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Law firm programs designed to retain women will fail unless female lawyers are consistently mentored by senior practi- tioners, either male or female, says Han- naford. "Women are . . . not trained to in- teract well with each other . . . to reach out and form networks and teams, the way men are trained to do. We only have our own selves as references to evaluate our- selves against," which can lead to a lack of confidence and of trust in oneself. Hannaford points south of the border to "far more progres- sive" dialogue on the promotion of women and minorities in the workplace. Affirma- tive action legislation in the United States is requiring firms to hire more from underrepresented groups, resulting in an expected demo- graphic shift over the next 25 years with- in the management of banks and other large organizations that are the clients of law firms. "That's putting a lot more pressure on private law firms to boost women" and minorities, in part in order to present a more progressive image that will appeal to clients. Laurie Pawlitza, a litigator with Torkin which now takes place in Ontario at an average age of 31, says Pawlitza. "Women will be having children at the same stage as they move through the initial years of private practice," and still bear a far greater responsibility for the household and childcare, even if they are working at the same jobs as their spouses. "It's this confluence of events that the retention project concentrated on," says Pawlitza. cently won the Women's Law Association President's Award for the advancement of women in the legal profession, and has also won the LSUC award for the same work, points first to the "strong women's network" that has been developed in her firm's offices to promote female lawyers' practices. Advancement of women in the firm is a top priority, she says, which means helping its women lawyers build and manage their careers. This includes "Rule 5 particularly applies to the legal profession, and has never been litigated. Is a court willing to enforce the implied term in the Rules of Professional Conduct?" — MALCOLM MACKILLOP, SHIELDS O'DONNELL MACKILLOP LLP LSUC's newly launched Justicia Think Manes Cohen Arbus LLP in Toronto, is co-chairwoman of the retention of wom- en in private practice task force at the Law Society of Upper Canada. The project, which has surveyed nearly 900 lawyers in Ontario, released its final report in May. Women lawyers still leave private prac- tice two-and-a-half to three-and-a-half times more frequently than do men, the Tank will see the society working across the province with a group of large and medium-sized firms committed to imple- menting programs aimed at improving the retention of women. One firm that partic- ularly impressed Pawlitza was McCarthy Tétrault. "We spent a lot of time with a lot of different firms" during the course of the consultations, she says. "There's no ques- tion that McCarthys has been, by far and away, the most thoughtful and progres- sive on these issues. They have done lots of things we've adopted for our project." In her office on the 53rd floor of Toron- to's TD Tower, Kirby Chown, the Ontario regional managing partner of McCarthy Tétrault, is happy to talk about what her firm is doing for its female lawyers, though she declines to discuss the LaCa- lamita case while it's before the courts. a more female-focused business-devel- opment practice (a golf clinic for female lawyers and their female clients; four- some social outings that don't leave a woman lawyer alone with a male client; a big annual social event for women only, such as the cocktails, dinner, and chuck- wagon races at the Calgary Stampede). "There are significantly higher numbers of women who are buyers of services, so understanding women clients is equally as important as focusing on women law- yers," says Chown. To increase women lawyers' profile "There's no question that McCarthys has been, by far and away, the most thoughtful and progressive on these issues. They have task force found; however, this has more to do with women's competing personal and professional roles than with a sexist work environment. "We found, almost overwhelmingly, that women had a great deal of difficulty maintaining all the roles they had to maintain during those criti- cal years" following the call to the bar, done lots of things we've adopted for our project." — LAURIE PAWLITZA, LSUC RETENTION OF WOMEN TASK FORCE Chown articled at McCarthys and re- turned to work there following her call to the bar in 1981. "When I became manag- ing regional partner in 1992 . . . one of the things we looked at was the issue of the advancement and retention of women," she says. "I was interested in having our firm take some steps." Chown, who re- within the firm, a newsletter was devel- oped to showcase them; senior female as- sociates from each of the firm's offices now put it out three times a year, in English and French. It covers its women partners, pro bono work, those having babies, and in- cludes advice and "support on the path to partnership." The firm has also developed an extensive program to help new mothers and even fathers. "It's a very difficult transi- tion, becoming a par- ent and trying to stay focused on a practice," notes Chown, who herself became the mother of twin boys in the first year of her own practice, nearly three decades ago. McCarthy's "materni- ty-leave buddy program" matches each new mother with a senior woman lawyer "who's been through it," says Chown. A Continued on page 47 www. C ANADIAN Law ye rmag.com OC T OBER 2008 41