Legal Adjacency is a values-driven company that believes in equity, diversity, and inclusion for our people, clients, partners, vendors, and suppliers, and, most of all, our community.

To Legal Adjacency, equity, diversity, and inclusion is not a business strategy. Embracing, respecting, accepting, and valuing differences across race, gender, age, religion, identity, ability, and experience is, quite simply, the right thing to do.

For us, the concept of diversity and inclusion is about capturing the uniqueness of the individual; creating an environment that values and respects individuals for their talents, skills, and abilities to the benefit of the collective*. Equity ensures that people of all identities are treated fairly, and that each person’s individual rights, responsibilities, or opportunities are not dependent upon identity.

This statement shows how we are putting actions behind our words. We publish our commitments, so you – and anyone else – can hold us accountable.

A commitment to equity, diversity, and inclusion is important, but “doing the work” is vital. At Legal Adjacency, we recognize that we have a lot of work to do and here is how we are approaching that work.

As an organization, Legal Adjacency is committed to:

• investing at least 25% of its annual corporate donations and sponsorships to initiatives that promote investment and create economic opportunities in underrepresented or marginalized communities;
• investing at least 25% of its annual corporate donations and sponsorships to mental health support initiatives;
• actively using businesses owned by underrepresented groups as our service providers and vendors; and
• supporting service providers and vendors whose ownership or employee base reflects a commitment to diversity and inclusion.

Each Legal Adjacency employee is committed to:

• taking at least 10 hours of annual training in topics related to equity, diversity, and inclusion, including training that recognizes and acknowledges privilege and identifies ways those in a position of privilege can be allies, advocates, and supporters of those from diverse backgrounds;
• reading at least 10 books or articles annually related to diversity or specific demographic groups in the workplace or the legal profession; and
• taking it upon themselves to learn about and appreciate the history and perspectives of those who are of different races, genders, religions, abilities, identities, or experiences than their own.

Legal Adjacency and its employees will:

• not tolerate racism, xenophobia, sexism, homophobia, or other forms of discrimination, harassment, or intolerance;
• listen with patience and empathy and work to create an environment conducive to dialogue;
• actively intervene when witnessing any inappropriate comments or behaviour;
• identify and interrupt bias and stereotyping, whether conscious or unconscious, subtle, or overt;
• actively intervene when witnessing inappropriate comments or behaviour;
• say something when they think someone might not be getting an opportunity because of unconscious bias;
• strive to notice who isn’t at the table and do what they can to include them at meetings, calls, events, etc.
• celebrate diverse cultures through events and recognition, and other observations throughout the year that highlight multiculturalism and diversity and inclusion;
• advocate, open doors, make connections, and find opportunities for underrepresented members of the legal profession or law students;
• act as mentors to junior lawyers or law students from different backgrounds than our own;
• encourage others in the legal profession to join them in attending equity, diversity, and inclusion programs or events; and
• use the Legal Adjacency website and social media accounts as platforms to support and celebrate equity, diversity, and inclusion.

This is the work we at Legal Adjacency will do. We know that we have more work to do. And so, we are committed to periodically asking ourselves, “what else could we be doing to enhance equity, diversity and inclusion?”