Osgoode Women's Network

OWN is proud to announce our January Alumnae in the Spotlight, Tamar Silverbrook! Tamar is a member of Fasken’s Private Client Services practice group. As part of her practice, Tamar advises clients on a variety of wealth management, estate, and family planning issues. In addition, Tamar assists clients with Wills, powers of attorney, domestic contracts, trusts and other documents relevant to succession planning. Learn more about Tamar below!

Thank you so much to everyone who came out to the Mentorship Mix & Mingle, hosted by McCarthy Tétrault LLP! It was a wonderful evening of networking, discussion, and learning more about life as a woman in law. Thank you to Noel Chow, Leah Ostler, Mariko Rivers, and Simmy Sahdra for your excellent insights as panelists. Further thanks to Nikki Gershbain for your inspiring and informative opening remarks, and to all the lawyers who joined in for our breakout room sessions. We look forward to seeing you all again next year!

Thank you very much to everyone who came out to our OCI Panel Discussion event yesterday! 2L students and OWN executives were joined by panelists from three sectors: government; Bay Street firms; and boutique & specialty firms. We would like to extend our sincere thanks to Aleeza Freedman (Ministry of the Attorney General), Vahini Sathiamoorthy (Norton Rose Fulbright Canada LLP), Jasmine Tsang (Kawaguchi Krajden LLP), Sarah Chiavarini (McCarthy Tétrault LLP), Haleigh Johns (Department of Justice), and Fatimah Khan (Hicks Morley Hamilton Stewart Storie LLP) for sharing their insights on the OCI process and recruitment in general. We wish the best of luck to our 2L members who will be participating in the recruitment process over the next few weeks.

REMINDER: OWN OCI Panel & Application Material Review sign up closes today at 4PM! Calling all 2Ls! The Osgoode Women’s Network (OWN) will be hosting an OCI Panel Discussion on January 6th from 12:30-2:00PM via Zoom. This panel discussion will feature recent graduates and 3L students from Bay Street, boutique firms, and government, as well as a Q&A portion where you can ask your own OCI questions! We are also offering APPLICATION MATERIAL REVIEW with 3L students on January 11...th and 18th. These spots will be offered on a first come, first served basis. For more information on the panel, application material review, and to sign-up, please use the Google Form linked here before today (January 5th) at 4:00PM: https://docs.google.com//1FAIpQLSdymR9at3XPqSj5u/viewform

UPDATE (Per Jan 5): PLEASE NOTE this event is now at capacity, but you may join the wait list by registering via the below form. The OWN Alumnae Relations Team is excited to announce this year’s annual McCarthy Tétrault Mentorship Mix & Mingle! Join us (virtually!) on January 13, 2021, from 4:30pm-6:00pm for a lively panel discussion with four McCarthy’s lawyers, followed by an intimate breakout room networking session. We will be chatting about life as a woman in law, what m...akes for a meaningful mentorship relationship, and how women can help support other women in the profession. The panel will feature: (1) Noel Chow, Business Law Associate (2) Leah Ostler, Litigation Associate (3) Mariko Rivers, Business Law Associate (4) Simmy Sahdra, Labour & Employment Associate With more surprise guests joining us for the breakout room sessions! We hope you can attend what is sure to be an exciting and informative evening! **In an effort to ensure meaningful discussion and opportunities for student engagement, spots are limited and an RSVP is required. Register now at: https://forms.gle/ALCsyYv8rTXqVCpX7. Register by January 5, 2021 to be entered to win a FREE McCarthy Tétrault swag bag!**

Our December "Alumnae in the Spotlight" is Melanie Thomas! Melanie has an eclectic work background in both the corporate and not-for-profit sectors. Learn more about Melanie below!

Calling all 2Ls! The Osgoode Women’s Network (OWN) will be hosting an OCI Panel Discussion on January 6th from 12:30-2:00PM via Zoom. This panel discussion will feature recent graduates and 3L students from Bay Street, boutique firms, and government, as well as a Q&A portion where you can ask your own OCI questions! We are also offering APPLICATION MATERIAL REVIEW with 3L students on January 11th and 18th. These spots will be offered on a first come, first served basis. For more information on the panel, application material review, and to sign-up, please use the Google Form linked here before January 5th at 4:00PM: https://docs.google.com//1FAIpQLSdymR9at3XPqSj5u/viewform

Today, we mark 31 years since the murder of 14 young women at l'École Polytechnique de Montréal. They died because they were women. Gender-based violence continues to be a reality in our society. Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Canada has reported significant increases in the severity and frequency of gender-based violence. In April 2020, Canada’s Minister for Women and Gender Equality Maryam Monsef reported that rates of gender-based violence and domestic violence ...had increased by 20 to 30% in some regions across Canada, with calls for help having gone up by roughly 400% in some areas. As we remember those women whose lives were lost at l'École Polytechnique de Montréal and all those who have suffered at the hands of gender-based violence, we must also commit to taking action to foster a culture of respect and to denounce the hatred that has led to such tragedy. For those experiencing gender-based violence or seeking to assist in the fight against it, please find links to local resources below: - https://www.schliferclinic.com - https://trccmwar.ca - https://familyservicetoronto.org///violence-against-women/ - https://owjn.org - https://www.metrac.org

OWN is proud to announce that the recipients of our first ever bursary, the Osler & Bennett Jones Women Supporting Women Bursary, have now been selected. On behalf of all of us at OWN, we wanted to extend our sincerest thanks once again to Osler & Bennett Jones for their gracious donations and support of this initiative. We look forward to offering students the opportunity to apply for our bursary again next year!

Hello OWN! In our ongoing effort to connect our members with initiatives outside of OWN that progress our mandate, we would like to bring your attention to the Osgoode Muslim Law Students' Association and Osgoode Black Law Students Association's upcoming event, Being Black & Muslim: A Panel Discussion! This event will be happening on Wednesday, November 25 from 6:00 PM-7:30 PM (EST) over Zoom. Details are as follows:... https://yorku.zoom.us/j/95515238943 Meeting ID: 955 1523 8943 This event will consist of some introductory remarks from their student moderator, a panel discussion exploring what it means to be Black and Muslim through the personal and professional experiences of a variety of figureheads in the local Black Muslim community, and some time for questions. Their brilliant range of speakers includes: Imam Yasin Dwyer, Chaplain at the Muslim Chaplaincy of Toronto, Mariam Moktar, Associate at Goldblatt Partners LLP, Kofi Achampong, Lawyer at Achampong Law and Member of The Black Muslim Initiative, and an appearance from the Honourable Ahmed Hussen, Minister of Families, Children and Social Development!

Our November "Alumnae in the Spotlight" is Kiran Kang! Kiran Kang is an associate at Goldblatt Partners LLP, where she advocates for the rights of unions and their members. Learn more about Kiran below!

On behalf of all of us at the Osgoode Women’s Network, we want to extend our thanks once again to all of the legal professionals and law students who supported and attended our first ever virtual OWN Your Career event! With the engagement of our attendees, we feel we were able to create a comfortable space for women in law to connect, share their experiences, and gain insights from our incredible keynote speaker, Denise Dwyer. Thanks again to Denise for sharing your wisdom a...nd speaking to your legal journey as one of the first Black female lawyers in Ontario. Thanks also to our firm sponsors for your generous donations and to our charity partner, Black Women in Motion (BWIM), for your collaboration! Through this event, we proudly raised $5,000 for BWIM, which we hope will provide a meaningful contribution to their initiatives and aid in their mission to advance Black womxn and survivors of sexual violence. #womensupportingwomen #womeninlaw