Blakes, BLG, Davies, Dentons, Fasken, Goodmans, Gowling WLG, McCarthy Tétrault, Osler and Torys are committed to addressing and ending anti-Black and other forms of structural racism in the legal profession. We have signed the BlackNorth Initiative Law Firm Pledge because of our individual and collective commitment to achieve the goals set out in the Pledge and to deliver on these concrete, measurable actions that will effect meaningful change.

We commend the BlackNorth Initiative (BNI) for initiating the Law Firm Pledge. The Canadian Association of Black Lawyers (CABL), played an important role in our collaborative discussions. We will continue to work with BNI, CABL and other stakeholders across the legal profession to break down barriers to the recruitment, retention, and advancement of Black people in our firms. Stronger together, we will drive progress and deliver lasting change

To read the BlackNorth Initiative - Law Firm Pledge our firm signed, click here.

McCarthy Tétrault is committed to addressing anti-Black racism and driving progress for all equity-seeking groups within our Firm. In 2018, we launched our Inclusion Now program, a first-of-its-kind among Canadian Law firms, and established our Inclusion Now Office. We appointed a Chief Inclusion Officer who has a full-time staff, and we continue to implement policies and initiatives designed to eliminate structural barriers and create an inclusive environment for all of our people.

Below are some examples of our firm’s actions to advance the recruitment, retention, and advancement of Black and other racialized lawyers at our Firm:

• We are in the process of developing an anti-racism policy for the Firm. Our policy will go beyond our legal obligations under Human Rights Codes, and will specifically address anti-Black and anti-Indigenous racism.

• We provide ongoing firm-wide education around anti-racism, and in October 2020 will be running programs on anti-Black and structural racism.

• In February 2020, we launched our Race Action Group, which has a mandate to work with our Inclusion Now Office to raise awareness about the experiences of Black, Indigenous and other racialized lawyers at our Firm, address systemic racism through the development of policies and programs, and build a culture of allyship. Over 200 of our partners, associates, students and staff are members of this group.

• In 2019, to address the recruitment of diverse lawyers within the firm, we refreshed our law student recruitment process by, among other things, further diversifying our recruitment teams and introducing standardized interview questions.

• This fall, we are launching a pilot 1L program for students of equity seeking groups, with an initial emphasis on individuals who identify as Black, Indigenous, and/or racialized.

• Our longstanding relationship with the Canadian Association for Black Lawyers includes the delivery of pro bono services to advance important causes in the community. We are currently acting for CABL on its first Supreme Court intervention.

• We actively pursue partnerships that allow us to support organizations that advance diversity and anti-racism in the legal profession – as of 2020, we are Champion Sponsors of the Black Female Lawyers Network.

Media Contact:
 

Jamie Crawford-Ritchie
647-963-7691