An Interview with Atrisha Lewis

Atrisha Lewis is a partner at McCarthy Tétrault LLP, with a practice that focuses on technology and finance litigation, and on medical malpractice trials. Lewis graduated from the University of Toronto Faculty of Law in 2012.

Choosing Litigation

Though she was always interested in litigation, Lewis was not certain what practice area she would ultimately go into. She cofounded the Litigation Association, alongside another student, in part to learn more about the field. Lewis notes that in her time at U of T there were plenty of transactionally minded groups but that she was more interested in learning about litigation and "what the scope of the practice would be."

As an articling student at McCarthy’s, Lewis was still open to other practice areas, and spent four months of her articling period working on transactional work. Ultimately, however, she chose litigation. She explains that her choice was in part motivated by an early experience: "I had the benefit of doing a hearing while I was articling where I prosecuted a student for misconduct at one of the Ontario universities, and I did that by myself as the lead counsel. So, I cross examined witnesses, I made opening and closing submissions, and that experience just taught me: this is what I want to do. That’s ultimately why I chose to be hired back into litigation.”

Lewis’s Litigation Practice

Though she now has particular expertise in litigation involving the technology and financial sectors, Lewis did not set out to become a specialist, and does not consider herself one now. “I consider myself to have been and continue to be a taxi-cab litigator," she explains. "Whatever comes in the door I will take and I will do. That is very different from lots of people but it’s the way that I like to practice."

Another large part of her practice includes medical malpractice cases. Along with Lerners and Lenczner Slaght, McCarthy Tétrault represents physicians for the Canadian Medical Protective Association. Lewis describes the medical malpractice cases as fascinating, emphasizing the difficulty involved in trying to determine standard medical practice at the time of the incident in question, and the way that every case brings up new issues.

“I did a case right before the pandemic about an aorta coarctation," Lewis reflects. "I learned a lot about stents—stents are like a tiny toilet paper roll that people put into the aorta to keep the aorta that’s narrowed open, so that it’s not narrow anymore. Learning about the evolution of that technology, I was trying to understand: was it the physicians fault? Or was it just the limitations of stents at that time, and trying to parse that through, I find that very fascinating.”

A voice for young lawyers

In 2019, Lewis ran for, and won, a seat as a Bencher for the Law Society of Ontario. Benchers are the directors of the Law Society, the body that regulates lawyers in Ontario. Lewis ran because she wanted younger lawyers to have a voice in the organization that shapes their careers: “Unfortunately", she remarks, "we have a bias in this profession for seniority and I think it has some unintended consequences. The body that makes decisions that impact junior lawyers and recent calls doesn’t typically have representation from those groups.” Lewis adds that a seniority bias can lead to Benchers being “out of touch with the realities of being a new lawyer," especially when it comes to issues such as the rising cost of tuition and cost of living. Even now, as a partner, Lewis is still one of the youngest Benchers.

Lewis feels that even though younger voices are now being heard in the Law Society, they still don’t always carry the day. Currently, she is pushing for a minimum wage for articling students. "It’s not necessarily universally well received by the other benchers," she says. "I think that’s an issue that directly impacts, not only members of our profession, but people who are right on the cusp of becoming members of our profession.”

Bay Street’s approach to Diversity

Diversity was not a priority for Bay Street until 2017. Lewis describes the publication of Hadiya Roderique's article, Black on Bay Street, as a groundbreaking moment. "For the very first time," Lewis notes, "Bay Street corridors were talking about race and race issues."

Since Roderique's article, McCarthy's has hired a chief inclusion officer and has expanded a number of initiatives to address inequities. One such initiative is the 1L program for Black and Indigenous students. However, Lewis explains that while there are many firms, such as her own, that care about embracing diversity, there are also still many firms and lawyers who do not see diversity as a priority. She offers the "StopSOP" slate, newly elected benchers, as one example. "Frankly," Lewis says, "they campaigned on a platform against equity initiatives in place at the low society and were successful. There’s still large portions of the bar who are hostile to the idea of equity. I think you’ll find that there are a number of workplaces, ones that embrace diversity, and ones that are very hostile to it.”

Advice for Law Students

It can be daunting for students to choose an employer, especially when they worry the firm may not be a safe environment for someone with their identity. Lewis has a few pieces of advice to help students navigate the legal field’s approach to diversity, the first being: just ask. “When you’re interviewing, ask the tough questions," she urges. "I did the 2L recruit this year for McCarthy’s, and every single student I met, literally every single student, regardless of whether they were female or male, racialized or not, asked about our Inclusion Now and our Inclusion initiatives. And I was happy to hear that, because it gives a safety to racialized students who want to ask the question."

Lewis also suggests that students join affinity groups run by people with their background and identity. This can help connect them with mentors, with people in other firms, and with support. Additionally, she notes, “[t]he Law Society has a Discrimination and Harassment council, which is a free hotline, so to speak, where you’re connected with human rights experts who can give you guidance. So, if you’ve encountered a situation and you’re just not really sure what to do, or what to think, it’s a great free resource that the Law Society provides.”

For current students, Lewis offers two final pieces of advice to get the most out of law school: “Develop relationships with your peers. It sounds strange, but now that I’m almost ten years out from law school, the number of referrals I’ve gotten from law school classmates, even people I didn’t know very well, or referrals I’ve made to them—it’s remarkable. I think people forget, especially because at times it can feel very competitive with respect to grades, but your classmates aren’t your competitors. They’re going to be your friends at the bar. The second piece of advice I would say is to have fun. I think people take law school so seriously, and I understand the stakes are high, tuition is high, but at the end of the day it should be fun."