Network, join the Board and committees, contribute to the process as much as you can. You will get more than you give.
What does being part of the OTLA community mean to you?
It is part of the fabric of my practice and always has been.