No they don't, they can represent themselves in any legal proceedings, they can draft their own wills and draft their own contracts. If they don't wish to use a lawyer when buying selling a house, they can do so.

I cannot think of any situation where someone is forced to use a lawyer other than to extricate themselves from a deal that has gone wrong due to the fact they did it themselves

Is there the equivalent of a licenced conveyencer in Canada? Or is it a choice between lawyer, DIY or relying on the Realtors efforts to draft/check a contract?

One must use a lawyer to register the sale of a house with the Ontario government, they will not supply the required software to anyone who is not a lawyer.

There is not. The realtor drafts the contract, not the lawyer. In Alberta at least, the lawyer prepares the mortgage for the lender, gets the clients to sign the mortgage and arranges for the transfer of title.

By the time it gets to the lawyer, the deal is already done. Of course, the lawyer then has to explain to the client why the contract is adverse to their interests and that they are stuck with it, but that is a whole different thread

OK, that is not the case in Alberta and I find it hard to believe that it is the case in Ontario either. I defer to your greater knowledge though.

Out of interest, what software is required? Surely it is just a form that needs to be completed and one could obtain that from the appropriate Land Titles Office?

This link suggests that the software enables one to file documents online, that one only used to be able to file at an office. I suspect that "in person" filing is still allowed, therefore individuals can do so. The website also suggests that any business can purchase the software, although it would be expensive for a single transaction.

My understanding, based on having tried to do it once three years ago, is that the registration is done using an online form. I suppose the system is akin to those used to obtain driver's histories or to register vehicles. I walked into the Land Titles place, explained that I wanted to register a transfer of title and was told that I'd have to buy the client piece of software. I asked for a copy and they wanted proof that I was a lawyer in Ontario. My guess is that the software is owned by the Law Society or similar rather than the government. (At a tangent that was originally true of the federal efile software, for the initial period only some tax preparers could efile as they'd financed the development of the system).

The long and the short of it was that the software cost hundreds of dollars and Jane Harvey's discount legal chain would do the job for eight hundred so I paid them rather than pursue the matter to the bitter end. In the light of experience I should have pressed the ministry rather than going to the Pound Shop of legal practices but that's another can of worms.

I was there. The individual at the counter said not, but that's not really authoritative. I suppose one could hire a lawyer to find out...

LOL

So what you are saying then is people can choose whether or not they want the service that a lawyer can give them in the same way that someone can choose if they want to use a realtor.

If people have a choice and they decide to use a realtor/lawyer (or mechanic/accountant/financial planner etc) for the added service they provide, then that is the free market at work. It seems unfair to single out a particluar profession.

Except that people can't list their properties on MLS unless they use a realtor. Other than that, I agree with you and that was precisely the reason why I made the reference to my profession that I did in my original post.

I believe that clients would benefit from more competition in the lawyers' profession and in the "profession" of realtors.

I didn't say that the free market isn't presently at work. I posed a question. I didn't suggest that realtors do anything wrong or underhand, nor did I state that people shouldn't use them. If people wish to give up their money to such people, that is a matter for them.

You haven't explained to us how people are forced to use a lawyer.

As realtors are protected by legislation, the state has to act to stop them behaving like a monopoly.

I don't think it is - certainly not as a purchaser. How many people would use a realtor for purchasing a property if they could get that 4% back themselves. Probably hardly anyone.

I agree, but one could argue that by not using a realtor and only looking at sites such as welist etc, one doesn't have to use a realtor. I accept that the inventory is severely limited though!

Implying there is an effective monopoly on listings by mls. Which goes back to the start

You don't have to pay 5% to 7%. The commission is completely negotiable. Why not offer the realtor the commission you think fair and see how many are interested in a) listing or b) selling your home.