Summer Student Orientation Week

Every student feels the nerves that come with starting a new job. Transitioning from the classroom to the office is always a significant adjustment. Prior to the start of summer orientation week, our Student Director, Ashley Faust, made sure we were well-prepared to commence our journey with McCague Borlack. We are lucky to have Ashley as a mentor as she was not only a summer and articling student at MB, but she is the lead lawyer on a number of files, enabling her to share all of her experiences with us eager students.

My fellow summer students and I received a detailed orientation schedule outlining the activities for the weeks ahead.

This schedule was so helpful to ensure we were prepared for the start of the summer term, which greatly eased the stress from the start. It made day one so much easier for us to navigate and gave us many exciting things to look forward to. It also provided our first glance inside the firm’s multifaceted practice areas.

Every day of orientation was filled with plenty of insightful presentations, seminars and activities. We were given the opportunity to learn from many of the firm’s amazing lawyers about their practice. This allowed us to have a variety of insights into the different ways each person would tailor their files based on their personal preferences. While the program prepared us for the work that we had to look forward to, it was also a great way to get to know the incredible people that make up the firm’s staff. Everyone gave us plenty of time to ask questions about anything that we could think of and made us feel so welcome.

Despite the focus being on preparing us for the substantive work that makes up much of the summer, we were given plenty of fun breaks to ensure that we could stay energized for the next activity. Some of the fun activities included playing Scattergories and participating in the annual student Brownie Baking Bonanza (which turned out to be the best brownie recipe I have ever tried!). This week was an amazing way to get to know the other students, especially those I am now in the Ottawa office with every day.

With the summer program having just kicked off fully, the orientation experience was so helpful in preparing me for the start of the work period. Not only did it give us a great overview of the summer term ahead, but it also ensured that we were able to seamlessly transition into being in the office every day. Even though I took notes and paid attention during orientation (with the help of a few coffees), there was still so much to learn/re-learn once we got started officially. But everyone at the firm is so helpful in teaching you the best practices, tips and tricks to help you succeed. Now, I wonder why I was ever worried at all.

To any future summer students reading this: even if you feel like you know nothing, someone will always be willing to help. I have learned so much from asking questions and doing my own exploration of the firm’s systems. While I know that I still have a long way to go before I am comfortable, I am confident anyone I ask will happily jump in to help. The firm culture is truly special in terms of the willingness to support the summer students with all our needs. We know that we will make mistakes, but this is part of the experience. We will be better for it by the end of the summer.

by Alexander D.

Initial Summer Student Experience: Here’s to Growth!

Aside from the excitement I had prior to starting as a Summer Student, I was unsure of what to expect. Will I enjoy the work? What will my colleagues be like? Will I have the necessary assistance if required? From my research of the firm, I knew I’d likely grow as both a student of the law and as an individual but I was uncertain about what that growth would entail.  

"Although my time with MB has only recently begun, I feel privileged to comment on my orientation experience."

Laying the framework for what to expect going in, I was happy to receive an orientation schedule as well as helpful aids. Our orientation was virtual, and there are plans to eventually integrate into the office. Throughout our orientation week, various firm members presented different aspects of the litigation process we’d need to familiarize ourselves with. This included handling defences, motions, subrogation, and small claims files. We also learned about firm-specific processes that law school does not teach. Questions were highly encouraged. So when the week was over, I was relieved that many of my original questions were answered. 

Along with expectations, a stable structure for receiving assignments was also laid out. MB maintains a 3-prong approach to work distribution. Assignments can be obtained by 

1. Receiving an e-mail through the Summer Student server on a rotational basis; 
2. Inquiring about work in areas of interest; and 
3. Being specifically requested to take on a task. 

