December Member Profile: Gabrielle Wright
We’re honoured to highlight another brilliant Black woman, Gabrielle Wright. An Associate with Blakes, Gabrielle had an unusual path to becoming a lawyer. She didn’t grow up dreaming of law. Instead, Gabrielle chose to become a registered nurse. As a first-generation post-secondary student, Gabrielle’s Jamaican roots inclined her towards a practical career, but after a few years, she wanted a new challenge.
In 2020, while Gabrielle worked as a nurse supporting COVID-19 patients, she finished her law degree at Osgoode Hall Law School. By the end of the year, Gabrielle was working full-time as a lawyer on Bay Street. Although it was intimidating to pursue a position at Blakes, Gabrielle found encouragement in mentorship and the presence of Black colleagues.
“Mentorship was very, very important for me,” said Gabrielle as she reflected on how she made her journey to law. “Unfortunately, women of colour bear the additional burden of having to consider how much of our authentic selves we can bring to certain spaces, particularly spaces where we are poorly represented.”
Gabrielle also credits the large number of Black professional networks in Toronto with helping her meet mentors. She felt prepared for the three-day recruitment and interview process at Blakes. Having Black female mentorship was instrumental to her success, as it created a safe space for her to ask the types of questions that are unique to Black professionals with lived experience.
Gabrielle has been impressed by the numerous initiatives Blakes has to support people of colour and under-represented groups. The Firm prides itself on identifying places where there might be discrepancies for different communities and individuals. One example Gabrielle spoke of is how Blakes noticed that certain lawyers got more work based on where they sat. This led to some individuals having more billable hours than others, so Blakes implemented standardized work allocations to make the distribution of work more equitable among junior associates. Small, process-driven steps like this — as well as the introduction of a number of affinity groups like Black@Blakes and Women@Blakes — are just the beginning of the work the Firm is doing to bridge the gap.
Growing up, Gabrielle never envisioned a future in law. But through mentorship and education, she now finds herself at one of the top firms in Canada. Her biggest advice for those looking to make this type of career change is to be themselves.
“Remain authentic to yourself. Don’t feel pressured to conform to a narrow view of how a corporate person is supposed to look. Women can be themselves and still be taken seriously. For example, I will never straighten my hair. This is me and if I want to wear six gold rings to work, that’s who I am.”
Gabrielle is an Associate with Blakes. Visit her LinkedIn profile to learn more about her and her work at Blakes.
