The Virgin Diary - My First Mediation

For my first assignment as a summer student, I assisted with a case that has been ongoing for eight years. The case was a complicated one with multiple legal issues. The file was made inherently more difficult by the number of parties involved. In law school, we read about cases only once judgments have been released but we were not exposed to all the work, time and effort that leads up to that conclusion.

"Outside of the theory of law school classes, I learned that the practice of law
 is not quite the same as portrayed in legal textbooks."

Last week, I was provided with the opportunity to attend the mediation for this case. I had never experienced any form of ADR (other than those I watched from my couch on tv) so I did not know what exactly to expect. This mediation was a great learning experience about how a mediation is conducted and how each lawyer has a unique style.

Below are my top 5 unexpected discoveries from the mediation:

Everyone is cordial. Unlike in Suits or similar legal dramas where lawyers are snarky and combative towards one another, the lawyers, even those on opposing sides, were respectful and courteous.

It is time-consuming. We arrived at the location of the mediation at 10 a.m. and did not leave the venue until 4:15 p.m. While the mediation I attended settled in that time frame, some mediations take even longer.

Food! From the minute we arrived at the mediation venue until the very end of the day, food was at the centre of everyone’s mind. Everyone eats throughout the entire day. You have to keep up your energy when advocating for your client!

There can be a lot of free time. A big aspect of mediation is negotiations, with the mediator acting as the intermediary between the parties. While the negotiation aspect of the mediation is taking place, the mediator may separate the parties into different rooms to determine what each party is seeking to gain from the mediation process. While the mediator is with one party, the opposing party/parties are playing the waiting game.

It provides great networking opportunities. Being in a room full of lawyers has its benefits, especially for someone just starting out in the legal profession. At the venue where this mediation took place, there were multiple boardrooms with many different meetings, such as mediations, taking place. With so many lawyers in one location, it makes for a great opportunity to meet and talk with other members of the legal community.

Overall the mediation was a great experience and I look forward to being exposed to many more new opportunities as the summer continues.

By Israel K.

The "Practice" of Law

As I near the end of my articles (where did the time go?!) and reflect on the past eight months I keep going back to an “aha moment” that I feel is worthy of sharing. The moment where I was told by one of my mentors: remember, it’s called the practice of law.

"Practice isn't the thing you do once you're good.
It's the thing you do that makes you good." 

- Malcolm Gladwell - Outliers: The Story of Success

The majority of people in law are considered type-A personalities who strive to get it absolutely perfect the first time around. This appetite for immediate excellence is pulverized and rejigged once the natural reality of being an articling student sinks in. As an articling student, you are going to get it wrong. If your expectation as a student is to always draft an impeccable Statement of Claim/Defence, Affidavit of Documents, Liability and Damages Assessment, Mediation Memorandum etc…the first, second and even the third time around, wake up, you’re dreaming. I know, it is a hard hit to our high-achieving egos but as the saying goes - making mistakes is better than faking perfection. Your experience as an articling student will be far better if you arrive with an open attitude that you are here to learn and mistakes are inevitable.

Now, there are other ways of learning while minimizing the damage to our fragile egos, one being, that of learning from the mistakes of others. This takes me to another noteworthy piece of advice given to me: to attend and observe as many court appearances, mediations, discoveries, settlement conferences etc. as possible. I won’t touch on all of my experiences but can tell you with utmost confidence that when it came time for me to argue my first motion I was prepared for anything and everything that could have been thrown my way. This was owed to the fact that I observed a number of motions and took notes of what not to do when other articling students were being scolded by the presiding Master on issues such as improper service or why they attended court without a copy of the Rules of Civil Procedure to refer to when questioned on a relevant rule. In addition to this, if something was procedurally unclear to me I took the initiative to approach the Registrar and ask questions once the courtroom had cleared. This was also of major assistance when it was my turn to enter the courtroom as a representative and not a member of the public.

In the end, we all make mistakes, and the legal profession is no exception. As an articling student, you may not generate the final product or have a strong grasp on a specific process until after a few attempts, but that is ok and accepted. So for the future articling group coming in, do not forget - it is called the practice of law!

by Gabriela C.