Mr. Speaker, as a proud member of the Barreau du Québec, I am pleased to point out that 75 years ago, in 1941, women won the right to practise law in Quebec.
This did not happen overnight. In 1915, Annie Langstaff was the first Quebec woman to obtain a law degree from McGill University. Despite all her efforts, she was never able to practise law. On April 29, 1941, Quebec's Loi sur le Barreau was finally amended, and the first four women were called to the Quebec bar association in January 1942.
Since that time, women have advanced to become approximately half the lawyers in the province. In doing so, they pay tribute to the groundbreaking women who successfully fought for change 75 years ago.