Project Description: Background:

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1 INTERNATIONALLY TRAINED LEGAL PROFESSIONALS SUPPORT GROUP The following report documents the evolution of a self-help group who gathers internationally trained lawyers for support, advocacy and professional actualization. It can be used as a how-to work plan that will allow other organizations to create and sustain similar volunteer groups. This report was prepared by Mark Ignatiev, Strategic Development Coordinator, Catholic Immigration Centre, Ottawa, one of OCASI partners in this project. For a session or consultation on this subject or for more information please contact Mark Ignatiev at mark@cic.ca. Project Description: This project involved creating and providing ongoing assistance to a support group for internationally trained legal professionals (for the most part lawyers) who are seeking to gain meaningful employment, related to their education and experience, in the Ottawa labour market. Background: The Catholic Immigration Centre was approached last year by an internationally trained lawyer who indicated that he saw a need for a group to support a significant number of internationally trained lawyers trying to find meaningful employment in Ottawa. Around the same time, the Centre was contacted by the dean of Ottawa University s civil law program. She mentioned that she had been approached by a number of internationally trained lawyers seeking a way to fast-track the re-licensing process, * and asked if the Centre had developed any resources or services specifically for this group. At the time, we had not. In response to this perceived need, the Centre decided to put a broad call-out to internationally trained legal professionals in the region, inviting them to a meeting to discuss ways that they could offer each other support with the Centre s facilitation. Activities of the Group: First Meeting The group s first meeting was well attended, with approximately 20 participants. After an introduction by Centre staff, a round-table was conducted to allow participants to introduce themselves to each other and get a sense of what they felt the group could help them with. * The National Committee on Accreditation determines what courses internationally trained lawyers must take to work towards re-licensing in Canada. While re-licensing is often possible without the normal 3 years of full-time study, a number of basic courses (1 st and 2 nd year) may still need to be repeated. In 2006, The University of Ottawa was looking into offering condensed courses on certain topics specifically for internationally trained lawyers, given that these individuals would already have a significant understanding of legal concepts but may need to develop these in the Canadian context (e.g. a 1 st year course in Canadian Constitutional law). As of the writing of this report, the Centre has no additional information on how quickly this University of Ottawa initiative is proceeding.

2 2 The round-table revealed three key barriers that internationally trained legal professionals are facing in Ottawa:» Making contacts in the legal community, particularly for developing articling possibilities» Finding information on practicing law in Ottawa» Getting assistance finding meaningful employment relevant to their experience Participants also shared ideas for finding work before or without having to go through the re-licensing process, including: immigration consulting; working as a paralegal; working as a policy analyst; volunteering in a legal firm. Steering Committee A steering committee was established to determine future group activities. While there were initially many volunteers, a follow-up meeting for the steering committee was very poorly attended (only one couple participated), and additional attempts to reconvene were unsuccessful. Second Meeting A second full-group meeting was held approximately one month later. Attendance was similar to the first meeting (approximately 20 people). Guest speakers were invited: the coordinator of the Centre s support group for internationally trained doctors discussed the kind of activities similar groups have been involved in, and; an internationally trained lawyer from Colombia discussed her experiences finding meaningful employment in Ottawa. During the group discussion after the guest speakers, a few of the participants expressed a significant amount of frustration with the Canadian system. While others tried to convey positive experiences and opportunities, the extreme negativity of a minority seemed to alter the dynamic of the group. Future meetings have had a lower turnout, possibly in part due to this session, highlighting the importance of giving participants a venue to discuss and validate real frustrations while keeping the focus of meetings on positive, achievable objectives. Third Meeting A third meeting was held one month later, with attendance slightly less than half of previous meetings. A counsellor from World Skills, Ottawa s primary organisation offering employment related assistance to newcomers, discussed preparing successful résumés. The presentation included looking at the résumé of an internationally trained lawyer who had been hired by the city, and comparing it against the actual job posting in order to demonstrate its successful elements. Pamphlets While meetings continued, a volunteer at the Centre worked in the background to prepare a series of pamphlets with information on some of the issues group members had identified. Specifically, a pamphlet was developed on navigating the accreditation process for internationally trained lawyers and five pamphlets were developed providing

3 3 information on the following legal career alternatives: paralegal; policy researcher/ program officer; insurance adjuster and claims examiner; court recorder, and; foreign legal consultant. Pamphlets included employment requirements and typical job titles to assist in job searches. These will soon be available online Legal Conversation Circles After a fourth meeting giving participants an opportunity to have a general discussion, a series of legal conversation circles were organized. The Centre invited volunteer law students to participate through the organisation Pro Bono Students of Canada. Students would prepare information on a legal topic for the session (such as the Canadian constitution or abortion law), circulate the information to participants in advance, and then lead a discussion where key vocabulary was practiced. These sessions were not well attended, but sparked interesting debate and were a good venue to practice legal terms. Conversation circles were put on hold during the busy student exam period. Interest amongst the internationally trained lawyers for more of these sessions will be ascertained in the fall when law students are again available for volunteer opportunities. Networking Session Most recently, the need to build contacts was addressed by holding a networking session with internationally trained lawyers and local practising lawyers. Practicing lawyers were contacted through the mailing list of the local law association, the County of Carleton Law Association (CCLA). The event was billed to practicing lawyers as both an opportunity to provide advice to newcomer lawyers seeking to learn more about finding work in Ottawa, as well as an opportunity for Ottawa lawyers to make contacts with individuals with experience in foreign legal regimes. The event was very well attended, with Canadian lawyers and the CCLA showing interest in and a desire to help members of the support group. The president of the CCLA also participated and spoke to the group, offering his Association s assistance in making additional contacts. The CCLA has also offered to put support group members on its mailing list, which (amongst other information) circulates job opportunities at local law firms. Developing Contacts As well as the CCLA, the Centre has contacted the Ontario office of the Canadian Bar Association, the Law Society of Upper Canada and the National Committee on Accreditation to request speakers at future events and to discuss other possible collaborations. So far, no events are planned, but it is useful that contacts have been made and that these organisations are aware that there is an active group of internationally trained legal professionals in Ottawa. The Centre has applied for funding for this initiative through the Law and Innovation Fund. It is unclear at this time whether the application will be successful.

