The Board of the Continuing Legal Education Society of BC (CLEBC) today announced the appointment of Linda Russell as Chief Executive Officer effective June 1, 2017, on the retirement of the current CEO, Ron Friesen. Linda comes to CLEBC from California Continuing Education of the Bar (CEB), a leading continuing legal education organization in North America, where she served as Director of Content Development.
“We are thrilled to have Linda Russell join our team,” says CLEBC Board Chair, Rolf Warburton. “We’ve selected a strong leader when CLEBC is in a strong position. Legal education is evolving at a dramatic pace. Legal professionals are experiencing disruptive changes to the industry, and more than ever they require evolving knowledge, skills, and resources to navigate these changes, serve their clients, and support access to justice. Our next CEO brings a wealth of experience and creativity in increasing emphasis on customer outreach, supporting outstanding volunteer contributors, implementing technology to improve service, and streamlining processes to ensure an outstanding return for customer investments in legal education.”
Linda Russell has worked with CEB for 19 years, serving as a Publications and Programs Attorney, Civil Litigation Practice Group Manager, and Director of Content Development. Before joining CEB, she was a litigation attorney for a large private law firm and corporate counsel for Bank of America. Linda received her Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of California, Berkeley, and her Juris Doctor from University of California’s Hastings College of the Law. During her time at CEB, she has been active in the continuing education community, and currently serves as an Executive Committee Director for the Association for Continuing Legal Education (ACLEA).
Linda is a talented people manager able to motivate and develop high-performing teams. She is skilled in change management related to new technology and disruption in the legal marketplace.
“Linda Russell has an outstanding reputation in the international legal education community”, says Ron Friesen, CLEBC’s current CEO. “She is highly regarded by her peers for leadership and creativity. I am confident CLEBC staff, volunteers, and colleagues in the legal community will find her an outstanding leader, a thoughtful and engaged team player, and a pleasure to work with.”