Membership Categories

WGCC offers two categories of membership: Regular Membership (Voting) and Emeritus Membership (Non‑Voting).

Board & Committee Positions: Members of either category are eligible to hold positions on the WGCC Board and are encouraged to join WGCC Committees. 

Regular
Membership

Regular Membership is open to senior women legal executive leaders who are called to the bar in at least one Canadian province or territory and who are currently serving, or have recently served, in senior in‑house legal leadership roles in Canada. This includes General Counsel, Chief Legal Officers; the most senior legal executives within an organization or business unit or graduates of WGCC’s General Counsel University with appropriate endorsement, former Regular Members continuing to practise law, members in transition seeking to return to practice, and executive leaders who no longer practise law but previously qualified under these criteria. Regular Members are entitled to vote and actively participate in WGCC governance.

Emeritus
Membership

Emeritus Membership is a non‑voting category designed to recognize and retain the experience and contributions of senior legal leaders who are transitioning out of full‑time practice. Emeritus Members are lawyers called to the bar in a Canadian jurisdiction who have at least ten years of experience in a General Counsel or equivalent senior legal role and who are now retired or working part‑time. This category is available to former Regular Members, as well as to eligible applicants who were not previously members of WGCC, subject to consideration by the WGCC Board. Emeritus Membership enables continued engagement with the WGCC community while reflecting a change in professional status.

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Frequently Asked Questions

  • WGCC Regular membership is for women executive leaders who are currently serving or have previously served in a senior in-house legal leadership role in Canada. This includes those currently holding the GC, CLO or most senior legal executive role within their organization or business unit. It also includes former WGCC Regular members who continue to practice law, legal professionals in transition and executive leaders who are no longer practicing but previously qualified. WGCC Regular Membership offers a range of opportunities to participate, connect and give back.

  • If you would like to learn why your application to WGCC was not accepted please contact the WGCC Membership Committee for details. Although the decision of the WGCC Membership Committee is final, if you believe key information was missing from your application, you are welcome to submit a new application with more detailed description of your accountabilities and your new application will be considered.

  • Yes.

  • Lawyers who practice law at a firm are not eligible for membership in WGCC, even if they previously qualified for membership. WGCC partners with a number of law firms and there may be opportunities to participate in that way. We encourage you to reach out to the appropriate person in your firm for more details on how you may be involved. In addition, watch our WGCC website and if you see an event you would like to be involved with, please contact the event organizers who will let you know if it is open to non-WGCC members. You may also refer to Membership Categories to review eligibility requirements.

  • You may first wish to refer to Membership Categories to review eligibility requirements. You may also reach out to the WGCC Membership Committee Chair for assistance, and apply for the Membership Category you believe suits you best, we will suggest an alternative if you are not eligible.

  • Membership fees are due annually. There are no refunds on membership fees.

  • WGCC Regular Membership may be extended, by exception, to a woman executive legal leader who is not the ‘most senior woman’ in the organization. If you are not the most senior woman legal executive in your organization but still wish to join, you may still be eligible to join via an exception. WGCC recognizes that large organizations may have several divisions, subsidiaries, affiliates, and departments that are independently led by senior legal woman executives who, if considered independently of the organization’s structure, would qualify for membership. In other words, they are excluded simply because they are not the ‘most senior’ woman legal executive in the organization, but instead one a few at that same level. In situations such as these, the interested applicant should apply for Regular Membership and, at the same time, reach out to the WGCC Membership Committee with details of the organization’s structure that is causing the conflict. Note: support and/or acknowledgement of the membership application by the most senior woman legal executive in the organization may be required. Recommendation for admission to WGCC on ‘an exception’ is at the sole discretion of the WGCC Membership Committee and subject to approval by the WGCC Executive Committee.