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She illustrated her point with the parable of the three bricklayers: вЂњSomeone walks by and asks what theyвЂ™re doing, and the first says вЂearning five bucks an hour,вЂ™ the next says, вЂIвЂ™m putting bricks on top of bricks to build a wall,вЂ™ and the third says, вЂIвЂ™m contributing to the development of a beautiful edifice.вЂ™ They all were doing exactly the same thing but the third had identified a real sense of purpose. In her planned convocation remarks, Epstein encouragedВ graduates to identify a sense of purpose for what they do early in their career and, periodically, as they advance, to stand back and consider the bigger picture.

вЂњItвЂ™s about the people, and their lives, and they are relying on us to help them with their problems.вЂќ

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вЂњItвЂ™s not about where the comma is and how to interpret the word,вЂќ she said in an interview with the Toronto Star. Of her law clerks at the court, she asked that they never lose sight of the people behind the legal documents. вЂњCanada really has led the way in treating people of all types of sexual orientation equally, giving them the dignity and respect they deserve.вЂќД®pstein was appointed to the Ontario Court of Appeal in 2007, where she served for 11 years.

вЂњI am enormously proud of the part I played in that case, in that particular development of Canadian law,вЂќ Epstein told Nexus.

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Her decision made front-page headlines, eventually led to full marriage equality under Canadian law and is recognized as a critical moment in the history of the LGBTQ2S rights. Epstein ruled the law unconstitutional because it discriminated against same-sex couples. M was suing H for spousal support, but at the time Ontario law defined a common-law relationship as heterosexual. H, which related to the breakup of a long-term relationship between two women. Her most notable judgment was in the case of M v. Less than a decade later, she was named an Ontario Superior Court justice вЂ“ a job she described as вЂњa gift. And law school, together with the fishing camp experience, made me strong, very strong.вЂќДЄfter graduating in 1977, she practised litigation at two large Toronto firms and then opened Gloria Epstein & Associates, one of TorontoвЂ™s first female-owned litigation firms, in the mid-1980s. вЂњMy time at law school was challenging,вЂќ she told Nexus. вЂњI guess you could say I ended up in law school more by happenstance than by design,вЂќ she said.Д®pstein supported herself through first year at U of TвЂ™s Faculty of Law by waitressing and checking coats several nights a week, got married in second year and gave birth to her first child in third year. At the suggestion of her brother-in-law, she decided to write the LSAT. She earned a business degree and then figured вЂI better have a business.вЂ™ She bought a fishing camp in northern Ontario, where, as she told Nexus, she вЂњcooked on the cookвЂ™s day off, bartended on the bartenderвЂ™s day off, did the laundry, cleaned the roomsвЂ¦вЂќ and before long concluded that running a fishing camp was not for her. She left home for QueenвЂ™s University with one book besides her schoolbooks вЂ“ the bible.

One of the results of her upbringing, she says, was a вЂњprofound interestвЂќ in people from all walks of life. In an interview with U of T LawвЂ™s Nexus magazine in 2015, Epstein describes her family as impoverished, noting that her mother had a Grade 3 education and her father died when she was a teenager. Today, for her transformative impact on the law and society, and her outstanding service to the university as a mentor and volunteer, Epstein is being awarded a Doctor of Laws, honoris causa, from the University of Toronto. Her most consequential decision paved the way for marriage equality in Canada. From humble beginnings, Gloria Epstein has forged a distinguished legal career вЂ“ as a litigator and a judge вЂ“ that has helped blaze a trail for other women in the profession.ДЄs a judge, Epstein earned respect from those who appeared in her court вЂ“ not only for her thorough knowledge of the law, but for her attention to the human dimensions of the cases that came before her.

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