At the March 2, 2026 Call to the Bar ceremony in Toronto, the Law Society of Ontario conferred a degree of Doctor of Laws, honoris causa (LLD) upon the Honourable Avvy Yao-Yao Go, who has been a true champion of advancing social justice and equality.
The Law Society awards honorary doctorates each year to distinguished individuals in recognition of outstanding achievements in the legal profession, the rule of law or the cause of justice.
Called to the Bar in 1991, Justice Go is a leader in the legal profession. As a first-generation Canadian of Chinese descent, she has devoted the bulk of her career as a lawyer to breaking down barriers for marginalized groups, while challenging issues such as systemic racism and other forms of discrimination within the legal system. Her work has been widely recognized with numerous awards and honours.
In 2021, Justice Go became the first Chinese Canadian to be appointed to the Federal Court.
Prior to her appointment, she served as the Clinic Director of Ontario’s Chinese and Southeast Asian Legal Clinic. Throughout her career, Justice Go has served on several administrative tribunals in Ontario and has served on the board of directors of a number of legal organizations including being an elected bencher for the Law Society of Ontario. In 2019, Justice Go was appointed as the first Independent Complaints Review Officer for the Immigration Consultants of Canada Regulatory Council.
She has served as an advisor to numerous government policy bodies at both the provincial and federal levels and has volunteered for many community-based organizations including serving as President of the Chinese Canadian National Council Toronto Chapter, and as a board member of the Urban Alliance on Race Relations. In 2007, she co-founded the Federation of Asian Canadian Lawyers and the Colour of Poverty – Colour of Change network.
For more than two decades, while working as a legal clinic lawyer, Justice Go was involved in a community-led campaign to redress the Chinese Head Tax and Exclusion Act. She acted as co-counsel in a class action lawsuit on behalf of surviving head taxpayers, widows and descendants. The lawsuit and other community actions eventually propelled the Government of Canada to issue a parliamentary apology in 2006 for the 62 years of legislated racism against the Chinese Canadian community.