"Articling is a marathon, not a sprint", and other advice

Almost three weeks ago, the six 2018 summer students returned as articling students. On the first day, we walked into the board room, one by one for our arrival time at 9:15 a.m. Everything looked the same, but it felt very different. We weren’t as nervous; we felt comfortable and excited to be back at the firm.

It is now the third week of articling and the “floodgates” have been open for almost two weeks. When sitting at my desk I hear either keyboards clicking or phones ringing…everyone is busy. All of the articling students have received a variety of assignments from various lawyers at the firm.

Even though we feel comfortable, having been summer students at the firm, having the title as “articling student” can feel overwhelming at times. Howard Borlack, the managing partner at the firm, gave us advice during training week that has stuck with me and been helpful in the past few weeks:

“Articling is not a sprint, but a marathon.”

As articling students, we were advised to pace ourselves with accepting assignments and avoid burning out at the beginning of the articling term.

This advice is similar to what I was told in my first year of law school. As many people know, the first year is very competitive, but it cannot be treated as a sprint because students should not be burnt out for their final exams. Similarly, although it is tempting to use all of our energy right away, we were reminded to spread out our hard work and assure that we are improving throughout the term and maintaining our hard work.

“Maintain a work-life balance.”

We were fortunate to be reminded that it is important to maintain a work-life balance during articling.

Although we will need to meet deadlines, we were advised to still make time for the family, friends, gym, or things we enjoy doing during our free time. This helps combat feelings of being burned out, stressed, and overwhelmed.

“Articling is a time to learn from your mistakes.”

We were advised to take advantage of this opportunity to learn and have lawyers advise us on ways to improve as “baby lawyers”.

We were reminded that we have the benefit of learning as much as we want to and are able to in the next 10 months. So far, the supervising lawyers on my assignments have been extremely helpful in answering questions I have had and explaining why I was wrong when I made a mistake.

With that being said, I look forward to the next 10 months of being a sponge for knowledge; making mistakes, but learning from them.

by Anisha B.

Take Advantage of the Quiet Moments

...many of the lawyers at MB speak of the need to balance both your work and your life.

As an articling student at a busy firm, it’s easy to get overwhelmed when juggling different types of work for a range of lawyers who have different expectations. Therefore, in our short time here, we have all learned the importance of taking advantage of the quiet moments at MB. Taking this time to step away — from the world of filing motions, updating affidavits of documents, drafting briefing letters and mediation memorandums — to pursue our various interests or hobbies, and explore what Toronto has to offer. Not only is this a great way to keep your mind fresh, but it is also necessary.

When one becomes overwhelmed, it is easy to get sucked into an assignment and nitpick over the smallest of details. Even seemingly inconsequential punctuation choices in the middle of a 15-page briefing letter can be torturous to the addled minds of an articling student. “Would a semicolon better capture what I am trying to say here? Or would that be the job of a comma? Or do I live on the edge and forego both?” From the outside, these can seem like relatively trivial questions but more than once these questions have been asked either by me or by my fellow articling students. However, I have found that taking advantage of the quiet moments in the office to refresh my mind allows me to work more efficiently and deal with these small issues more effectively without holding a poll in the office asking who sides with the semicolon vs. the comma.

What’s there to do?

What is there to do in Toronto? The question should be what isn’t there to do? Whether it be taking in a Blue Jays game, going to the gym, taking in a movie at the Toronto International Film Festival (as an aside, I would like to state that stars leaving events outside of my apartment to screams of paparazzi and fans is not conducive to good sleep), spending that hard-earned salary at the stores on Queen West or Bloor Street, grabbing a drink with friends, or going for a walk along the lakeshore — Toronto offers something to do for anyone and everyone. Personally, I have made it my mission to visit as many food trucks in Toronto that my wallet, and waistline, will allow.

The other day a lawyer stopped by to ask how we were all doing and spoke of the importance of taking time away from the office to enjoy life. In fact, many of the lawyers at MB speak of the need to balance both your work and your life. After my short time here, I would wholeheartedly agree with their sentiments. There is always a time to do work, but as Jack said in The Shining, “all work and no play makes an articling student a dull person.” Or something like that anyway.

Garett H.

Looking Back at a Memorable Summer

This summer, which felt very long at times, but also as though it had slipped away extremely quickly, has sadly come to an end. Despite the ongoing stresses and struggles, this was one of the most rewarding and enjoyable summers I have ever had. I learned more than I would have imagined I could in 12 weeks and I am happy I had the opportunity to work at such an amazing firm. As a student on his way out for the summer, I just want to reflect on some highlights of my overall experience.

I learned more than I would have imagined I could in 12 weeks,,,

The People

Among the many good things MB has to offer, the people are at the top of my list in terms of aspects of the firm that have stuck out. MB has a very diverse and unique group of people who somehow mesh together amazingly well. The lawyers never stopped being helpful and were always available to answer summer student questions. They are very patient and great teachers. Additionally, the summer students were some of the most helpful, friendly, intelligent and fun groups of people I have ever been around and I am grateful to have been able to work with them this summer.

