McCarthy Tétrault, one of Canada’s largest law firms, recently announced that it had donated $200,000 to Pro Bono Students Canada (PBSC), a U of T-based organization that finds volunteer legal work for law students.
“Each year, over 1000 law students provide pro bono services across Canada and we see more student interest every year,” said PBSC’s national director, Pam Shime. “With the support of McCarthy Tétrault, we will be able to enhance our programs as we grow. We are very excited about this precedent-setting partnership.”
Trevor Bell, a McCarthy Tétrault spokesman, said “This is a great opportunity to link our commitment to pro bono legal services with our support of Canadian law schools. Everybody wins.”
It’s not just McCarthy Tétrault’s cash that will help PBSC but its professional clout as well. The firm has nearly 800 lawyers across Canada and offices in New York and London. They are frequently ranked among the top firms in various categories by legal directories: the firm was ranked #1 by Thomson Financial for its work on merger and acquisition law last year.
Both PBSC and McCarthy Tétrault say the firm’s decision to become involved with PBSC greatly strengthens the lawyer-student mentoring relationships that PBSC relies on. Law students who volunteer through PBSC give legal aid to over 500 organizations including public interest and community support groups. PBSC says that law students in the 17 Canadian universities it works with now have the opportunity to gain more experience in their profession by working with some of Canada’s top lawyers.
PBSC is primarily funded by the Law Foundation of Ontario and the program is housed at the U of T’s faculty of Law.
W. Iain Scott, the CEO and chairman of McCarthy Tétrault, said “like Pro Bono Students Canada, McCarthy Tétrault is committed to helping Canadian communities through pro bono work. We are pleased to support PBSC as its Law Firm Partner.”
