35 Years, 35 Voices: Meet Maria Damiano
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 Maria Damiano, OTLA Past President and member since 2004.
Member Profile
Name: Maria Damiano
Firm: Harte Law PC
Year called to the bar: 2002
Joined OTLA: 2004
We asked Maria 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 OTLA?
Our firm is a big supporter of OTLA, so it’s just assumed when someone joins the firm, be it a clerk, a student or a lawyer, that they will just join OTLA.
If you’ve been a member for more than five years, what has inspired you to renew your membership?
The Medical Malpractice Listserve, Medical Malpractice Newsletter and the CLE opportunities OTLA offers. It really is the premier plaintiffs’ only organization in Canada.
Do you have a memorable OTLA moment or story you’d like to share?
Over the years, there have been too many memorable OTLA moments for me to single out just one. From virtual CLE opportunities to social events like the annual Celebration of the Personal Injury Bar, each experience has offered something meaningful, from connecting with colleagues to developing new skills.
What is something you learned at an OTLA event that you still use in your practice today?
One piece of advice that has stuck with me was from a former OTLA member who is now a justice of the Superior Court of Justice. The advice she shared was that when she was at a trial, she focused 80% on her case and 20% on the defence case. For instance, keep to your story and theme and don’t give too much time/credence to the defence theory. As plaintiff lawyers we should have confidence in our case and theory and stick with it.
Have you made any meaningful professional connections through OTLA? If so, who or in what way?
I have made so many meaningful professional connections over the years, both in the medical malpractice world and then those across the personal injury bar. There are way too many to mention, but the one that has been most meaningful for me has been my connection with Barbara Legate. When I first started out, she was one of the first females I ever met who practiced in the medical malpractice area. She has always been generous with her time and knowledge.
How has OTLA influenced your practice or contributed to your career growth?
I have had the good fortune of being on the OTLA Board, first as medical malpractice chair, then ultimately as president, things I never thought I would do/achieve when I first joined OTLA. In advocating for OTLA in these roles, it has given me the opportunity to meet judges, Chief Justices and politicians. I also know that if I have a difficult issue or question, I can reach out to a big network of OTLA lawyers for assistance in answering those questions/issues. Not to mention the educational nuggets I have gleaned from the various CLEs, roundtables and newsletters over the years. Being an OTLA member has made me a better lawyer overall.
What advice would you give to new OTLA members or lawyers just starting out?
Reach out for help when you need it and reach out to members for mentorship whether it’s through OTLA’s mentorship program or reaching out to a member on your own. You are part of a great community of people who are able and willing to provide help. Don’t feel intimidated – we all started out as junior lawyers and/or new members of OTLA and are willing to assist. Also participate where you can – volunteer to do a case summary or a blog or join a committee – you will get more out of it then you put in.
What does being part of the OTLA community mean to you?
It is a community of like-minded individuals who are fighting not only for the good of their individual clients, but also for improvement to the legal system as a whole to help all those who have been injured due to the conduct of others.