Our Commitment to Inclusion

At Adair Goldblatt Bieber, we recognize that equity, diversity, and inclusion are essential to cultivating diverse perspectives and fostering a better workplace. These objectives have intrinsic value for our team members and our community. They also benefit our firm and profession. We are deeply committed to promoting inclusivity and equity and actively seek opportunities to do so, both within our firm and in the broader community.

Cultivating a Better Workplace and Client Experience.

Embracing diversity brings unique perspectives, innovative ideas, and better outcomes for everyone: our employees, clients, firm, and profession. Through recruitment, training, advancement, and community involvement, we aspire to foster an inclusive environment that promotes and celebrates diversity in all forms.

Since our inception, we have focused our efforts on developing a positive client experience and a positive workplace environment. We recognize that creating an environment where members of our firm feel recognized, supported, and represented requires a conscious effort to prioritize equality and inclusivity and to seek out opportunities to promote these values. It requires intentionality. It requires curiosity. It requires self-reflection, and acknowledging that we are imperfect. As we continue to grow, we are dedicated to advancing a more equitable, diverse, and inclusive culture, and growing a more representative team.

Contributing to a More Equitable Community.

Adair Goldblatt Bieber proudly supports diverse organizations in our community. We encourage our lawyers to seek out opportunities to assist organizations, causes, and individuals that inspire and give them meaning, and that leverage their legal expertise for the greater good.

In 2023, Canadian Lawyer Magazine recognized us as one of Canada’s Best Pro Bono Law Firms, and we are a Gold Tier Member of Pro Bono Ontario's 100% Access to Justice Leadership Circle. We are proud of our pro bono advice and advocacy on behalf of, and in support of, organizations such as Pro Bono Ontario, Women’s Legal Education and Action Fund (LEAF), Indigenous Climate Action, and Can't Buy My Silence. Our lawyers also provide pro bono advice and representation to individuals who cannot otherwise afford legal representation, including athletes and students facing investigations, proceedings, and sanctions before their respective institutions' adjudicative bodies. We are also proud of our firm's “low bono” work that provides access to justice to individuals and organizations with meaningful, community-strengthening objectives.

We proudly provide financial support (and our lawyers, their leadership and engagement) to organizations committed to promoting the equity and inclusivity of our profession, and to enhancing access to justice for marginalized and disadvantaged communities and equity-deserving groups. Legal organizations we regularly support include LEAF, the Barbra Schlifer Commemorative Clinic, the Federation of Asian Canadian Lawyers (FACL), the Canadian Association of LGBTQ2S+ Lawyers (Call-Acal), Young Women in Law (YWL), and the Ontario Justice Education Network (OJEN). We are also committed to supporting non-legal, community-based organizations - like United Way of Greater Toronto and the Daily Bread Food Bank - that work tirelessly to strengthen our local community here in Toronto. 

More Work to Be Done.

Our commitment to promoting equity and inclusion, both internally and externally, is continuous and ongoing. There is more work to be done. Making this commitment, however, is not enough. We must have systems and processes in place to ensure we live up to this commitment. We must walk the talk. 

Again, this requires intentionality. It requires honest and constructive self-reflection, openness to feedback, and the flexibility to implement change. Our Inclusion Committee is made up of partners, associates, and staff committed to building on our achievements and doing so with a team strengthened by diverse voices and experiences. The committee is active, meeting regularly to advance existing action items and identify the next ones to ensure that our firm is on a continuous path of improvement.

In support of these efforts, our firm seeks out external perspectives. Our entire team - lawyers and staff, alike - have received training on the principles of diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility, specifically in the law firm context, from Nikki Gershbain, the founder and CEO of IDEA Consulting Group. We also retain Nikki as an external consultant. She advises our partnership on the formation and implementation of policies and practices required to ensure we fulfil our commitment to continuously improve the equity, diversity, and inclusivity of our firm.

If you have questions about our equity, diversity, and inclusion initiatives, please contact Jocelyn Howell who leads our Inclusion Committee.

Building a Representative Team.

We encourage applications from all equity-deserving groups and prioritize applicants with diverse experiences, backgrounds, and achievements. If you are interested in joining us, you can learn more here.

We are committed to growing a legal team that reflects the diversity of our community. We accordingly strive to make our recruitment processes as inclusive as possible for all, including for members of equity-deserving groups, and particularly women, Black, Indigenous and people of colour, members of the 2SLGBTQIA+ community, and people with disabilities. 

In particular, we are cognizant that there may be elements of a candidate's application materials that do not accurately reflect their gender identity. If the legal name on your transcripts or other official documents does not reflect your chosen name, we invite you to let us know so that we can redact accordingly before sharing your application more broadly within our firm. If you would like to initiate this process or otherwise discuss your application, please contact Alex Fidler-Wener. We are happy to work with candidates to ensure that our application and hiring processes are as affirming as possible.

With any invitation to interview, we provide candidates with an opportunity to advise – on an entirely confidential and optional basis – of any accessibility accommodations that would assist their participation in the interview process. To be clear, there is absolutely no obligation to disclose any disability or request accommodation, whether in advance of an interview or at any other time. We simply welcome such conversations with those interested in having them.