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FAQs

What is discrimination?
Discrimination involves policies or practices that result in differential treatment based on certain personal characteristics, such as a person's race, sex, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, age or creed.

Discrimination means treating someone differently and adversely based on one or any combination of the prohibited grounds for discrimination in Ontario according to the Ontario Human Rights Code.

Discrimination has the effect of
- imposing burdens, obligations, or disadvantages on an individual or group not imposed upon others, or
- withholding or limiting access to opportunities, benefits, and advantages available to others based on a prohibited ground in the Code.
For example, denying a female lawyer admission to a firm's partnership because she took two maternity leaves is discrimination based on sex.

Failure to reasonably accommodate a person who requires accommodation because of one or more personal characteristics listed above, such as a disability, pregnancy, creed or gender identity, may also constitute discrimination. For example, a law firm or paralegal firm that does not have a wheelchair-accessible washroom for its clients with disabilities, or that refuses to provide an ergonomically adjusted workstation for its receptionist to accommodate their medical restrictions, could be liable for discrimination unless it could establish that the required accommodation would create an undue hardship on the firm.

Discrimination can exist even when the differential adverse treatment is unintentional and/or indirect. It is the impact of the practice, policy, decision or conduct in question, not the intention behind it, that determines whether it is discriminatory.
What is harassment?
Harassment involves vexatious (annoying or provoking) comments or conduct that are known to be unwelcome or that ought reasonably to be known to be unwelcome because they might reasonably be expected to cause insecurity, discomfort, offence or humiliation to another person.

The DHC's mandate is restricted to harassment that is based on the prohibited grounds of discrimination under the Ontario Human Rights Code and the Law Society's Rules of Professional Conduct or Paralegal Rules of Conduct.

Examples of harassment include:
- racial or religious slurs
- homophobic jokes
- mocking a person's disability or accent.
Sexual harassment may include
- unwelcome comments about a person's appearance
- demands for sexual favours
- sexually suggestive gestures
- making unnecessary physical contact, including unwanted touching.
Racial harassment may include:
- mocking or insulting a person’s racial identity
- posting cartoons or pictures that degrade persons of a particular racial group
- name calling because of your race, colour, citizenship, place of origin, ancestry, ethnic background or creed.
What happens when I contact the Discrimination and Harassment Counsel?

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What is the impact of discrimination or harassment?
Discrimination has the effect of
- imposing burdens, obligations, or disadvantages on an individual or group not imposed upon others, or
- withholding or limiting access to opportunities, benefits, and advantages available to others based on a prohibited ground in the Code.
Discrimination and harassment also poison relationships and attack the dignity of the victim. The toxic work environment that results also cause problems, such as low morale, reduced productivity, and the loss of valuable employees.
What do the professional conduct rules say about discrimination or harassment?

Discrimination is illegal. It is prohibited by the Ontario Human Rights Code and the Canadian Human Rights Act. It also violates the lawyers' Rules of Professional Conduct, in particular Rule 6.3, which prohibits sexual harassment, and Rule 6.3.1, which prohibits discrimination. Rule 2.03 of the Paralegal Rules of Conduct prohibits harassment and discrimination.

Rule 6.3-3 of the lawyers' Rules of Professional Conduct states:

A lawyer shall not sexually harass a colleague, a staff member, a client, or any other person.

6.3.1-1 states:

A lawyer has a special responsibility to respect the requirements of human rights laws in force in Ontario and, specifically, to honour the obligation not to discriminate on the grounds of race, ancestry, place of origin, colour, ethnic origin, citizenship, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, record of offences (as defined in the Ontario Human Rights Code), marital status, family status, or disability with respect to professional employment of other lawyers, articled students, or any other person or in professional dealings with other licensees or any other person.

Paralegal Rules of Conduct

Discrimination and harassment also violate the Paralegal Rules of Conduct. In particular, Rule 2.03 (4) states: A paralegal shall respect the requirements of human rights laws in force in Ontario and without restricting the generality of the foregoing, a paralegal shall not discriminate on the grounds of race, ancestry, place of origin, colour, ethnic origin, citizenship, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, record of offences, marital status, or disability with respect to the employment of others or in dealings with other licensees or any other person.

