Annual Mentoring Dinner: Working Through Adversity

About: 

If you have been practising law for 10 years or less or if you are an articling/summer student, please join us for our Annual Mentoring Dinner at Abruzzi! Enjoy the delights of local fare prepared by the talented team while engaging in meaningful discussions and socializing with colleagues and mentors.

Learning Objectives:

Participants will engage in guided, small-group conversations with senior members of the legal profession focused on navigating the challenges and complexities of legal practice — particularly through the lens of adversity and resilience. By the end of the program, attendees will have:

• Explored strategies for maintaining professionalism and ethical integrity while working through high-pressure, high-conflict, or uncertain situations

• Reflected on how lawyers at various stages of practice cope with adversity, including stress, isolation, burnout, and setbacks

• Discussed methods for developing professional resilience, including self-management, time prioritization, and leveraging mentorship relationships

• Gained insights into ethical decision-making when faced with difficult choices or conflicting pressures in legal environments

• Understood the importance of collegiality, communication, and support networks as foundational to long-term professional success and wellness

This program is designed to offer substantive, non-promotional content that fosters growth, competence, and ethical awareness among early-career legal professionals. Each mentor will be prepared with discussion prompts to ensure conversations meet CPD learning goals.

The program includes a brief welcome and orientation, a key note speech by a Judge, followed by 2 hours of mentorship rotations in small groups where each mentor facilitates conversation around designated topics. Mentors will be provided with guidance in advance to ensure discussions are focused, educational, and aligned with CPD objectives.

CPD:

This program contains 2 hours of Professionalism content.

Our Committee:

Jake Aitcheson, Vanetia R, Tahwila Husaini, and Jim Zegers

Key Note Speaker:

Honorable Duncan Grace

The Honourable Justice A. Duncan Grace received his L.L.B from the University of Western Ontario in 1980, and his L.L.M. from the University of Melbourne in 1990. He practiced in London Ontario and his practice area was Commercial Insolvency and related litigation. On February 10, 2010 he was appointed to the bench initially serving in the Toronto region until March 31, 2012. On April 1, 2012 Justice Grace was transferred to the Southwest Region where he remained until his retirement on November 17, 2023. Justice Grace served as the Local Administrative Judge from August 2014 until January 1, 2023, and most recently sat as the interim Regional Senior Justice from June 1, 2023 until October 7, 2023.

Mentors:

Jacqueline Fortner

Jacob Damstra

Maura Thompson

Arifa Serter

Rasha El-Tawil

The Honourable B. T. Granger

Carolynn Conron