Equality, Diversity, Inclusion (EDI)

Question: How can Ontario lawyers and paralegals meet the annual CPD Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Professionalism Hour requirement in the Law Society of Ontario’s CPD rules?

Answer: In Ontario, lawyers and paralegals who are subject to the Law Society of Ontario CPD Requirement generally must complete at least one accredited EDI Professionalism Hour in each calendar year as part of the annual Professionalism Hours requirement, not as an extra hour beyond the ordinary annual total;  for those under the full annual CPD Requirement, the Law Society generally expects at least twelve CPD Hours each year, including at least three Professionalism Hours, with at least one of those Professionalism Hours addressing EDI, and both the EDI Professionalism Hour and the Professionalism Hours must be Law Society accredited before you can rely on them;  for help finding and hosting Law Society-accredited EDI Professionalism Hour legal education that fits your year, contact CPD.Legal™ at (800) 551-5751.

Ontario CPD Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Requirements for Lawyers and Paralegals

Ontario lawyers and paralegals who are subject to the Law Society of Ontario Continuing Professional Development (CPD) Requirement must complete at least one EDI Professionalism Hour in each calendar year.  The Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) requirement forms part of the annual Professionalism Hours requirement rather than creating an additional hour of CPD beyond the ordinary annual total.

For licensees subject to the full annual CPD Requirement, the Law Society generally requires at least twelve CPD Hours each calendar year, consisting of a minimum of three Professionalism Hours and up to nine Substantive Hours.  At least one of those three Professionalism Hours must address EDI.  Importantly, Professionalism Hours, including EDI Professionalism Hours, must be accredited by the Law Society before they can be relied upon to satisfy the applicable Professionalism requirement.

How the Annual EDI Requirement Fits Within Ontario CPD

The EDI requirement is a component of the Professionalism requirement.  A licensee completing one accredited EDI Professionalism Hour is therefore satisfying both the EDI requirement and one hour of the broader Professionalism requirement for that reporting year.

• Total annual CPD: Licensees subject to the full requirement generally complete at least twelve CPD Hours each calendar year.
• Professionalism: At least three of those hours must be Professionalism Hours.
• EDI: At least one of the required Professionalism Hours must address equality, diversity and inclusion.
• Substantive CPD: Up to nine hours may consist of eligible Substantive Hours.
• Accreditation: Professionalism Hours, including EDI Professionalism Hours, must be accredited by the Law Society.  Substantive Hours do not require Law Society accreditation.

The present annual EDI requirement followed an introductory requirement that applied from January 1, 2018 through December 31, 2020.  During that initial period, lawyers and paralegals subject to the requirement were required to complete a total of three accredited EDI Professionalism Hours. Beginning in 2021, the requirement became at least one EDI Professionalism Hour in each year.

Who Must Complete EDI Professionalism Hours?

The mandatory EDI requirement applies to lawyers and paralegals who are subject to the Law Society's CPD Requirement.  The Law Society encourages all lawyers and paralegals to participate in equality, diversity and inclusion education, but the mandatory EDI component follows the licensee's underlying obligation to complete CPD.

Lawyers and paralegals in the one hundred per cent fee-paying category are generally subject to the CPD Requirement.  Licensees in certain other fee categories may also be subject to the requirement when providing legal services based on Ontario or Canadian law, including legal services provided on a pro bono basis.

A lawyer or paralegal whose practice or fee status changes during a calendar year may have a different CPD calculation.  The Law Society applies its CPD rules to the months or partial months during which the licensee is subject to the requirement, so a licensee with a mid-year change should determine the applicable requirement rather than assuming that the ordinary full-year calculation necessarily applies.

What Qualifies for EDI Professionalism Accreditation?

The Law Society identifies a range of equality, diversity and inclusion subjects that may qualify for EDI Professionalism accreditation.  The relevant content must satisfy the Law Society's accreditation criteria; a program does not qualify merely because equality, diversity, human rights, cultural awareness, or a related subject appears somewhere in its title or materials.

