Davies is proud to be part of a newly formed partnership of leading Canadian law firms that have committed $1.75 million to the Black Future Lawyers (BFL) program, furthering our commitment to promoting the inclusion, development and advancement of Black people in the legal profession.

Established at the University of Toronto Faculty of Law, BFL provides support and engagement opportunities to Black undergraduate students who aspire to become lawyers. Its goal is to increase the number of Black students who attend law school and join the legal profession.

The 10-year financial commitment will provide the stability and security needed to allow BFL to establish chapters at universities across the country and invest in the future of Canada’s next generation of Black lawyers.

In addition to our financial support, partner firms will collaborate to deliver a business law-focused educational stream for BFL students. These sessions will cover substantive subjects in various areas of law as well as professionalism topics such as networking.

This new partnership is one of several actions we have taken in the last few years to support equity, diversity and inclusion in our firm and the broader profession. As a leading law firm, we recognize that we have an obligation and an opportunity to diversify our pipeline, remove systemic barriers and foster an inclusive workplace. BFL was founded as a collaboration between U of T Law, the U of T Law Black Law Students Association, members of the U of T Law Black alumni community and the broader legal profession.

Through our combined commitments, partner firms will provide operational funding to BFL over the next 10 years and continue to break down barriers to the recruitment, retention and advancement of Black people in our firms. Participating firms include Davies, Blakes, BLG, Cassels Brock, Dentons, Fasken, Goodmans, Gowling WLG, McCarthy Tétrault, McMillan, Norton Rose Fulbright Canada, Osler, Stikeman Elliott and Torys.