Support from the Legal Community

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Epstein Cole partner Sheila Gibb facilitated a weekly shadowing experience for one of the Afghan women judges to provide opportunities to observe a day-to-day family law practice, including client meetings, mediations and court attendances, and to engage with other lawyers in the office.  

Led by President Joanne Lagoudis, members of the Executive of the Peel Law Association invited the five Afghan women judges in Mississauga and all of their “partner” Canadian Judges to a welcome dinner. The host lawyers committed to exploring steps they could take to support the Afghan women judges.

University of Toronto School of Continuing Studies presented a 4 month Brief Law program designed for Internationally Trained Female Law professionals in which three of the Afghan women judges in Toronto participated in person and one participated remotely.  

SCS Celebrates Successful Conclusion of BRIEF-Law Program

The Advocates’ Journal published an article by Justice Anne Molloy “Women I admire: The courage of my sister judges from Afghanistan”.

BLG Foundation provided a donation in the amount of $25,000.

The Peel Law Association gave new laptops to each of the five Afghan women judges in Mississauga. 

Through the support of the Open Society University Network’s Afghan Challenge Fund (ACF) and the generosity of U of T alumni Jean Fraser (JD 1975) and Thomas F. Rahilly (LLB 1969), Judge Hamida Froozanfar has a renewed sense of hope since she started a 12 month fellowship to conduct research on the Canadian criminal justice system’s use of parole by adopting a comparative law approach, supported by Justice Anne Molloy and Professor Martha Shaffer.

The Peel Law Association hosted a career coaching session with the five Afghan women judges in Mississauga and Gina Alexandris Coaching and Consulting about career pathways in and adjacent to law for foreign trained legal professionals.  

For an audience of almost 100 lawyers, the Waterloo Region Law Association held a webinar “Escaping the Taliban” that featured Justice Catrina Braid in conversation with Judge Nazira Safi.  CPD credits were available.

Dentons Canada LLP, initiated by partner Barbara Grossman, hosted a live and remote webinar for 300 members of the firm to celebrate International Women’s Day.  Justice Anne Molloy and Judge Nabila Monawary participated at the Toronto office along with an Afghan woman judge in Calgary and two Afghan women judges in Vancouver, accompanied by Canadian retired judges in B.C. and Alberta.  

BLG LLP hosted a firm-wide remote webinar attended by hundreds of firm members to celebrate International Women’s Day and International Day of Women Judges in which Justice Jasmine Akbarali and Judge Muzghan Adib participated. CPD credits were available. 

Toronto Metropolitan University’s Lincoln Alexander School of Law hosted a “fireside chat” with Justice Catrina Braid and Judge Nazira Safi.

Dentons Canada LLP firm and lawyers donated approximately $10,000.

Bob Scriven, a lawyer based in Kitchener-Waterloo, and his partner Leah Skinner have assisted Judge Nazira Safi in Kitchener and Judge Samira Nemati in Guelph in many ways including hosting a “farm visit” at their home to introduce the newcomers (7 adults and 9 children) to farming in Ontario.

Gina Alexandris career coaching remote meetings begin with Afghan women judges in Mississauga.  Continued almost monthly.

Gina Alexandris career coaching in-person meetings begin with individual Afghan woman judge.

Peel Law Association invited the five Afghan women judges in Mississauga and their Canadian partner judges to the annual “Judges Night” dinner at which over 100 lawyers attended.

Dentons Canada LLP invited the Afghan women judges to a lunch and learn hosted by associate lawyer Ekin Cinar (a lawyer called in both Ontario and Istanbul) including Josie Sabino (Supervisor of Litigation Law Clerks) and Julie Camara (Litigation Law Clerk) along with two articling students (Solomon Ezike and Zain Mookhi) who were already lawyers called to the bar in their home jurisdictions. Ten of the Afghan women judges in the GTA attended and two participated remotely.

At the annual Colloquium Sudbury, Judge Parwin Balagh was the keynote speaker at a dinner that included approximately 100 lawyers, judges and students.  She received a standing ovation.

Ongoing career counselling by Gina Alexandris including advice and review of resumes and personal statements and hosting a regular “conversation circle” with five Afghan judges in Mississauga to enhance their English proficiency.