Effective July 1, 2026, members who choose to verify an individual’s identity using video conferencing or other forms of virtual communication must have a process or method in place to authenticate the individual’s government-issued photo identification document.

During and following the COVID-19 pandemic, the Law Society of New Brunswick had temporarily permitted its members to verify an individual’s identity without being in the individual’s physical presence. The “face-to-face” requirement was interpreted to include virtual meetings conducted by video conference. This temporary measure, outlined in the Legal Profession Frequently Asked Questions document (last updated December 22, 2021), allowed you, until further notice, to confirm identity through video technology while managing related risks as described in that guidance.

This temporary authorization will soon no longer be in effect. Effective July 1, 2026, members will need to follow the requirements under the Law Society Rules on Client Identification, 2021 (see subsection 6(6.1)), including the new virtual verification method.

The Law Society prepared a document titled Guidance for virtual verification of your client’s identity using government-issued photo ID and technology. This Guidance applies only to virtual verification of identity for the purposes of complying with the Law Society Rules on Client Identification, 2021, related anti-money laundering and anti-terrorist financing obligations, as well as to documents to be registered under the Land Titles Act and the Registry Act. It does not apply to the virtual commissioning, swearing, or affirming of affidavits or statutory declarations for court or other legal proceedings, which are subject to separate requirements and rules. It also does not apply to the witnessing of wills and powers of attorney by electronic means of communication, which is governed by the Wills Act, RSNB 1973, c. W-9 and the Enduring Powers of Attorney Act, SNB 2019, c. 30.