Foundational subjects that may qualify include:

• EDI concepts and terminology: Concepts, themes, terminology, and practical principles concerning equality, diversity and inclusion.
• Barriers affecting equity-seeking groups: Historical and demographic context relevant to understanding and addressing barriers faced by equity-seeking groups.
• Reconciliation and Indigenous cultural competency: Relevant themes arising from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada's Calls to Action, including programming that enhances Indigenous cultural competency.
• Inclusive practices: Theoretical and practical approaches to advancing inclusion and learning relevant practices from different sectors and disciplines.

EDI Professionalism accreditation can also extend to programming addressing equality, diversity and inclusion within legal workplaces.  The Law Society identifies subjects such as preventing discrimination and harassment, improving communication and collaborative problem solving, responding appropriately to workplace complaints, recruitment and advancement practices, and other measures directed toward reducing barriers within the legal professions.

EDI in the Legal Workplace

The Law Society's EDI requirement has a particular connection to the professional environment in which lawyers and paralegals practise.  Its stated purpose includes increasing awareness of challenges faced by racialized licensees and assisting in enhancing diversity and inclusion within Ontario legal workplaces.

Depending upon the content and accreditation, relevant programming may address matters including:

• preventing discrimination, harassment, sexual harassment, and violence in legal workplaces;
• identifying and addressing barriers affecting equity-seeking groups;
• effective communication and collaborative problem solving;
• appropriate investigation and response to workplace complaints involving discrimination or harassment;
• recruitment, hiring, retention, and advancement practices affecting licensees from equity-seeking groups;
• unconscious bias and its potential effect on professional and workplace decision-making; and
• practical approaches to creating and maintaining inclusive legal workplaces.

Cultural competence or cultural awareness programming may also satisfy the EDI Professionalism criteria where the content supports the Law Society's objectives concerning a legal profession reflective of Ontario's population and free from discrimination and harassment.

Not Every Equality or Diversity Topic Qualifies

The fact that educational content concerns equality, diversity, human rights, or a related social issue does not automatically make the activity eligible for EDI Professionalism Hours.  The content must satisfy the Law Society's EDI Professionalism accreditation criteria and must actually have been accredited where accreditation is required.

For example, substantive law concerning human rights or equality does not necessarily constitute EDI Professionalism content merely because the underlying law concerns discrimination.  The Law Society distinguishes substantive legal education from professionalism content addressing a lawyer's or paralegal's professional obligations and the advancement of equality, diversity and inclusion within the practice of law and legal workplaces.

This distinction makes the accreditation assigned to a program important.  A licensee intending to use a particular program to satisfy the annual EDI requirement should verify the number and type of accredited hours associated with that program rather than relying solely upon its subject matter.

Accreditation Is Essential for EDI Professionalism Hours

EDI Professionalism Hours must be accredited by the Law Society of Ontario. This differs from Substantive Hours, which do not require Law Society accreditation provided the activity otherwise satisfies the applicable CPD criteria.

Accredited programming containing EDI Professionalism Hours can generally be identified through the accreditation information provided with the program materials.  The number of accredited EDI Hours should be distinguished from other Professionalism Hours and from Substantive Hours that may be available through the same program.

The Law Society's accreditation framework also permits various forms of eligible programming and activity.  Depending upon the applicable requirements and accreditation, CPD may be delivered through live programs, interactive online courses, audio programs, webcasts, study groups, teaching, writing, and other eligible educational activities.  The availability of a particular delivery format does not remove the requirement for Professionalism and EDI Professionalism content to have the necessary accreditation.

How EDI Hours Count Toward the Professionalism Requirement

EDI Professionalism Hours are a subset of Professionalism Hours.  They are not a separate fourth category of annual CPD that must be completed in addition to Professionalism and Substantive Hours.

For example, a licensee completing a program accredited for one EDI Professionalism Hour and two other Professionalism Hours would generally have accumulated three Professionalism Hours: one EDI Professionalism Hour plus two non-EDI Professionalism Hours.

Additional accredited EDI Professionalism Hours may also contribute toward the licensee's Professionalism requirement for the year in which they are completed.  Where Professionalism Hours exceed the annual Professionalism requirement, the Law Society's reporting system may apply excess Professionalism Hours toward the Substantive requirement for that reporting year in accordance with its applicable reporting rules.

