Louise Arbour is ‘the coolest lawyer ever. Hands down’

This is the speech Karen Ho delivered for Isfahan Merali as she was given the Honsberger Award at the 2022 Toronto Lawyers Association Gala.

Good evening. My name is Karen Ho and I have had the good fortune of meeting Isfahan early in my legal career. I had reached out with a dreaded – not just cold call, but – cold email, and was so surprised when I received an incredibly warm and supportive response. Now, those of you who know Isfahan will know that this type of response is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to Isfahan giving back to the profession. 

I am incredibly grateful for her encouragement, mentorship, and now friendship, and it also comes as no great surprise for me to learn that Isfahan’s deep and meaningful contributions to the profession are being recognized with this award. Although she would have loved to be here, unfortunately, Isfahan cannot join us in person tonight and I am here to share some words on her behalf.

Isfahan Merali’s speech

Good evening. I first want to send my sincere apologies for not being able to join you this evening. I would have loved to be here tonight, but unfortunately cannot.

The TLA very kindly asked me if I wanted to give some remarks through a pre-recorded zoom video. Knowing that many of us spend our days in front of a zoom screen, I decided I would spare you all from yet another zoom screen on this special and lovely evening at the TLA gala. Instead, I am deeply fortunate that my friend and colleague Karen Ho has agreed to say a few things on my behalf.

Firstly, I would like to acknowledge the exceptional recipient of the TLA’s 2022 Award of Distinction, The Honourable Louise Arbour. I am sure that she does not remember me, but I was deeply marked by the first time I met her.

We shared a dinner table with others who attended a conference I had co-chaired in 1998 at the U of T Law School, on International Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. The Honourable Louise Arbour was our Keynote speaker.  At the conference dinner, she told us about her deeply challenging field visits while she was Chief Prosecutor for the International Criminal Tribunals for the Former Yugoslavia.

I was deeply moved by her extraordinary dedication to this difficult human rights and criminal law work. She spoke of the challenges faced in her role, and in the work of the ICC. We loved hearing her speak that evening, and honestly, all of us could have spent the entire evening just listening to her.

But what I remember most about that lovely, lovely evening was being completely surprised by one thing.  And this one thing was when the Honourable Louise Arbour leaned over, and conspiratorially said, that if she could do it all over again, her career I think she meant, that she would have loved to be a spy. A spy.

And so, on that evening the Honourable Louise Arbour went down in my books as the coolest lawyer ever. Hands down. I send her my warmest congratulations on this well-deserved award tonight, and my very best wishes for her adventures ahead.

Second, I would like to convey my warm congratulations to Steven Aylward, recipient of the TLA’s 2022 Emerging Excellence Award.  While I have not yet had the honour of meeting Steven in person, the human rights lawyer in me is a huge fan of his exceptional work in R v. Sharma advancing justice for Indigenous and marginalized communities. I applaud him for the work he keeps doing for the most vulnerable and marginalized.  Best wishes Steven on this special evening.

Third, I would like to acknowledge the extraordinary person and lawyer that the Honsberger award is named for, and which I amazingly receive tonight.

When I researched John Honsberger, former President of the TLA in 1967-8, I learned about his extensive legal scholarship and his many contributions to the Osgoode Society for Canadian Legal History. The Osgoode Society, in fact, holds an oral history of John’s extraordinary contributions to the legal profession. It is 423 pages in total. 423 pages. Wow.

To be the recipient of an award that honours such a legacy, and such a giant amongst our profession, is both daunting and amazing at the same time. Moreover, when one sees the extraordinary lawyers who have received the Honsberger award in the past, this honour becomes even more remarkable to me.

This takes me to my final words, which is to thank the Toronto Lawyer’s Association, its Board and Awards committee for this award tonight. When the TLA President, Michael White, called to let me know that I had been chosen for the Honsberger Award, I believe my first words may have been of complete disbelief. And I meant it.

The TLA, for me, is one of the most dedicated and deeply engaged legal organizations that I am proud to be a member of. It spends all its time supporting the work of counsel, advancing important advocacy and education, and building community. In fact, during this pandemic, I have depended on the TLA almost every week for its critical updates on legal developments during this challenging time in which to practice law.

And I have often thought that in the end, that is the most important thing: the sense of community that the TLA has built and fostered amongst us all. That sense of community has been what has allowed the legal profession in Ontario and in Toronto to become stronger and more dedicated to the critical legal issues that face us today. And so I honour the TLA for its work on our behalf and for this special evening tonight.

Lastly, I want to also thank two TLA Board members in particular. Mark Gannage, whom I think decided to nominate me on the basis of meeting me only a few times, after a few lovely conversations, where we learned we have a shared love of legal writing and fiction, and Ranjan Das, an old friend whom I’ve known forever and I believe must have said many untrue and over the top things about me which led to this award. Thank you both.

I wish you all a lovely evening. Thank you.