Law Society of the Northwest Territories

WEEKLY BULLETIN

Watch this bulletin for CBA-NT updates and events.

Membership Renewals

Members are reminded that annual membership renewal documents and fees are due on March 31, 2010.

Reminders have been sent to all outstanding members.

You will find all necessary forms and information on the Law Society website:
www.lawsociety.nt.ca
/membership/renewals.html

The Law Society
of the Northwest Territories
Main Floor; 5004 - 50th Avenue
P.O. Box 1298
Yellowknife, NT
X1A 2N9

TEL: (867) 873-3828
FAX: (867) 873-6344

CONTENTS:

1. RCMP NOTICE: Online Payment Fraud
2. GNWT: Request for Proposals
3. NWT COURTS: Increase to Territorial Court Civil Jurisdiction
4. UPCOMING MEETINGS
5. LUNCH & LEARN SEMINARS
6. NATIONAL CPD OPPORTUNITIES

RCMP YELLOWKNIFE
Businesses Beware: Online Payment Fraud

Over the past two months there has been an increase in the number of occurrences reported to Yellowknife Detachment, RCMP and "G" Division Commercial Crime Section in relation to online payment fraud.

In the reported occurrences, a criminal contacts a local area business via e-mail. The e-mail requests a quote be completed for specified products(s). Once the criminal receives this prepared quote, they again make contact with the business expressing interest in the purchase of the product(s). This expression of interest to purchase is also accompanied by a single credit card numbers (or a list of credit card numbers), which the business is directed to use for the card not present purchase/transaction. The unsuspecting business completes the transaction using the fraudulent credit card number(s) provided to them and mails the purchased goods to a temporary address created by the criminal. Shipping companies then deliver the product to this temporary address and are not required to check the identification of the recipient (criminal).

As a result of using the fraudulent credit card numbers, the business is then responsible for the chargeback (chargeback occurs when the cardholder/cardholder bank disputes the transaction to the genuine credit card account). The business must reimburse for the amount of funds received from the fraudulent credit card transaction and other contractual chargeback fee(s). Costs to business = transaction amount + chargeback fee + product.

The "G" Division Commercial Crime Section provides the following tips to help prevent online payment fraud.

• Double check every order carefully. You will likely notice the criminal uses a different mailing address for the credit card vs. the delivery address.
• There should be a signature for every credit card transaction. A criminal completing online payment card fraud is often unwilling to return a signed purchase order.
• The criminal will sometimes request to make a large purchase, using many different credit card numbers. They will also request transactions on single credit card numbers be made on consecutive days for smaller amounts (ie. $6000 purchase = 12 transactions of $500 over 8 days).
• In a majority of the occurrences the criminal will only deal with the business over e-mail, and will provide excuses (ie. hearing impaired) why they cannot speak personally on the telephone.
• Finally, many times the purchase doesn’t make sense given the location of Yellowknife. If the purchase was genuine, why would a company located in Ontario make a purchase of product(s) that are made in Ontario and available at more competitive prices.

If you have any questions about online payment fraud, please contact Cst. Jarret MacDonald at the "G" Division Commercial Crime Section, Yellowknife, Northwest Territories [867.669.5266 (office), 867.765.8284 (cell)].

GNWT EMPLOYMENT STANDARDS ACT
Request for Proposals

The Government of the Northwest Territories is requesting Proposals from law firms or sole practitioners entitled to practice law in the Northwest Territories as to their willingness and capability to provide the legal advice and services for a one year term on behalf of the Employment Standard Appeal Office and Adjudicators appointed under the Employment Standards Act as outlined in this Request. The intent is to select one firm or sole practitioner for that purpose for a two-year contract, with the possibility of extension.

For full details, visit the GNWT Contract Opportunities website at
www.contractregistry.nt.ca
Reference: PM009461
Submission Deadline: March 26, 2010 - 4:00pm

NWT COURTS
Increase to Territorial Court Civil Jurisdiction

An increase to the Territorial Court civil jurisdiction from $10,000 to $25,000 is being considered.

Increasing the civil jurisdiction would be consistent with what is happening in Western Canada, where the monetary limits in provincial and territorial courts currently range from $20,000 to $25,000.

It is expected that this change will assist the public by providing an inexpensive and efficient mechanism for resolving civil disputes up to $25,000.

Members are encouraged to forward any comments regarding this increase to Anne Mould, Director of Court Services, at anne_mould@gov.nt.ca or by phone at 920-8852. Comments will be received until March 31, 2010.

UPCOMING MEETINGS

LUNCH & LEARN SEMINARS

NATIONAL CPD OPPORTUNITIES

All members are encouraged to participate in online events by CBA National. Please visit the CBA links provided for details. CBA-NT Members are invited to the Law Society Boardroom to participate in select online events provided by the CBA and CBA-BC. Please register by the dates listed below.