My first assignment was to draft a summary of a plaintiff’s productions in preparation for discovery. My second was to obtain a list of undertakings from the insured following discovery. I have also done some research, and most recently, I drafted a statement of claim. My next assignment is to review surveillance footage and reports on another matter (how cool!) I have quickly realized that assignments will vary depending on the type of file it is, expanding my overall range. A more prominent realization is that as a Summer Student, I am being trusted to handle key aspects of real-life litigation files. To say this is gratifying would be an understatement. As a future litigator, I’m thankful for the ability to further enhance my toolbox and grow.

On that note, I am happy to advise that I have only been “on the floor” for a week and I’ve already attended a two-day discovery, and have an arbitration scheduled for this week and a pre-trial at the end of the month.

Unsurprisingly, the journey of a law student is daunting at various stages. But I realize not knowing things is okay. There is no benefit to placing a perfectionist burden on myself. The most skilled, successful lawyers ask questions and endlessly learn from others. It is consistency along with curiosity and eagerness to learn that matters in the long run.

I'm eagerly looking forward to what’s to come. Here's to growth!

by Alan M.

So what has the first few weeks of articling been like?

Approximately three weeks ago, I, along with six other students began our articles. In short, so far, my experience has been beyond what I could have imagined articling was going to be like, especially “working from home.”

But, let’s backtrack to the night before my first day. As I prepared my outfit for the next morning, I felt both a sense of nervousness and excitement. After all, tomorrow was going to be a big day. I was finally going to be able to start work!

 I remembered the utter joy I felt when I received the phone call at 5:00 pm sharp on the last day of OCI recruitment and was offered a position to work at MB. 

After meeting so many members of the firm and learning about all the interesting work students would be able to do, I couldn’t wait to begin, and now, the time was finally here!

As excited as I was, I also felt a bit nervous. There were so many thoughts that crossed my mind. What will it be like to learn how to practice law, especially away from the office? Will I miss out on the learning experience due to not being able to be in-person and seeing my colleagues? Will I be able to stay motivated working from home? What if I make mistakes on an assignment? Am I even capable of all this? Unlike school, which is what I have been familiar with all my life, for the first time now I would be working on real client files. Hence, there was added nervousness.

Approximately three weeks in now and much to my surprise, none of my earlier concerns have factored into my incredible experience so far. From the very first day of articling, our comprehensive orientation prepared us very well by educating us on the substantive practice areas of the firm, as well as the administrative "know-how" of litigation. In addition, our orientation was thoughtfully planned in a way where we not only covered substantive material but also got the opportunity to socialize and “e-meet” other members of the MB team - all through Zoom of course. Who said Zoom could only be used for serious meetings? Thanks to Zoom, I really enjoyed our charcuterie board-making and mixology event where we channelled our culinary skills while sharing some great laughs with lawyers from across all five office locations.

Although our articles have begun remotely, I am grateful for all the efforts made to simulate an in-person experience. For example, every time we receive a new assignment or have questions about an assignment, we are encouraged to simply call the lawyer and have a discussion instead of writing a lengthy message over e-mail. Initially, the thought of calling a lawyer felt nothing short of daunting. However, now, this has become my go-to and truly feels most similar to hopping in their office for a quick chat. I have also found video-chatting with other students while we work on our assignments as a great way to overcome the “work from home” blues. This way, I feel I have company and can unmute my microphone to ask my colleagues any questions I have, just as I would if we were in the office together. Clearly, not being in-person is only as much of a barrier as we let it become.

All in all, to describe my first few weeks of articling, it is similar to a child growing up learning how to navigate the world. I feel likewise as I am learning how to navigate the fascinating world of litigation. There are many challenges and a steep learning curve, which is both rewarding but also challenging. What helps, however, is that I do not feel alone. I feel happy to have such an incredible support system in the other six students (shout-out to our WhatsApp group), and also the large variety of resources available to us.

In the weeks to come, I look forward to learning the ins-outs of litigation, and most important of all, enjoying the ride!

by Ashna G.

