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Equality, Diversity and Inclusion
On June 28, 2022, Convocation approved a motion to not release the Inclusion Index developed in 2019 pursuant to Recommendation 6 of the Working Together for Change: Strategies to Address Issues of Systemic Racism in the Legal Profession report. The Law Society is working to develop a new protocol for the collection and publication of data pertaining to equity, diversity and inclusion in legal workplaces.
To address barriers faced by racialized licensees, the Law Society is implementing strategies recommended in the final report of the Challenges Faced by Racialized Licensees Working Group.
What lawyers and paralegals need to know and do
Educating for change
Measuring progress
The Law Society is
measuring progress by gathering data through:
- work place self-assessments (required for legal workplaces with 10 or more licensees)
- inclusion and self-identification questions (voluntary) in the Annual Report Filing
- an inclusion survey (voluntary).
The data collected will enable the Law Society to better understand demographic trends, and will inform our efforts to promote equality and diversity in the legal professions.
Accelerating diversity
Requirement to Acknowledge Human Rights Laws
On September 11, 2019, Law Society benchers approved a
motion to require licensees to acknowledge in their Annual Report Filing, in accordance with the professional conduct rules, their special responsibility as a lawyer or paralegal to respect the requirements of human rights laws in Ontario and to honour the obligation not to discriminate
.
Human Rights and Diversity Policy
Legal workplaces of at least 10 licensees are required to develop, implement and maintain a human rights/diversity policy for their legal workplace addressing at the very least fair recruitment, retention and advancement.
Frequently Asked Questions
Read the final report of the Challenges Faced by Racialized Licensees Working Group
Terms or Concepts Explained