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HALIFAX – Calgary lawyer Patricia Blocksom, Q.C., is the winner of the Canadian Bar Association's (CBA) 2011 Touchstone Award for her outstanding accomplishments in promoting equality in the Canadian legal community.

“Throughout her career, Patricia has demonstrated an incredible commitment to issues of equality and diversity within the legal profession,” says Aleem Bharmal, Chair of the CBA’s Standing Committee on Equality. “She is a true champion for the improvement of the status of women in Canada and internationally, and is a shining example of the positive impact lawyers can have within their own communities as well as abroad.”

Ms. Blocksom has been involved in numerous groundbreaking equity initiatives within Canada. As a partner at Dunphy Best Blocksom LLP in Calgary, she is a highly regarded matrimonial lawyer who has played a leadership role in the development of the mediation movement within family law disputes. In her capacity as a CBA member, she was appointed as a founding member of the CBA’s National Task Force on Gender Equality in the Legal Profession in 1991. The task force’s 1993 Touchstones for Change report made over 200 recommendations concerning gender equality within the field of law.

Having established herself as one of Canada’s foremost family law practitioners, Ms. Blocksom has also been involved in equity work with several international non-profit organizations. She is a Board member of Future Generations Canada, a charity that facilitates grassroots development in Afghanistan in the areas of health, education, economy, environment and peaceful governance.

Patricia Blocksom is also a Director of the Partners in the Horn of Africa, a charity that attempts to improve the lives of Ethiopians by empowering communities and individuals through local partnerships. She travels annually to Ethiopia at her own expense and on her personal time to help administer projects aimed at improving the lives of Ethiopian girls and women. Some of these projects include micro-finance and self-employment for women, producing and distributing reusable sanitary pads to rural school girls, and building schools and libraries in underserviced communities.

A 1982 graduate of the University of Calgary’s Faculty of Law, Ms. Blocksom was appointed Queen’s Counsel in 1998. In 2001, she was inducted into the International Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers, an organization dedicated to improving the practice of family law internationally. In April 2011, she received the Alberta Order of Excellence, the highest award granted by the Province of Alberta.

The CBA Touchstone Award celebrates the accomplishments of an individual or organization that has excelled in promoting equality in the legal profession, the judiciary, or the legal community in Canada. The award recognizes significant national initiatives to advance equality and/or a significant contribution relating to race, disability, sexual orientation or other diversity issues in the community.

The Standing Committee on Equality will present the award at the Touchstone Reception, held as part of the 2011 Canadian Legal Conference in Halifax, on Tuesday, August 16 at 5:00 p.m. in the Windows room of the World Trade and Convention Centre, level 8. The event is open to accredited media; please contact Hannah Bernstein for accreditation.

The Canadian Bar Association is dedicated to support for the rule of law, and improvement in the law and the administration of justice. Some 37,000 lawyers, law teachers, and law students from across Canada are members.

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MEDIA CONTACT:

Hannah Bernstein
The Canadian Bar Association
Aug 12-16: 902-492-7889
E-mail: hannahb@cba.org