Articling with the Added Bonus of a Pandemic

Needless to say, this year has been a tad wonky. In January, the 2020 law school graduates anticipated a relatively exciting year. We were about to graduate, write our bar exams, and by the end of June, we would be free to celebrate our accomplishments until our articles began.

In actuality, we – like many other students – spent the tail end of the winter semester trying to focus on school while balancing the anxiety and uncertainty that came along with this pandemic. Classes and final exams were online, and social and family gatherings came to a screeching halt. After clicking submit on my final law school exam, I anticipated a very overwhelming sense of relief – law school was finally done! But it was perhaps the most anticlimactic end of a degree, since we could not celebrate with friends, family, classmates, or our schools.

Promptly, the next hurdle came flying our way: bar exams. Could we still write them? Would it be postponed until we were already articling? A lot of uncertainty unfolded in the first few weeks, but then finally, a plan. We were now writing the exams from home. Every student nervously signed up for a time slot to write the exam, choosing our own date of freedom. My last exam came and went. Thrilled to be done, but after these exams loomed over my existence for until early August – it was another anticlimactic end to another grand accomplishment.

Before we knew it, articling was here. With our safety in mind, our firm decided to have us commence our articles from home. This came as a relief, but also spearheaded fresh nerves. Most of my personal nerves came from the concern of how to learn, and produce valuable work from home. After almost two months of working from home, I can confidently say our firm has not let COVID-19 impact our learning or the excitement of articling. I have narrowed down a few tips that have certainly helped me learn how to be a good articling student from home.

1. Call the assigning lawyer with your questions

Assuming I am not the only one, calling a lawyer can feel daunting and stressful. “They’re very busy people, I don’t want to bother them and embarrass myself with what is probably a silly question.” Throw these thoughts out of a metaphorical window. With everyone working from home, I have found all lawyers, assistants, and clerks to be much happier, and free to take a phone call. Not only will you get better instructions over the phone, but it gives you a chance to have a social interaction, and build working relationships. 

"Every phone call you make is an opportunity to learn better, and invite social conversation into your day – which we all need, so try opting for a phone call more often."

2. Use precedents as a tool to produce better work

The single most important thing I have learned is about how to use precedents. Every single document you receive from a lawyer as a precedent should be copied into a folder on your desktop. Do not stop at one precedent per assignment. Meaning, if you come across four initial reports, save all of those initial reports. Precedents are exceptionally useful tools for any junior. They are the starting point when you don’t know how to begin a task. They give you an idea not only of what the style of the document is but also the substance. Having a variety of precedents will allow you to see how one task varies depending on the facts of every case, better allowing you to see what information is relevant for what you are working on. Equally important, being able to review the work of lawyers is one of the strongest resources you have to elevate your critical thinking and the quality of work you produce.

3. Be specific in asking for feedback

Every time I submit an assignment, I make sure to ask for edits, feedback, or revisions. You will not learn effectively if you don’t find out what you have done wrong. Every time you get feedback – as unforgiving as it may feel at times – you are learning. Luckily, the lawyers at our firm are great teachers and are courteous in giving us helpful feedback, which is exactly what we, as articling students, need.

4. Articling student group chats

One of the best resources you have are your fellow students. Although it would be ideal to be in one place together, our student group chat has actually allowed those of us in the Toronto office to work closely with the students in our Ottawa office. 

"My first step whenever I have a question is to canvas the other students through our group chat."

It is more than likely one of them has faced the issue before. Not only are your fellow students a resource, but maintaining a close relationship with them helps ease some of the isolation that can come from working remotely.

Get a cat!

They make excellent office buddies and are great at listening to your ideas.

by Jennifer I.

Family Matters

Articling is not only about academic learning. It is also about learning about people; how to be a part of a team, how to be inclusive, and how to remain positive, even during stressful times.

"While in trial for four weeks, my learning of the above expanded ten-fold."

Walking to court each morning, you can never really know what to expect for the day, especially as an articling student. All you can expect is a long day. After spending 7 hours in court each day, we would come back to the office, ready to complete any work necessary for the next day in court, which usually involved late nights, early mornings, and plenty of coffee. Weekends were not safe and too much pizza was consumed. Usually, under these circumstances, people would succumb to the pressure and long hours and begin to feel defeated. I can honestly say though that this was not my experience.

