THE ONTARIO LAWYERS’ ASSISTANCE PROGRAM

Assistance, Mentorship and OLAP

In Collins Canadian Thesaurus, a mentor is described as an “adviser, coach, counselor, guide, instructor, teacher, tutor”. The Ontario Lawyers' Assistance Program provides assistance for lawyers, judges and law students who are experiencing stress, burnout, addictions issues and mental health concerns. The roles of mentors and OLAP peer volunteer support lawyers overlap in many ways.

For example, OLAP volunteers have guided and coached students who want learn about legal culture on a practical level. As advisers and counselors in an informal, non-professional sense, OLAP volunteers have acted as a resource for sole practitioners who sometimes just need someone “to talk to” to help with the isolation of practicing without the support of associates. As instructors, teachers and tutors, peer volunteers have helped articling and bar admission students struggling with legal concepts, job experience expectations and even, in one case, another student acting as a study buddy. OLAP  enriches the profession with experience, understanding and friendship.

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Legal Profession Assistance Conference (LPAC) |Commission on Lawyer Assistance Programs (CoLAP) | Lawyers Assistance Program of British Columbia (BCLAP) | Nova Scotia Lawyers Assistance Program (NSLAP) | Law Society of Upper Canada (LSUC) | The Lawyers Assistance Program (LINK) | The Alberta Lawyers Assistance Program | Lawyers Concerned for Lawyers (Saskatchewan) | The Lawyers Professional Indemnity Company (LawPRO) | Law Practice Consulting