Articles

Each month we will introduce a different member of the Women Lawyers Forum Executive. Learn a little bit about us, why we joined the executive and what we love about being a lawyer.

Last week, I topped my list of nerve-wracking, new-lawyer moments when, heart pounding, I telephoned the Honourable Claire L'Heureux-Dubé, Justice of the Supreme Court of Canada from 1987 to 2002 and the second woman in Canadian history to be appointed to that position. I was calling to see if Justice L’Heureux-Dubé would speak with me about her experience receiving the OBA's Women Lawyers Forum's Award of Excellence in 1996, its inaugural year.

A compilation of links to articles, podcasts, and videos that may be of interest to members of the OBA Women Lawyers Forum. Have suggested content for this feature? Email the link to Justine Johnston at justine.johnston@blakes.com.

A compilation of links to articles, podcasts, and videos that may be of interest to members of the OBA Women Lawyers Forum. Have suggested content for this feature? Email the link to Justine Johnston at justine.johnston@blakes.com.

OBA Women Lawyers Forum member Daniella Murynka's op-ed on how prejudice played a part in the US presidential election.

A quarterly summary of awards and appointments, legislation and cases, and upcoming events. Please send any of the above that you would like announced, to Justine Johnston at justine.johnston@blakes.com

By midnight, it was apparent that former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton would not be making history. As I wondered what went wrong, I was reminded of Margaret Atwood’s remarks at LEAF's Annual Persons Day Breakfast Gala. Atwood opined that the U.S. had not seen misogyny like that on display during the 2016 election campaign since the Salem witch trials and observed that women’s rights are shallowly entrenched in our culture, and thus susceptible to restriction or even revocation.

A compilation of links to articles, podcasts, and videos that may be of interest to members of the OBA Women Lawyers Forum. Have suggested content for this feature? Email the link to Justine Johnston at justine.johnston@blakes.com.

In Canada, for every dollar a second-year male associate earns, his female counterpart earns roughly 93 cents. A recent survey, published by the University of Toronto, showed that second-year male associates earn $5,500 more than their female counterparts largely due to differences in bonuses. This article explores the current pay gap that exists in the legal profession, some of the reasons for the gap, and suggested solutions to address the issue.

I met my husband in a modern-day fairy tale setting: on a Facebook thread discussing Canadian immigration. While he wooed me, I was figuring out how to get licensed to practice law in Canada. And now, whenever a foreign-qualified lawyer tells me that they are ready to give up on the accreditation process, I take a deep breath and say, “Let me tell you about my journey as a foreign qualified lawyer…”