nikki
 

Prior to founding IDEA Consulting Group, Nikki served as Chief Inclusion Officer of McCarthy Tétrault LLP, where she created a market-leading program called “Inclusion Now,” an ambitious strategy aimed at attracting, retaining, and advancing members of equity-deserving groups. In both 2020 and 2021, Inclusion Now was named Diversity Program of the Year at the Canadian Law Awards, in 2021 for the Firm’s work to tackle anti-Black racism and Indigenous reconciliation. From 2019-2023, the firm was named one of Canada’s Best Diversity Employers by Mediacorp. In 2021, Nikki was awarded the CBA’s LGBTQ Hero Award, as well as the Start Proud Advocacy Award, in recognition of her work on transgender workplace inclusion and her visibility as a member of the 2SLGBTQIA+ community.

 

Nikki earned her B.A. (Hons.) (summa cum laude) from York University, an M.A. from New School University in New York City, where she was a Fulbright Fellow, and her LL.B. from the University of Toronto. After graduating law school with multiple awards and honours, Nikki summered at Paul Wiess in New York City, clerked at the Ontario Court of Appeal, practiced family law at Epstein Cole LLP in Toronto, and went on to serve as Executive Director of the Faculty of Law at the University of Toronto, where she earned a “Stepping Up” award for her achievements in advancing equity and diversity at the Faculty.

 

In 2010, Nikki took on the role of National Director of Pro Bono Students Canada. Under her leadership, PBSC earned numerous awards and accolades, and became a leader in experiential learning in legal education and the delivery of pro bono services to low-income individuals and non-profit organizations. Nikki’s expertise in designing programs that serve underrepresented Canadians includes experience working on issues affecting women survivors of gender-based violence, people living in poverty, at-risk youth, newcomers, and members of the 2SLGBTQIA+ community. One of Nikki’s flagstone projects involved launching a ground-breaking Indigenous Human Rights Clinic in partnership with the Ontario Federation of Indigenous Friendship Centres. That program, now funded by the Department of Justice, was awarded the American College of Trial Lawyers Emil Gumpert Award. 

​

In 2017, Nikki was awarded a prestigious Community Leaders in Justice Fellowship from the Law Foundation of Ontario. During a one-year research leave from PBSC, Nikki studied and wrote about limited scope retainers as a tool for enhancing access to justice for lower- and middle-income Canadians. Working with the University of Windsor Faculty of Law, and senior leaders of the family bar and bench, Nikki developed a new model of limited scope services called “legal coaching”, built support within the bar for this practice model, and created a five-day curriculum for family lawyers interested in learning how to deliver coaching services safely, effectively, and profitably. At the end of her Fellowship, Nikki was invited by Carswell to edit a book on limited scope retainers.

 

Over the course of her career, Nikki has delivered hundreds of presentations, workshops and keynote speeches nationally and internationally, and has written on inclusion and social justice topics in the Globe & Mail, Toronto Star, Ottawa Citizen, Huffington Post, and Canadian Lawyer. In 2013, 2015, 2017 and 2019, Nikki was nominated by Canadian Lawyer as one of the top 25 “Changemakers” in the legal profession, for her work advancing equity.

 

Nikki is a regular speaker at professional conferences and has delivered hundreds of presentations, workshops, and keynote speeches nationally and internationally. Nikki is a former member of the Advisory Board of the Lexpert Zenith Awards, Legal Aid Ontario’s Family Law Advisory Committee, and the Law Society of Ontario’s Equity Advisory Group, which provides advice to Benchers on equity and diversity issues affecting diverse communities in the legal profession.