35 Years, 35 Voices: Meet Maia Bent
35 Years, 35 Voices highlights the members who have contributed to the Ontario Trial Lawyers Associations (OTLA) growth, strengthened access to justice and supported a collaborative plaintiff-side community across Ontario over the past 35 years.
Meet Maia Bent, OTLA Past President and member since 2003.
Member Profile
Name: Maia Bent
Firm: Lerners LLP
Year called to the bar: 1998
Joined OTLA: 2003
We asked Maia to reflect on her time with OTLA, the role the Association has played in her career and what being part of the OTLA community means to her.
What motivated you to join?
My first involvement with OTLA was as a law student when OTLA sponsored Western University’s mock trial competition. I won the competition and the prize was a trip to Boston to the American Association for Justice’s Conference, where I met many wonderful and impressive lawyers. They were universally kind and offered mentorship. It was pretty heady stuff for a young student.
If you’ve been a member for more than five years, what has inspired you to renew your membership?
I never considered giving up my membership as I always felt that I was getting incredible value for the cost. It was more than the conferences and other resources; I quickly felt a sense of belonging to the OTLA community.
Do you have a memorable OTLA moment or story you’d like to share?
I told this story at the Celebration of the Personal Injury Bar last year, but the most memorable moment had to be travelling to Toronto from London to chair the same black-tie event and realizing 30 minutes before taking the stage that I only had a track suit with me. I’ll never forget running through The Bay screaming “where are the fancy dresses?!” Classy!
What is something you learned at an OTLA event that you still use in your practice today?
One that leaps to mind is that the person who tells the best story wins. You cannot just tick off all the elements of a cause of action; humans want a relatable narrative. Once you have found your theme, weave it into every aspect of your case.
Have you made any meaningful professional connections through OTLA? If so, who or in what way?
So many. Joining the Women Trial Lawyers Caucus in my early years really helped me find a tribe of lawyers who were navigating many of the same issues that young female lawyers face, including the challenges of raising children while trying to excel in such a demanding profession.
Later, when I was elected to the Board, it was an instant connection to many of the best and the brightest minds in our profession. You might think that this would be intimidating but everyone was genuinely invested in raising each other up and finding opportunities for each other. I immediately felt that these lawyers had my back. The friendships I made have just strengthened over the years and these are the people I turn to in good times and bad.
How has OTLA influenced your practice or contributed to your career growth?
There is a culture of excellence among the lawyers at OTLA. Not only was I taught the tools I needed to achieve that goal in my own practice, but my career also blossomed because of the connections I made through OTLA. There is so much cross-pollination between the members of OTLA and other legal and community organizations that the opportunities just started to present themselves.
What advice would you give to new OTLA members or lawyers just starting out?
Put your hand up! Imposter syndrome is a real thing, but you are just as smart and capable as the leaders of the profession. The only thing they have that you don’t have is experience. You need to have the courage to put yourself forward to gain that experience.
There is no shortage of ways to get started. Once you let it be known that you want to participate, whether it be writing articles, speaking at conferences, joining a committee, or hosting a workshop, I guarantee that you will be sought out and quickly begin to build a name for yourself.
Also, you don’t have to be difficult to project strength. Careers are long and lawyers don’t forget that stuff.