Incoming articling students: What to expect during virtual orientation week

 

As the short summer term is quickly coming to a close, the incoming articling students are just a few weeks away from beginning their term. While Ontarian's are starting to experience some sense of normalcy as the province reopens, much of the working world is still virtual. The incoming articling students have the likely prospect of returning to the office at some point in their term. However, like myself and my fellow summer students, they will still have the experience of a virtual orientation week. This article highlights this summer’s orientation week to give all future students a rough understanding of what to expect.

This summer, Ashley Faust, the Director of the student program, organized and facilitated a 5-day orientation training in the first week of our summer term. Each day, we had between four and five training sessions, each led by a different lawyer of the firm.

The sessions ranged from substantive topics relevant to the firm’s common practice areas to topics relevant to daily firm administration. 

Substantive topics included:

• the ABCs of civil litigation, 
• managing a file including interactions with clients, 
• insurance law 101, 
• subrogation, and 
• accident benefits. 

Conversely, the firm admin topics taught us

• how to docket, 
• run a small claims court file, 
• be a good junior, 
• an effective researcher, and 
• be efficient in file management.

Ashley did a great job of balancing the schedule, such that we often alternated between substantive sessions and firm admin sessions. This was helpful in keeping me focused and engaged (since sitting in front of a computer screen for hours can be exhausting in itself).

As the sessions were led by different lawyers at the firm, this allowed us to meet some of our new colleagues and put faces to the names that we would soon see frequently. I appreciated this opportunity having been completely virtual this summer. Without it, it would have been incredibly daunting to start working without really knowing anybody.

During orientation, we did not have access to a firm email account, therefore, no work was assigned during the entire week. This allowed us to ease into the summer term and focus on what we were learning without any added distractions.

Ashley ran a final session each day to catch up on any content not covered in full. At this time, the students could also ask for clarification on anything covered that day. This checkpoint gave us confidence that no question would be left unanswered. (Note: we also maintained a similar checkpoint throughout the remainder of the summer).

By far, the highlight of the orientation week was our Brownie Bake Bonanza. Ashley provided her famous recipe, and one afternoon, we baked together over Zoom. While the brownies were in the oven, we joined in another Zoom call with many of the firm’s lawyers for a virtual meet and greet.

All in all, the orientation week was effective in preparing us to start our summer experience. It was also a great way to meet the faces we would be working with.

Pro-tip for incoming articling students: scroll down and read the rest of the blogs! 

by Rebecca F.

What to expect during orientation week

I was both excited and extremely nervous to begin my first day of work at McCague Borlack.

The night before, the usual first day of school jitters began to start:

"I hope the other students are nice! Should I pack a lunch?
Is it okay if I wear the same outfit as I wore at my interview?"

On Monday morning at 9 a.m., all the students were greeted by our student director, Ashley. Thanks to her smiling face and approachable manner, our nerves began to slowly fade away. At McCague Borlack, the students receive a full week of comprehensive training. Each day consisted of seminars on legal topics and learning skills that would teach us “how to McCague” such as docketing and binding court materials.

Monday

On Monday, we all sat in the boardroom which would become our home for the week. Ashley took time to introduce the summer program and outlined what we could expect for the summer. At lunch, we went on a food court tour of the Toronto building with the Articling students (I guess I didn’t need to pack a lunch after all!). The day ended with learning some legal office skills and a firm tour.

Tuesday

Having had our first day under our belt, on Tuesday morning we all came in a little more relaxed. The morning was spent learning how to docket. This was a task that seemed a little overwhelming at first but turned out to be a very user-friendly system. We also had our first legal seminars covering topics such as subrogation, and how to run a small claims court file. We were lucky to have partners come and give us tips and tricks for dealing with files of this nature.

Wednesday morning was picture day! Having spent Tuesday evening practising their best Zoolander poses, all the students came in looking glamorous and ready for their pictures. In the afternoon we had a representative from Westlaw visit. She taught us tips and tricks for making the most of Westlaw resources. I learned a lot, I had no idea that you could highlight and save information straight into a PDF from Westlaw!