Reporting EDI Professionalism Hours in LSO Connects

Lawyers and paralegals report EDI Professionalism Hours through LSO Connects, together with their other CPD activity.  Because EDI Professionalism Hours are already a subset of Professionalism Hours, they should not be entered twice.

1. Access LSO Connects: Sign in to the licensee account used for Law Society reporting.
2. Open Continuing Professional Development: Select the Continuing Professional Development (CPD) area.
3. Select the reporting year: Access the appropriate year from the CPD history.
4. Add the CPD activity: Enter the applicable program or activity and its accredited hours.
5. Enter EDI Hours in the correct field: Accredited EDI Professionalism time is reported in the EDI Hours field rather than being duplicated in the ordinary Professionalism Hours field.
6. Review the CPD history: Confirm that the activity and applicable hours have been recorded correctly.

If a program contains both EDI Professionalism Hours and other Professionalism Hours, the respective portions are reported separately.  For example, where a program provides one EDI Professionalism Hour and two non-EDI Professionalism Hours, the licensee would report one hour as EDI and two hours as Professionalism rather than reporting all three hours in both categories.

Common EDI CPD Compliance Errors

The structure of the requirement creates several potential reporting and compliance errors.  These are generally avoidable by confirming the licensee's annual requirement, verifying accreditation before relying upon a program, and reviewing the resulting CPD record.

• Assuming EDI is an additional thirteenth hour: For a licensee subject to the full annual requirement, the EDI Hour is included within the required Professionalism Hours and annual CPD total.
• Completing unaccredited EDI content: Relevant subject matter alone does not satisfy the Professionalism requirement.  EDI Professionalism Hours must have the required Law Society accreditation.
• Double-reporting an EDI Hour: An EDI Professionalism Hour should not be entered once as EDI and again as an ordinary Professionalism Hour.
• Confusing substantive human-rights law with EDI Professionalism: Substantive legal education involving equality or human-rights law is not automatically accredited EDI Professionalism content.
• Assuming all licensees have an identical annual requirement: Fee category, practice status, and changes during the reporting year can affect whether and to what extent a licensee is subject to CPD requirements.
• Failing to verify the CPD history: Licensees should review their reported activity in LSO Connects to confirm that the correct categories and hours have been recorded.

Why the EDI Requirement Forms Part of Professionalism CPD

The Law Society describes mandatory EDI education as intended to increase awareness of challenges faced by racialized licensees and enhance diversity and inclusion within Ontario legal workplaces.  The broader accreditation framework recognizes that equality, diversity and inclusion can affect professional responsibility, workplace practices, communication, institutional barriers, cultural competency, and the delivery of legal services.

Accordingly, the EDI requirement is integrated into Professionalism CPD rather than treated simply as substantive instruction concerning equality or human-rights law.  The focus is on professional knowledge, conduct, awareness, and practices relevant to lawyers and paralegals operating within Ontario's legal professions.

Confirming the Current Law Society Requirements

CPD requirements, accreditation criteria, reporting systems, and administrative procedures can change.  Ontario lawyers and paralegals should therefore verify their current obligations and the accreditation assigned to particular programs through the Law Society of Ontario's Continuing Professional Development information before relying upon a program or activity to satisfy an annual requirement.

The Law Society currently states that licensees subject to the full CPD Requirement must complete at least twelve CPD Hours annually, including at least three Professionalism Hours, with at least one Professionalism Hour addressing equality, diversity and inclusion.  Professionalism Hours, including EDI Professionalism Hours, require Law Society accreditation. :contentReference[oaicite:0]{index=0}

Conclusion

Ontario's EDI CPD requirement is an integrated component of the Law Society's broader Continuing Professional Development framework.  For lawyers and paralegals subject to the full annual CPD Requirement, at least one of the minimum three Professionalism Hours must address equality, diversity and inclusion, and the EDI Professionalism content must be accredited by the Law Society.  Careful selection of accredited programming and accurate reporting in LSO Connects are therefore important parts of annual CPD compliance.