LinkedIn prompted me to ask myself who was a woman who inspired me in my career and use this hashtag #IWD25 — good for LinkedIn!!

As luck would have it I spent most of today with my first ever career mentor, whom I had not seen in perhaps 35 years, just about. Mary Eberts. The great, incomparable, amazing Mary Eberts.

As a very young law student, who entered the U of T Faculty of Law at the tender age of just 20, with only two years of undergraduate studies and exactly no degree under my belt, I found myself working on files for LEAF on two very important interventions, with Mary at the helm. Sullivan and LeMay and Daigle.

R. v. Sullivan, 1991 CanLII 85 (SCC), [1991] 1 SCR 489, <https://canlii.ca/t/1fslr>

Tremblay v. Daigle, 1989 CanLII 33 (SCC), [1989] 2 SCR 530, <https://canlii.ca/t/1ft3t>

Both were cases concerning what in the US anyway were called “maternal fetal conflicts”, which was the topic of my “thesis” paper in law school and I had actually taken an entire course on abortion during my undergrad as I was going to “minor” in philosophy. Abortion cases were relevant in the late 80s in Canada as they are so tragically once again relevant in the U.S. in 2025.

I don’t think I fully appreciated, at the time, what an extraordinary privilege it was to watch Mary, in person, in the Supreme Court of Canada, as she painted the picture of the reality of a woman bearing an unwanted pregnancy. She was then, as she remains today, the most compelling speaker I’ve ever met.

In the room today, among many other great minds, I found myself with Mary to my right, and Sarah Rankin on my left (albeit on a screen). As I introduced myself and explained my first role in an intervention was as Mary’s student, Sarah introduced herself as having appeared in the SCC first with me. Generations of women paying it forward, mentoring each other.

Forever grateful for this journey with my women colleagues in the criminal and constitutional law realms. And eternally indebted to Mary for all she taught me.

Happy IWD to all my wonderful Women In Canadian Criminal Defence colleagues! 💜