Working with Charlene Kavanagh and Christopher Macaulay was such a pleasure. They included me in everything they could to contribute to my learning and created such invaluable learning opportunities for me, even when they had their own insurmountable workloads (I even sat at the Counsel’s table up front). We always made sure to check in with each other, fill in for each other when required, and get in those necessary laughs to lift us back up. Most importantly, we trusted each other. It really felt like a “we leave no person behind” kind of team. I could not have asked for more during my first trial experience and I have to say that this experience solidifies for me why McCague is such a great firm to work at as a student.

Kyle, Carly & Brittany are all smiles after coming
back from the Supreme Court of Canada

While they created these learning opportunities for me, Carly and I paid it forward to a partner’s son. During a "take your kid to work day", Carly and I took James Brown’s son, Kyle, to the Supreme Court of Canada while Uber Technologies Inc., et al. v. David Heller (Ontario) was being heard; a very topical case for the time. He had a great time learning about the law and at the Supreme Court of Canada, no less. This reminded me of the time I visited the Brampton Superior Court of Justice while taking a law course in high school. That experience, among others, helped steer me towards law.

Ultimately, I decided to write this blog to stress how important it is to treat the people you work with as a family and how that mindset affects the way you work together, your productivity and your success as a firm. McCague has that recipe for success. They know that family matters.

by Brittany

Critical... Thinking Allowed

Remember in elementary school when your teacher taught you that every student learns best through a specific teaching style? Some students were visual learners, some auditory learners, some kinesthetic learners, and so on. Of course, I was stubborn and didn’t believe in this sort of thing so I declared myself to be a “just show me how to find the answer” type of learner. Yeah, I was that kid. Years later, as a summer student, the concept of teaching styles has become relevant once again – but this time I can appreciate the lesson.

The concept of teaching styles has become relevant once again...

At McCague Borlack, we students are given a diverse set of assignments, most of which we didn’t have a chance to experience in law school. Fortunately, we have a team of lawyers who are happy to help us continuously improve our work. Naturally, each lawyer has their own teaching style and preferred method to show us how we can increase the quality of our work. Here are some of the teaching styles that we have experienced so far:

The Socratic Method:

Whenever I felt uncertain about a task, I would ask the assigning lawyer for clarification. Below is an example of how this conversation would go with a Socratic mentor:

Me: “In this letter I’m drafting, should I include XYZ?”

Lawyer: “Do you think the letter would benefit from XYZ?”

Me: “Well here are the benefits of adding XYZ.”

Lawyer: “Are there any drawbacks?”

Me: “I don’t think so.”

Lawyer: *Smiles*

Although this exchange may seem odd, the Socratic Method allows students to work through any issues on their own. Consequently, we develop a more comprehensive understanding of the subject matter than if we were just given the solution.

This method has helped build confidence in my work and has shown me that I already have the answers to most of my questions. But if I am still unsure, a lawyer will review my work when I am finished to ensure that we have a good product.

Thinking Out Loud

When it comes to editing our work, some lawyers sit down with us and walk through the needed changes. The lawyers utilizing this method begin by explaining why certain parts of a document should be revised. Then, they “think out loud” so that I can understand the thought process that helped them generate their solution. This method allows students to understand exactly why specific changes were made and what key points should be applied to the completion of the next assignment.

Track Changes

Sometimes the work I produce has minor errors so the revisions don’t require a long explanation. It can be a case where there is just a better way to phrase what needs to be said, or the structure of the document should be modified for clarity. Since these changes are simpler and easy for the lawyers to identify, they will use Microsoft Word’s “track changes” feature while they make their revisions. This method provides a visual comparison between my original draft and the revised version. It also requires me to analyze the changes to come to my own conclusions as to why the changes were made. However, if I can’t figure out why a particular change was made I can always get clarification from the assigning lawyer. There is certainly an art to drafting documents. By reviewing other lawyers’ completed documents, I am able to better understand where to set the bar for my own progress.

Conclusion

Mistakes are part of the learning curve. The lawyers are happy to mentor the students and help us understand how we can continue to improve our work. And we appreciate it, no matter the style.

Yousef E.

Trust the Process

I entered the Summer Student program with enthusiasm and a hint of trepidation. How will I fare? Will I be able to meet what are no doubt high expectations? These and many other concerns can become all-consuming in and out of the workplace. As law students, each new experience in our legal education brings new stressors, but they also bring opportunity. This blog post is a reminder for me (and perhaps a few readers) to be intentional in my work and to continue to look for opportunities to learn. In short, I’m trying to be mindful.

Exactly what is mindfulness and how can I apply it to my summer experience?

