Smart & Biggar team members #ChooseToChallenge gender bias on International Women’s Day and every day
Today and throughout the year, Smart & Biggar actively celebrates women's achievements and supports the advancement of women at our firm, in the legal and IP industry and in our local community.
To recognize International Women’s Day, team members across all Smart & Biggar’s offices chose to challenge gender bias by participating in a ‘Lunch and Learn’ workshop focused on understanding gender bias and the role of allies in consciously supporting women and individuals who are part of under-represented and marginalized groups. The workshop included resources from Smart & Biggar’s broader and ongoing Allyship Challenge, which encourages all team members at Smart & Biggar to learn about allyship and commit to being allies both within and outside our workplace
At Smart & Biggar, women hold 50% of leadership and supervisory roles. However, despite this progress, we know that barriers still exist for women and we continue to focus on challenging the status quo through our wide range of Diversity & Inclusion initiatives and programs.
“Smart & Biggar is committed to fostering an environment that supports and empowers women to achieve professional success” said Daphne Lainson, partner and Chair of the Firm. “We support broader initiatives and groups that promote equity, diversity and inclusion for women and other underrepresented groups in law and business.”
This spring, Smart & Biggar has partnered with BDC Capital’s Women in Technology Venture Fund for a Women in Tech (WIT) Masterclass series — “Intellectual Property for Start-ups”. During this free, three-week virtual series, IP lawyers and agents from Smart & Biggar will offer practical insights and knowledge to help female founders and c-suite executives gain an understanding of the business value of IP.
We have also continued with our “F2 – Female Founders” program, now in its third year, focused on connecting and supporting local female entrepreneurs through a range of networking events, both in-person and online.
Additionally, Smart & Biggar is proud to continue our support of women’s initiatives in the IP industry, including the IPIC Women in IP Group (WING) and the AIPLA Women in IP networking events hosted across Canada. These organizations and events bring together dozens of women in legal and IP to connect, share and encourage one another. Together with these organizations, Smart & Biggar shares a common goal to inspire and empower women in IP and recognize the tremendous contributions and achievements of women in the innovation, creative, science, math, business, engineering and technology spheres.
Smart & Biggar is Canada's largest firm practising exclusively in intellectual property and technology law, with offices in Ottawa, Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver and Calgary. We have been leaders in intellectual property and technology law for over a century.