Rule 2.03 (3) states:

A paralegal shall not engage in sexual or other forms of harassment of a colleague, a staff member, a client or any other person on the ground of race, ancestry, place of origin, colour, ethnic origin, citizenship, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, record of offences, marital status, family status or disability.
Is the Discrimination and Harassment Counsel Program confidential?
Yes. Read about the protective measures in place to protect confidentiality.
How much does it cost to use the Discrimination and Harassment Counsel Program?

Nothing. The Discrimination and Harassment Counsel (DHC) Program is available free of charge to confidentially assist anyone who may have experienced or witnessed discrimination or harassment by an Ontario lawyer, paralegal or lawyer licensing candidate (articling student or LPP/PPD placement).

This includes lawyers, paralegals, law firm and paralegal firm staff, clients of lawyers and paralegals, law and paralegal students, individuals who are articling or completing work placements and all other members of the public.
Can the Discrimination and Harassment Counsel Program help me if my complaint deals with someone who is not a lawyer or a paralegal?

The mandate of the Discrimination and Harassment Counsel (DHC) Program is limited to dealing with discrimination and harassment complaints against lawyers, paralegals and lawyer licensing candidates (articling student or LPP/PPD placement) of the Law Society.

The DHC therefore cannot assist you with a complaint against individuals such as landlords, the police, judges or a non-legal employer or someone studying to become a paralegal.

The DHC may, however, be able to assist you with a complaint that arises within a law firm, paralegal firm or legal clinic, even if the alleged perpetrator of the discrimination or harassment is not a lawyer or paralegal, because the firm or legal clinic bears ultimate responsibility for the conduct of its employees.

The DHC's mandate includes complaints against student members of the Law Society and can therefore assist you with a complaint against an articling student or LPP/PPD placement who is not yet called to the bar.

The DHC cannot, however, deal with complaints against judges since judges' membership in the Law Society is suspended while they are appointed to the bench. Nor can the DHC deal with a complaint against someone studying to be a paralegal or lawyer, since they are not members of the Law Society and their behaviour is ultimately the responsibility of the institution at which they're studying.
Can the Discrimination and Harassment Counsel Program help me if my complaint is not based on any human rights grounds?

No. The Discrimination and Harassment Counsel Program’s mandate is restricted to discrimination and harassment that is based on the prohibited grounds of discrimination under the Ontario Human Rights Code and the lawyers’ Rules of Professional Conduct or Paralegal Rules of Conduct.

However, you may have other options depending on the nature of the complaint against the lawyer or paralegal. Please contact the Law Society’s Complaints & Compliance Department for more information.
What happens if my complaint doesn't deal with discrimination or harassment?

The Law Society of Ontario is responsible for all complaints about alleged professional misconduct of lawyers and paralegals in Ontario. If you have a complaint about a lawyer or paralegal that involves some other issue (for example your lawyer or paralegal is not returning your telephone calls, or you feel they breached your confidentiality), you can contact the Law Society’s Complaints & Compliance Department
Does the Discrimination and Harassment Counsel Program work for the Law Society?
No. Although the DHC Program is funded by the Law Society of Ontario, it operates independently from the Law Society in a separate office and all information is held in strict confidence. The DHC does not share any information with the Law Society, except for anonymous statistical data on the number and nature of new contacts with the program every six months.
If I contact the Discrimination and Harassment Counsel Program, do I have to file a formal complaint?

No. You are not required to file a complaint. This is a personal decision that only you can make. Some people who contact the Discrimination and Harassment Counsel (DHC) Program just want to tell someone about their problem. Others want information on their options so they can think about whether or not to file a complaint. Others are seeking an informal mechanism for resolving their concerns about a lawyer's conduct. The DHC will support your decision on how you want to handle your situation.

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