Claire Desjardins is the perfect candidate for a career in the public sector. The 37-year-old mother of two has a Master’s Degree specializing in social work and has spent the last decade working as a counselor with the Canadian Anti-Racist Lawyers Association, an elder law firm and an educational organization. Claire also works as an organizer with an anti-discrimination organization, which requires her to be visible at all times when it is active. If this isn’t diverse enough, Claire is the founder of a popular website dedicated to older Senegalese women, as well as a social enterprise that provides services to low income communities in Quebec.
Claire Desjardins has been married and divorced four times, and despite her many achievements, she remains primarily concerned with ensuring that each relationship is dealt with properly, and she is devoted to ensuring that each individual finds the right kind of individual support to enhance their longevity and keep them in good health. Claire is also aware that, like so many other seniors, she will reach retirement age in a few years time. This is something that the majority of seniors do not think about, and as such, they face the possibility of facing the loss of their license as a result. In her opinion, this should not prevent seniors from pursuing a legal profession after they have passed their retirement age. Her reasons for this are simple; in her view, those who take on another profession after retirement is showing a sense of determination and longevity that every one needs while they are alive. In fact, this same principle applies to Claire Desjardins.
Claire Desjardins’ desire to pursue a legal profession after her retirement is admirable, and it is a trait that would serve her well in her new role as a senior lawyer in private practice. As such, Claire Desjardins’ views on the age requirement for attorneys in Canada are well placed. At the very least, it makes a great deal of sense to allow lawyers who have attained a certain level of experience as well as proven themselves to be able to sit for the bar exam after having passed the bar. It is also reassuring to know that there are some senior lawyers out there who are willing to take the challenge of passing the bar without regard to age.