Your Dec. 14 article entitled “
LSUC votes to end life terms” leaves the impression that Convocation has done little to support women in the legal profession and has been silent on the legal aid question.
Neither impression, conveyed in comments from a Law Society of Upper Canada bencher, is accurate.
A task force appointed by Convocation spent three years studying the issues confronting women in private practice. More than 900 lawyers across the province participated in open discussions and consultations.
The task force then issued nine recommendations designed to improve the retention of women in the private practice of law. This was a high-profile undertaking that raised awareness of the needs of women in the legal profession and became a catalyst for change.
Convocation accepted the recommendations of the task force and gave their implementation a high priority. The support for women provided for in these recommendations includes an online resource centre, a new parental-leave assistance program for women in private practice who have no access to other benefit plans, and a think-tank named Justicia to foster internal cultures in medium and large law firms that are more supportive to the advancement of women in their legal careers.
More than 50 such firms have signed up for the Justicia program, which has caught the attention of lawyers and law firms right across the country.
On the issue of legal aid, the LSUC has a keen interest in the effective provision of legal aid services, including the key question of adequate funding for the system. Soon after Legal Aid Ontario was established, the law society participated in the creation of the Coalition for Legal Aid Tariff Reform to encourage more funding. This coalition of legal aid service providers has since developed into the Alliance for Sustainable Legal Aid.
The alliance undertakes considerable work on issues affecting the operation of the legal aid system, meets regularly with the attorney general and his staff, and submits letters and briefs to the ministry. Since most of the member organizations are represented by practising legal aid lawyers under heavy time constraints, the law society has contributed staff time, services, and meeting space to the alliance in addition to participation by benchers.
There is still much work to be done in support of women in the legal profession and equally in achieving an effective and sustainable legal aid system. The members of Convocation look forward to continuing to work with other key stakeholders in furthering both of these initiatives.
W.A. Derry Millar,
Treasurer, Law Society of Upper Canada