4 4 Table 1. Meeting SUMMARY OF MEETING THEMES Theme 1» Information sharing and informal needs analysis» Formed a steering committee 2» Guest speakers:» Coordinator of successful support group for internationally trained doctors» Internationally trained lawyer, talking about her experiences 3» Résumé workshop, with focus on presenting international legal experience clearly 4» General discussion 5-7» Legal conversation circles o Led by law student volunteers (Pro Bono Students of Canada) 8» Networking with practicing lawyers o Presentation by president of local law association Table 2. SUMMARY OF OTHER ACTIVITIES Activities Description Info Pamphlets» Volunteer prepared a series of pamphlets on re-licensing and other employment opportunities Contacts» Developed contacts with various legal organisations, including local law association Funding» Application for funding was made to the Law and Innovation Fund (application ongoing) Media» Currently working with volunteer to pitch special interest story to local media on internationally trained lawyers Current Status: The Centre has recently put a call-out to group members for future meeting/ speaker themes to ensure continued relevance. A significant amount of advertising was done for the last networking event (e.g. posters at local employment centres), which seems to have drawn in more members.

5 5 We are also in the process of engaging a volunteer with journalism experience to pitch stories to the media to raise community awareness on the issue of internationally trained legal professionals. Next Steps: Upcoming events and activities:» Develop an online community, through Google/Yahoo Groups, to facilitate group communication and distribute resources» Organize a second networking event» Presentation on career development Ideas for the Future: Potential ideas for future activities include:» Developing a resource directory of internationally trained lawyers in the Ottawa area for firms looking for expertise in foreign regimes» Cultivating a relationship with the local legal association and looking for further collaboration opportunities» Advocating for Ottawa University to develop condensed courses for internationally trained lawyers Potential ideas for future guest speakers include:» A representative from the Canadian Bar Association (usually only in Ottawa when speaking to university students in the spring)» A representative from the National Committee on Accreditation to describe the relicensing process (representatives have not been available for previous meetings)» Local lawyers with expertise in specific areas of interest to group members Setting up a support group for internationally trained legal professionals, Step-by-step:» Determine need within the community o Discuss with potential group members whether initiative will meet a need (ideally the need will be identified by a community member first and then brought to the organisation) o Look at any similar initiatives within the region» Send call-out for membership broadly o Ask settlement counsellors for client referrals o Ask job-finding centres to put up posters o Circulate information to other organisations o If possible, search your client database by occupation» At the first meeting, do a formal or informal group needs analysis o Determine a mechanism for members to take on leadership of the group. A steering committee may work for your group, but make sure the additional time commitment is minimal and/ or other options for communication are also available.» Document meetings and outcomes

6 6» Ensure topics continue to be relevant to self-defined group needs» Make contacts with and seek support from potential allies in the community (e.g. local law association) Tips and lessons learned from the Catholic Immigration Centre:» Make clear at the beginning what is the role of your organisation (e.g. facilitating activities) vs. the role of participants (e.g. selecting and directing activities)» Groups need to be encouraged early on to be self-supporting. A steering committee can be a useful option, but if members are difficult to get together, meeting formats may need to be flexible (e.g. rather than in-person meetings use conference calls or even )» Group participants may naturally congregate towards other participants from the same language or cultural group. To keep the group cohesive, make sure all participants have an opportunity to interact with each other, perhaps by using activities that encourage people to engage with other members they don t already know» Make sure you have a note taker to document meetings, both to share with participants and to have a record for yourself» Make sure guest speakers and events present information that is relevant to your group. For example, if an employment counsellor speaks, make sure they tailor their presentation to address the specific employment needs of your group s profession» Keep meetings positive and forward-looking. Let participants share frustrations, but don t let that become the focus» Be realistic with attendance expectations. Remember that group members for the most part lead busy lives and juggle multiple priorities it will often be hard for them to take an evening out to meet» Personal phone calls to potential participants can significantly increase attendance at events» Look for allies within your community. For groups of internationally trained lawyers, try o The Canadian Bar Association o The Law Society of Upper Canada (or provincial equivalent) o Your local lawyers association o The National Committee on Accreditation o Pro Bono Students of Canada o Other volunteers with legal experience (perhaps already identified through mentoring initiatives or the Host program)