Rama First Nation member nominated for prestigious list compiled by Canadian law publication
By Sam Laskaris
ORILLIA – A Rama First Nation lawyer has been nominated for a prestigious distinction from a leading law publication.
Ted Williams, Chief of Chippewas of Rama First Nation, nominated Stephanie Willsey for Canadian Lawyer’s Top 25 Most Influential list.
This is the 13th year the publication has sought nominees for its list, recognizing those who have been an influence in the justice system and legal profession in Canada.
Members of the public were able to submit nominees until Apr. 8. Officials from the magazine will then select those who will be included on the 2022 list.
Those who will eventually be chosen will be honoured for having made an impact on laws, business, and government during the last 18 months.
“It’s a great honour,” Willsey said of her nomination. “I’m very, very honoured to have been nominated by our Chief.”
Willsey, 28, is certainly a worthy nominee. She was called to the bar in 2019 and is currently working for the Toronto-based law firm McCarthy Tétrault.
Her biggest accomplishment thus far was recently winning an $8 billion class-action lawsuit against the Canadian government, on behalf of Indigenous communities that have not had access to clean drinking water.
“I’ve been working on it since even before I was called to the bar on behalf of First Nations,” said Willsey, who has been primarily working remotely from her Orillia home during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Willsey added she is keen to pick up additional work now through various First Nations.
Chief Williams was among those who was impressed with Willsey’s efforts during her high-profile case versus the federal government.
“To our people, water is life, and Stephanie has successfully fought for this,” Chief Williams wrote in his nomination application. “She has negotiated an agreement that provides for compensation but also ensures a brighter future for those affected. A future with proper infrastructure, protocols, and funding for operations and maintenance. The settlement provides a binding commitment and therefore greater hope for impacted First Nations.”
Willsey graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree from Montreal’s McGill University in 2015. Three years later, she obtained her Juris Doctor (JD) degree from the University of British Columbia.
She is currently a member of the Indigenous Bar Association as well as the Law Society of Ontario, the Ontario Bar Association, the Advocates’ Society, and the Canadian Bar Association.
Though winning a case against the federal government has been a career highlight thus far, Chief Williams said Willsey has also made several other key contributions.
“In addition to this monumental class action, she has mentored other Indigenous lawyers and law students and assisted with her firm’s recruitment and retention of Indigenous people,” he said. “The legal industry needs more Indigenous representation and Stephanie advocates for that in everything that she does.”
Chief Williams added Willsey also gives back in another way.
“She also mentors Indigenous high school students, so they too can see our people in the profession,” he said. “Stephanie has made an impressive impact on Indigenous lawyers and youth alike.”
Voting for the Top 25 Canadian Influential Lawyers is now opened on their webpage.