To counteract the stresses of life, we are regularly urged to “be in the moment.” Exactly what is mindfulness and how can I apply it to my summer experience?

Trust the Experts

I believe that it starts with trusting the experts – trusting that many successful lawyers have walked this path and that our mentors are eager to help us make the most of our summer experience.

Trust Ourselves

Then we must learn to trust ourselves – trust that we will work hard, and we will meet expectations. One lawyer I have worked with quite a bit over the last few weeks mentors us Socratically (a teaching style most readers will be familiar with from law school, no doubt). Instead of answering my questions right off the bat, the lawyer will ask me to try to answer my own question. More often than not, I do know the answer. This lawyer’s mentorship style has made me more confident in my own abilities.

Trust the Process

Next, we must trust “the process.” The practice of summering allows us to gain invaluable practical experience as we are mentored and guided while actively engaged in the practice of law. One month into the job and I have carriage of my own files! Along with many other one-off tasks from various assigning lawyers, I will see a file from its infancy through to the investigative stage, onto the pleadings stage, and beyond. Under lawyer supervision, I will communicate directly with clients and opposing counsel to move the files along. It is amazing how quickly we learn by doing.

Finally, we must trust that taking time away from the office to gather interesting experiences is time well spent. Seek out opportunities to shadow lawyers as they conduct examinations for discovery, participate in mediations and settlement conferences, and appear in court. While it is paramount to meet work deadlines, it is often possible to finish your assigned task at the office and still go on a field trip. As my mentor said, soon enough we will have a great deal more responsibility and far less time to spend away from our own files. I have found that by going on these sorts of field trips, I am better able to understand the human aspect of the file. Meeting our clients, the opposing parties, the opposing parties’ counsel, and mediators is always insightful. In what is an adversarial process, we are able to find common ground and build relationships.

When we undergo a transformation – be it training for a marathon, taking a big risk, or beginning a career – it is important to be accountable to the process. We should remember that there are opportunities to learn around every corner. To bring the mantra of mindfulness into the workplace, we need to trust the process, to approach new challenges with intention. Each new experience is helping me build a stronger foundation upon which to build my future law practice.

Emily K.

Training From Hell - Louis Litt Style?

Okay MB is not comparable to working with Louis Litt from HBO’s Suits episode “Training from Hell”.

The following tips have helped me avoid nose-diving while articling...

Louis certainly took pride in how badly he treated the new associates at Pearson Specter Litt. Disguising his tactics as “training”, he even made one junior associate house sit for his cat despite their intense allergies to all things feline.

Most law students imagine horrific accounts of what their articling experience could entail – crashing overnight at the office, on-call duties dictated by a boss aspiring to be Meryl Streep in Devil Wears Prada, and never-ending mountains of paperwork one could only hope to see the top of…. However, if you’re expecting a recount of a personal “training from hell” articling experience, you are reading the wrong blog. I have only been articling at McCague Borlack for a month and a half but I am certain I will not be subjected to an allergic reaction anytime soon.

The lawyers at our firm have been kind and patient in volunteering their time to impart useful skills and knowledge, making the learning curve much more manageable. However, articling also involves a great deal of personal learning. Transitioning from being a summer to an articling student meant continuing to develop better organizational and work habits in order to better manage my time and take on more responsibility. As the volume and complexity of work has increased, I am slowly beginning to understand the importance of endurance which in the end will help me ‘survive’ a career in law.


The following tips have helped me avoid nose-diving while articling:

1. Do not promise an earlier deadline than you can deliver;
2. Save final work products so you never make the same mistake twice;
3. Buy a large Moleskine notebook and bring it to lawyers’ offices to make detailed notes of assigned tasks;
4. Organize your emails into folders and sub-folders for different lawyers and client files for easy access to information; and
5. Find a few favourite spots in the Path for snack and coffee breaks!

Now I’m not saying there won’t be late nights to look forward to but as long as you prioritize and organize your tasks, you shouldn’t need to invest in a sleeping bag in the near future!

Christine L.

Dear Future Candidates...

My last couple of weeks have been incredibly busy: I came back from vacation (yes, articling students do get time off) and was immediately immersed in the Ottawa summer student recruitment process. Fortunately, I can always rely on my fellow students at the Toronto office to back me up. They have been incredibly understanding and supportive and have voluntarily taken on tasks so that I can actively take part in interview week.

Being involved in the student recruitment process has been a great experience. I have really enjoyed meeting/speaking with all of the candidates and have really been impressed by their outstanding achievements.