Thursday morning we received a tour of the Great Library at Osgoode Hall. The library facilitates legal research to lawyers, by providing an extensive collection of books and online resources. The library itself is beautiful, walking around we felt as though we might actually be at Hogwarts. Not only does the building have an amazing legal history, but the building is also an active courthouse. It was very exciting to see seasoned lawyers roaming the halls in their robes, hopefully foreshadowing our future as litigators.

Friday - Our last day of training had finally arrived! We had received so much information over the week and yet felt that we still had so much more to learn. We had a visit from Howard Borlack, who officially welcomed us to the firm. He told us stories of his journey from law student to named partner, highlighting that the learning doesn’t stop once you leave the law school classrooms. He also encouraged us from now on to think of McCague Borlack as our firm and to take pride that this is the first step of our legal career.

Orientation week was a great way to settle into the firm. We all cannot wait to get our first assignment once the list starts moving on Monday.

by Olivia

The Step from Law School to Law Firm

Since I was hired at the firm, I had been anticipating my first day at work and had a few queries.

"Has law school adequately prepared me for working in a firm?
Will I be a good fit? Is it going to be like the show Suits?"

Having completed one week of orientation and almost one week of assignments, I can reflect on my experience so far. But first,  I can confirm, that although the filming of Suits takes place down the street, the show is quite removed from reality.

Orientation Week

We began with introductions and throughout the week attended seminars on topics such as civil litigation, affidavits, motions, insurance law, legal research, docketing, Westlaw, and “How to McCague”. It sounds substantive, but the oatmeal cookies made up for it.

The students toured the firm, the Great Library of Osgoode Hall, a courthouse, and fit in our own unofficial tours of some food places in between.

Aside from learning about the law and the firm, the students were given time to learn about each other. By the end of the week, we agreed that the firm did a great job of hiring such a compatible group of students.

First Impressions & The Importance of Mentorship and Helping Each Other

The mentorship between the employees at MB is apparent and has made the step from law school to law firm more manageable.

The six Toronto summer students are placed in an open-concept workspace so that we can help each other as much as possible, which has proven to be effective. Whenever one of us has a question, we do our best to ensure the question is answered. Truly, no man (or woman) is left behind.

On our first day, some of the articling students took the summer students for a tour of the food court downstairs. Over lunch, they provided us with incredibly helpful tips and their own informal “How to McCague.”

Diverse Assignments

My second week working as a summer student has already been rewarding. So far, we have received at least one assignment per day. Examples of assignments are drafting pleadings, memos, affidavit of documents, arguing motions, and attending a trial. Thus far, I have been given assignments in four areas of litigation and hope to explore more. While each assignment has a challenging element, taking one step at a time is essential.

Like any experience, each one is unique. Taking the step from law school to a law firm has been a positive experience for me.

I look forward to what the rest of the summer has in store for us!

by Anisha B.

Team Player

The most common advice I received since entering law school has been to be a team player. The phrase “a chain is only as strong as its weakest link”, became more cliché every time I heard it. I knew that teamwork would be important, but I had no idea how valuable cooperation and comradery would become.

Asking questions is imperative to producing quality work efficiently...

The seven of us students, five in Toronto and two in Ottawa, began our first-day meeting in a boardroom. “Good morning”, we all echoed. Our team had met after months of anticipation. Together we learned about docketing, motions, research and everything else we need to know in order to successfully “McCague”. Lawyers entered and left our progressively less nervous boardroom to teach us new lessons - leaving us with knowledge, wisdom, and mostly, lots to think about. I learned quickly that the team I envisioned was composed of more than the summer students battling the tasks thrown our way. Everyone at the firm has a different, but important role, we rely on each other and succeed together.

