Canadian Lawyer

30 www.canadianlawyermag.com FEATURES WOMEN IN LAW everything, and women, we don't tend to take a lot of credit. We only take credit when we really are the ones who work on the file. You really have to say, 'How much did I bring value to the file?' And if you did, then you need to take credit for that. Another difference is, the men will tell you exactly how much they want you to pay them." But while it's urgent for firms to take action on a structural level, speakers at the summit said, women must also re-write the stories they tell themselves about success. "There's a lot of research, and the consen- sus is that women have trouble negotiating strongly on behalf of ourselves," said Rebecca Bromwich, Gowling WLG's national manager of diversity and inclusion. "We have much less trouble negotiating strongly when we're negotiating for others: negotiating for children, negotiating for our clients, negotiating for people we care about. . . . When you are negotiating your compen- sation package, think about reframing in your mind about who you are fighting for. Yes, it's worth arguing for ourselves, but we're also ar- male talent: In your organization, who is a potential leader? Maybe they don't have all the pieces to the puzzle," says Stewart. "So then invest in that person — money, time, resources, get that person to actualize the potential. To be frank, don't allow your tra- ditional mindset or others' traditional mind- sets to influence who you recognize. She may not come in the package you're used to — it takes skill to recognize." Dal Bhathal, legal recruiter and managing partner at The Counsel Network, said that women can take steps to keep their work from fading into the background: They must keep a tally of the problems they've solved and successes they've had at work — both to re- mind themselves and to remind others when it comes time to negotiate pay. "I'm on the compensation committee at the firm and it's amazing when you look at the dif- ference between the memos of the male law- yers versus the women. There's actually a big difference," said Michelle Henry, a partner at Borden Ladner Gervais LLP. "Generally, even men will take credit for WHAT WOMEN IN LAW CAN SAY When faced with a biased comment: In that moment, give yourself a pass. But make a plan for how you would like to have reacted next time. — Cindy Kou, Gowling WLG When a diversity and inclusion-related dis- cussion gets heated and you call someone out on their bias: Don't let people shut down during difficult conversations. — Charlene Theodore, Ontario English Catholic Teacher Association When heading into a pay negotiation: Have a trusted co-worker write a draft of your pay memos or review them. — Daphne Lainson, Smart & Biggar guing for our families. We're arguing for wom- en in general." Denise Dwyer Assistant Deputy Minister, Indige- nous Education and Wellbeing Division, Ontario Ministry of Education Sunil Gurmukh Human Rights Lawyer and Adjunct Law Pro- fessor, Western Law Shara Roy Partner, Lenczner Slaght Royce Smith Griffin LLP Laleh Moshiri National Director, Diversity and Inclu- sion, Borden Ladner Gervais LLP Cindy Kou Business Law Associate, Gowling WLG

• Cover