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BY GAIL J . COHEN F or decades, probably ever since women began practising law in Canada, there has been fretting over how to keep women in the profession. In her ground- breaking 1993 report "Touchstones for Change," Canada's fi rst female Supreme Court justice, Bertha Wilson, stressed the diffi culties faced by women lawyers with children, urging the profession to measure a lawyer's performance by stan- dards other than hours billed. At the time, she made over 200 recommendations for improving the lot of women in the profession. Now, 15 years later, the Law Society of Upper Cana- da has released its report on retaining women in the profession and many of the same issues raised by Wilson are still present: a high proportion of women enter the legal profession at the initial entry level (more than 50 per cent of lawyers called to the bar are female), and that there is a higher attrition rate for women than men from private practice. While the profession continues working towards fi nding solutions to ensure women remain and suc- ceed in private practice, Canadian Lawyer gathered together fi ve accomplished members of the bench and bar to share their stories, discuss why they stayed in the profession, and their thoughts for future gener- ations' success. Joining editor Gail J. Cohen at the Ca- nadian Lawyer women in law roundtable, held at To- ronto's Verity club, were: Justice Eleanore A. Cronk of the Ontario Court of Appeal; Linda Rothstein, man- aging partner of Paliare Roland Rosenberg Rothstein LLP; Kirby Chown, Ontario region managing partner for McCarthy Tétrault LLP; Carla Swansburg, senior counsel for the RBC Law Group; and Mayo Moran, dean of the University of Toronto Faculty of Law. Following is a greatly pared-down version of their lively conversation. It's split up into some of the top- ics of discussion to give readers a taste of what was said. For a more fulsome version, please visit our web site at www.canadianlawyermag.com. PHOTOGRAPHY: SANDRA STRANGEMORE ON LAW AND LIFE JUSTICE ELEANORE A. CRONK: One of the reasons I went into law was not just because of the father who wanted to be a trial lawyer, it was because of the mother who was very accomplished in her own right but believed strongly in women being autono- mous, having an independent source of money, not being dependent on the men in their lives for their fi nancial security, for having something that would give them a sense of self-worth that was very per- sonal, and that was encouraged in [my] family envi- ronment. And I think law presents exactly the same opportunity to women today, in 2008, to do that, as it did in 1971. I continue to say to women that law is an extraordinarily rewarding profession for women, despite the diffi culties. LINDA ROTHSTEIN: Law and my career, in particular, were an incredible refuge for me for a period of four years when I was dealing with marital breakdown. And I can remember being so profoundly aware of how lucky I was that I could retreat to my offi ce and be successful, or feel mostly successful most of the time in my career when I was going through that very painful personal experience, and imagining what it would be like for women who didn't have a career and had to face that down. And just being completely overwhelmed with the feeling that that would be extraordinarily lonely, diffi cult, isolating, a thousand times worse than anything I experienced. It was an extraordinary feeling of refuge, walking into my offi ce every day, living through that. ON MEMORABLE MOMENTS MAYO MORAN: I think probably the most exciting day was the day I found out I became dean. And I remember the person who phoned me said, "Are you sitting down?" And I said, "No." And the person said, "Well, you are about to make history." And I was, www. C ANADIAN Law ye rmag.com JUNE 2008 23