Group of friends holding burning sparklers against the sky
Group of friends holding burning sparklers against the sky
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Community Involvement and Social Good

We consider it our corporate social responsibility to deepen our community involvement and commitment to assisting people and communities in need across Canada and globally. Members of the firm value the opportunity for positive community engagement. Our members have a voice in the causes we champion, and volunteer with the charities and community organizations we support.

We support dozens of charities and community-based organizations that align with our firm’s and clients’ core values, interests and community priorities. We are particularly committed to initiatives that focus on alleviating poverty and its detrimental impacts, and to supporting charities in the healthcare and disease eradication spaces as well as organizations working with disadvantaged groups, including at-risk youth, Indigenous Peoples and other racialized communities, and 2SLGBTQ+ individuals.

National Initiatives

  • In 2023 for its Annual Holiday Campaign, the firm donated a total of $100,000 to organizations that provide emergency shelter to vulnerable and at-risk populations in the communities where we live and work. Recognizing the critical impact these grass roots organizations have on our communities, the firm donated to RainCity Housing and Support Society in Vancouver, Inn from the Cold in Calgary, Fred Victor in Toronto, Harmony House in Ottawa and Benedict Labre in Montréal.
  • The Annual United Way campaign is the most widely supported charitable initiative at our firm. In 2022, McMillan was recognized as a Local Leader in acknowledgement of our employees’ generosity in supporting the community. The firm 2023 campaign raised $135,058 to support community work across Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto, Ottawa, and Montréal.
  • In 2022 we launched a firmwide fundraising campaign in response to the destruction of the Ukrainian community. The firm donated an initial $25,000 to the Canadian Red Cross and its Ukraine Humanitarian Crisis Appeal and pledged to match up to another $50,000 in firm member donations. The response of our firm members was overwhelming as the McMillan campaign in support of the Ukraine Humanitarian Crisis Appeal totaled $152,935.
  • We are committed to the Faculty of Law at the University of Windsor’s Transforming Law Campaign and will donate $50,000 in connection with a $6 million multi-year renovation project of the faculty building originally built in 1968.

Local Initiatives

Vancouver

  • We support the Allard Women’s Caucus Time of the Month Initiative. To help alleviate the deficit of menstrual products available to women living in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside, boxes of menstrual products, physical gift cards and e-transfer donations were all accepted.
  • We participated in the Hoop-Law charity basketball tournament in 2023, raising $1,565 for a variety of charitable recipients including the Children’s Hearing and Speech Centre of BC, Night Hoops, the Mothers Matter Centre and the Rotary Hoop-a-thon.

Calgary

  • We partnered with the United Way / Centraide and a number of local Calgary businesses for three Days of Festive Caring to support businesses which were impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic as well as food banks and local charities which saw an increase in demand at this time. Between Wednesday, December 14 and Friday, December 16, firm members in the Calgary office were able to donate to the United Way / Centraide for a chance to win generous prizes from local businesses.

Toronto

  • The Daily Bread Food Bank Foundationhas awarded McMillan the Chair’s Special Award for “exceptional long-term involvement.” We have participated in this initiative for many years and have hosted a number of activities to fundraise for this cause, raising thousands of dollars annually, including raising $3,275 in 2023. In addition, our firm members brought in non-perishable food items for the Daily Bread Food Bank Foundation during our Holiday Mingle & Jingle.
  • We participate in Take Our Kids to Work Day, in conjunction with The Learning Partnership and the Government of Ontario. For this initiative, ninth-grade children and relatives of our firm members visit the firm for a day. The children participate in a mini-orientation and breakfast, firm tour, visit to the Superior Court of Justice, parent-student lunch, law firm “Jeopardy” and many more activities.
  • In support of the Second Harvest Hero Campaign, for several years, our Articling Student Charity Committee held fundraising events, including a bake sale, raffle draw, candy grams and a causal day. The Toronto office raises thousands for this cause per year, including raising over $2,000 in 2023.
  • Since 2019, members of the Toronto office raise funds and participate in the Sporting Life 10Kin support of Campfire Circle. Campfire Circle is a privately funded, volunteer-based organization that provides kids with cancer with a unique opportunity for growth through challenging, fun and enriching experiences. The team raised over $6,127, and, in doing so, provided camp experiences for kids and families affected by childhood cancer.
  • Through one of our lawyers who has had a long and personal commitment with the Princess Margaret Walk to Conquer Cancer, it’s McMillan’s pleasure to join in on the fight to cure cancer in our lifetime. In 2023, firm members of the Toronto office raised over $48,000 by walking for the cause.
  • In support of Give a Night, once again in 2023, the Articling Students in the Toronto office organized a bake sale, which raised $891. These funds are for the benefit of the Stephen Lewis Foundation, a charity that works with local organizations in Sub-Saharan Africa to fight HIV / AIDS.
  • In 2023, our Bay Street Hoops team raised $5,000 to support KidSport Ontario in helping local kids experience the lifelong benefits of sport, and Drive for Dreams whose mission is to provide support for youth to participate in sport, despite economic or social disadvantages.
  • To raise funds for the Family Navigation Project at Sunnybrook, team McMillan participated in the 2023 RBC Race for Kids, raising $10,461. The project offers support to youth and their families navigating the mental health and addictions service system.
  • In 2023, as part of their Holiday Campaign, the McMillan’s legal administrative assistants in Toronto raised $12,600 for a variety of causes, including

SickKids, Canadian Cancer Society, The Redwood, Heart & Stroke, Muslim Welfare, MS Canada, Scarborough Health Network, and Princess Margaret Hospital’s breast cancer research. We also adopted a family of four, through The Redwood, and provided them with winter clothing and holiday gifts.

Ottawa

  • Once again in 2023, we dedicated one of our Community Day events in support of the Ottawa Food Bank where all Ottawa firm members were encouraged to bring non-perishable goods for donation.

We remain profoundly dedicated to giving back to our communities. Our goal is to do all we can to support worthwhile charitable and community-based organizations in the community in which we live and work. Additionally, McMillan sponsors a wide range of EDI-related initiatives and our lawyers also complete a large amount of pro bono work on an annual basis.