IPIC100 Legacy Series: Joan Clark

After obtaining a B.A. from McGill, Joan Clark pursued a law degree in French at the Université de Montréal. As a woman, Joan Clark had to be a pioneer in the choices she made for herself. She was the only anglophone in her first and second years in law school at the Université de Montréal. She, nevertheless, graduated magna cum laude at the top of the class with the Governor General’s Medal in 1954 – the first woman to do so.

Admitted to the Bar of Québec, Joan Clark joined Ogilvy Renault in 1954 (now Norton Rose Fulbright), where she remained for the duration of her illustrious career. Miss Clark, as she was known throughout the firm, was the first woman partner of the firm, the first woman head of a practice group (Intellectual Property). She also became a member of the Bar of Alberta in 1977.

An accomplished and tenacious litigator before the courts, Joan Clark went three times to the Supreme Court of Canada as an appellant and she was successful each time, against the odds.

She was the first woman to become a Fellow of the Intellectual Property Institute of Canada (IPIC). She was president of Institute (1978-1979) and was made a member of distinction in 2008. In 2019, she was honoured as the first recipient of the Trailblazer award by IPIC.

She was the first Canadian and the first woman to be named president of l'Association internationale pour la protection de la propriété intellectuelle (AIPPI) from 1992-1995. She was made a Member of Honour in 1995.

Being a woman in the legal profession was not always easy. Attending firm meetings at the St. James Club, she was initially required to enter through a secondary «ladies» entrance, which she successfully fought to change. She wanted to join the University Club of Montréal. One of the requirements was to be a male graduate of a university or college. With the support of several esteemed members, Miss Clark lobbied to have these rules changed and was eventually admitted as a full-fledged member of the Club.

In addition to her career in law, Joan Clark was passionate about the humane treatment of animals. She was a past president of the Montréal SPCA. Among the many advancements that she spearheaded, she convinced the Québec government to introduce progressive legislation to ensure the protection of animals. In fact, she personally drafted the bill.

Joan Clark received the designation Advocatus Emeritus from the Québec Bar in 2007 and she was named Officer of the Order of Canada in 2008. She received the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Medal in 2012.