After training, we received our first assignments, and naturally had lots of questions. We freely turn to each other for input and advice — without which, we would be far more confused and less productive. While we have a great support system amongst ourselves, we save the tougher and substantive questions for the lawyers, especially the ones who gave us the assignments! Initially, I was concerned about asking too many questions, despite being assured that questions are important and encouraged. However, once I spoke one-on-one with more of my colleagues, my concerns disappeared. I learned from various lawyers that asking questions is imperative to producing quality work efficiently. One lawyer told me that it is a waste of time to sit at a desk staring at the screen and waiting for the answers to magically appear. Of course, she was absolutely correct.

While asking questions is encouraged, I, just like everyone else at the firm, still respect my colleagues’ time. Consequently, I try to never ask the same question twice. To accomplish this, I write down all the tips and explanations I am given. I now have a collection of notes with instructions from others pinned on the walls around my desk. By the end of the first day, I created an excel sheet with the instructions I was given for each task. Following the spirit of the firm, which emphasises teamwork, the summer students have decided to put our notes together and create a database with basic guides to our assignments.

The second week is coming to a close and we already have a variety of assignments to complete. The students have all agreed that one of the biggest highlights of our time so far is the diverse set of tasks that we were given. Drafting initial reports, pleadings, motion records, affidavit of documents, and damages briefs are just some of the new things we are working on, and we love it.

Yousef E.

The Summer Students are here!

We arrived on Monday fresh and relaxed following a four-week vacation after the end of exams (Thanks for that, McCague Borlack!) eager and ready to learn… and learn we did. What is subrogation? How does one file a motion? How many times must you press the button for the 26th floor in the elevator before some kind person informs you that you actually need an access card to get up there? (Six. The answer is six times).

A lot has changed since we were here last November for interviews. For instance, the renovations to MB's new 'open concept' work centre on the 27th floor are now complete and gone is the vast empty space that was rumoured to be used occasionally for soccer games.

"While it was easy to become overwhelmed, there was a steady stream of assurances from associates, articling students, and support staff that we would be just fine..."

We were immediately taken on a tour of the firm, shuffling from one office to the next; nervously smiling at each person we met while trying desperately to remember their name and what part of the maze they worked in. From there it was a bit of a whirlwind through lessons on docketing, assignments, the basis of civil procedure, accident benefits, etc. While it was certainly easy to become overwhelmed, there was also a steady stream of assurances from associates, articling students, and support staff that we would be just fine, and that is something that I will definitely take away from the week.

The departing articling students, in particular, took the time to sit with us and talk frankly about the job expectations, tips for surviving the summer, and so on in what was reminiscent of the “Keeping it Real” room during interview week last fall. They took time out of what I’m sure was a busy last couple of days to sit with us and answer all of our (many, many) questions.

There was not a single person that I spoke to who not only encouraged me to ask them a question when I needed to but also named about five or six other people I could go to for help. The atmosphere in the firm is social and friendly, which is particularly impressive given the sheer number of people that work here.

For example, a senior partner offered to take me (the first student on the assignment list) on a mediation with him on Friday afternoon as a learning opportunity. On the way there, he provided answers to all my questions about mediations, insurance law, the ins and outs of the firm, and the game of squash. He was surprised to hear there are 11 students this summer and he reminisced a time when there were only 11 lawyers in the firm! My first time at a mediation with such skilled counsel was a great experience! Another example of generosity; as it was Friday, I wore casual pants that day and an associate, whom I’d never met before, offered to lend me her dress pants so that I would be more suitably attired for the mediation. It cannot get any friendlier than that!

These are just a few examples of the attitude at McCague Borlack; everyone seems ready to help, teach, and do whatever it takes to produce good work and stellar litigators, and I am excited to be a part of it.

Lastly, I think I speak for all the students in giving a huge thanks to Ashley Faust for taking the time to train us last week despite her upcoming wedding, as well as to all the other people who popped in to participate in our training or just to say hi and welcome us to the firm. It was very much appreciated!

Sarah B.