Opening Reception
Sponsor

Join us for the official launch of the Touchstones podcast and to network with colleagues.

To attend just the Reception, purchase your ticket today. Limited number of tickets are available for $50 +/tax.

Networking Breakfast

Land Acknowledgment and Opening Remarks

Keynote Address on The Dobbs Case and the Past, Present, and Future of Abortion in the United States 
Sponsor

Alexia Korberg (they/them)
Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP
(New York, NY)

Refreshment Break

PANEL 1 – Lawyers as Professional Leaders
Sponsor

This panel will focus on the various hats lawyers may find themselves wearing during their careers, including as they step into leadership roles both within their workplaces and wider communities. Possible topics for discussion may include alternative career paths for lawyers, different kinds of leadership roles aside from the traditional partner-track and the dynamics that internationally trained lawyers can illuminate in the Canadian legal context.

Panelists:
Katherine Hensel, Fogler, Rubinoff LLP (Toronto, ON)
Serena Gohal, Laxton Glass LLP (Toronto, ON)
Deepshikha Dutt, Dentons (Toronto, ON)

Moderator: Angela Ogang, AngeLAW (Toronto, ON)

PANEL 2 – Lawyers as Mentors and Caregivers

This panel will explore the crucial roles that lawyers can play as mentors and caregivers to colleagues, clients and people in their personal lives. The discussion will cover the challenges and opportunities associated in assuming these roles, as well as the impact that lawyers in these roles can have on the personal and professional development of others. Possible topics for discussion are lawyers as caregivers of children and older parents, maintaining social ties with friends, self-care, and the various mentorship roles one might engage in within their workplace, such as mentorship of other lawyers within the profession.

Panelists:
Jennifer Nedelsky, Osgoode Hall Law School York University (Toronto, ON)
Erin Durant, Durant Barristers (Ottawa, ON)
Julianne Stevenson, Policy Analyst, College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario (Toronto, ON)

Moderator: Catherine Ewasiuk, Associate, Fulton & Company LLP , Chair of the CBA Women Lawyers Forum Section (Vancouver, BC)

“Drag Lunch” – Tynomi Banks Preformance & presentation of Cecilia I. Johnstone Award

PANEL 3 – Lawyers as Community Activists

This panel will explore the role that lawyers can play in advocating for social justice, equality, and positive change within their workplaces and broader communities, and how lawyers can balance their professional responsibilities with their activism. Topics are expected to include reproductive justice, 2SLGBTQI+ rights, climate action, workers' rights, and more.

Panelists:
Pam Hrick, Women's Legal Education and Action Fund (LEAF) (Toronto, ON)
John No, Parkdale Community Legal Services (Toronto, ON)
Shakir Rahim, Director of Criminal Justice, Canadian Civil Liberties Association (Toronto, ON)

Moderator: Belle Van, Fineberg Ramamoorthy LLP (Toronto, ON)

Refreshment Break

PANEL 4 – Lawyers in the Future

This panel will explore the evolving landscape of the legal industry with respect to both technological developments and wider societal change and how these factors may alter the roles of lawyers in the future. The discussion will cover the emerging opportunities and challenges seen with these changes. Topics of discussion will include artificial intelligence, the move to work from home and work-life balance.

Panelists:
Ginevra Saylor, Director of Innovation and Knowledge Programs, Gowling WLG (Toronto, ON)
Leena Yousefi, Lawyer and Mediator, Ylaw (Vancouver, BC)
Tara Vasdani, Remote Law Canada (Toronto, ON)
Christiane Saad, Executive Director of the French Law Practice Program, University of Ottawa (Ottawa,ON)

Moderator: Suzie Lanthier, Gowling WLG (Canada) S.E.N.C.R.L., S.R.L. (Montréal, QC)

Closing Remarks