Madam Justice Avvy Yao-Yao Go has more than 30 years of advocacy and litigation experience in support of disadvantaged communities. She holds a BA (Economics) from the University of Waterloo, an LL.B. from University of Toronto, and an LL.M. from Osgoode Hall Law School. She was called to the Bar in Ontario in 1991. In 2021 Justice Go became the first Chinese Canadian to be appointed to the Federal Court. In 2022, she received a Doctor of Laws Honoris Causa degree from the Toronto Metropolitan University.
For much of her career, Justice Go worked on behalf of low-income racialized clients, including through her former role as Director of Ontario’s Chinese and Southeast Asian Legal Clinic. A first-generation Canadian of Chinese descent, Justice Go was involved in a community-led campaign to redress the Chinese Head Tax and Exclusion Act. The lawsuit and other community actions eventually propelled the Government of Canada to issue a parliamentary apology on June 22, 2006 for the 62 years of legislated racism against the Chinese Canadian community.
In recognition of her support for disadvantaged communities and contribution to the legal profession, Justice Go has received many awards, including the Order of Ontario (2014), the Senate of Canada 150 award (2017), the FACL Lawyer of Distinction Award (2012), and the Women’s Law Association of Ontario President’s Award (2002).
Photo credit: Andrew Balfour