Work-life Balance

MB allows for a very rewarding work-life balance, and my summer experience is a testament to this. To provide some context, I have commuted from Richmond Hill every day. The commute is about an hour each way, so at times it can be difficult to maximize free time since two hours a day is dedicated to commuting. Truthfully, it was difficult to find the balance in the first few weeks, but once I was in the swing of things I was able to accomplish a fair amount of work while on the Go Train to and from work. As long as you are able to work efficiently, you will have no problem spending time with family and friends, going to the gym, cooking, or doing whatever it is you enjoy doing, on most days that is. The work-life balance is an aspect that I value very much and has been great this summer, even while having to commute from pretty far north.

Field Trips

Another highlight of my summer is the out of office experiences. By this, I mean discoveries, trials, mediations, etc. These are definitely things that every student should make time for. Not only do they provide greater insight into the life of a litigator, they are valuable because they allow you to witness different lawyers applying their own approach, which helps you find what style fits you best and also what you find to be most effective. They are also great opportunities to take a well-deserved break from the office grind.
Final Remarks
Looking back on the short summer term, I am amazed at all that the students were able to accomplish. The experience that we gained is, in my opinion, unparalleled. I firmly believe that each of us is now more confident, efficient, and vastly more knowledgeable than we were just 12 short weeks ago. I am happy to have had this experience and also very sad to have to leave. However, with just a year of school left, it won’t be long before we are back in action.

Michael G.

Why I chose MB as “my” firm

It’s hard to believe that our summer term at MB is coming to an end. Time honestly flew by. It seems like it was just a few days ago when I wrote my first blog describing my first two weeks at the firm. In this blog, I write about four qualities of MB that have re-affirmed my decision to choose MB as “my” firm.

...four qualities of MB that have re-affirmed my decision to choose MB as “my” firm.

Varied Work

In my previous blog, I wrote about MB’s desire to get its students involved as much as possible. Due to this exposure, students get the opportunity to work on different types of assignments and expand their knowledge. For example, during my summer term, I had the opportunity to attend court for a preliminary hearing; went to a mediation during which parties actually reached an agreement and settled; attended several interesting discoveries, one of which was very heated; drafted several motions and had the chance to watch some get argued in court; commenced actions; amended claims; prepared damages briefs and conducted research.

In addition to different types of work handed down to students, our group was also exposed to various industries that our clients, namely insurance companies, are involved in. Such exposure always provided new learning opportunities and made work more interesting.

Teamwork

Teamwork is perhaps one of the greatest qualities of MB. During my term here, I have felt comfortable enough to ask questions and seek help from my colleagues regardless of their “rank” within the firm. Not only are the people here very easy to approach, but also based on my experience, they are willing to go out of their way to help. This collegial environment is evident amongst our own student group. Despite the fact that we have had a busy – and sometimes stressful – time here at MB, our group has stuck together like a true team, often giving a helping hand to team members that may be swamped with work so that deadlines can be met. I truly appreciate this quality amongst our team and believe that credit must be given to our Student Committee for selecting such an amazing group.

Hire-Back Rates

If you have visited the student program section of our website, you may have noticed MB’s emphasis on its hire-back rates. This is not just a slogan or a marketing strategy; it is the way of life here at MB. In fact, so long as you work hard and show your dedication to learning, not getting hired back as an articling student or a first-year associate is an anomaly. This relieves the student from having to stress about a future position with the firm, and instead allows them to focus on their professional development.

Work-Life Balance

Working at MB provides an opportunity to work at a large “Bay Street” firm without having to give up your work-life balance. While as summer students we occasionally had to stay at the office late into the night or come in on a weekend or two to catch up on some work, we don’t work the crazy hours that students at other big firms do. Fortunately, at MB there is no expectation for students to stay late or come in on the weekends to show face. This not only allows students to have a life outside of work, but also positively affects the quality of work by students as they are not over worked.

While there are many reasons that make MB a great firm to work at, the ones mentioned above are the MB qualities that I most appreciate about the firm. These are the qualities that have re-affirmed my decision of choosing MB as “my” firm.

Navid G.

The Balancing Act

One of the most common phrases I heard in law school was “If you think you are busy now, just wait until you start articling – you will have no life!” I tried to ignore these negative cautions but was still more than a little apprehensive that I would have give up my life for the next 10 months to eat, sleep, and breathe at the office.

"...the key to maintaining a balance is learning how to manage your time efficiently in the office, so that you can get out of the office and back into the other aspects of your life."

Thankfully, my experience at MB has not been reflective of all the negative stereotypes surrounding articles. Although all articling students work hard (those of us at MB are no exception), we are also able and encouraged to find time to “play” and enjoy our lives. Personally, I find the key to maintaining a balance is learning how to manage your time efficiently in the office, so that you can get out of the office and back into the other aspects of your life. This is still something I have yet to master, (and I have definitely had to put plans with friends and family on hold because of work) but I am trying hard to find that perfect balance.

In order to have the life I want outside of work, I need to be aware of my own time limits when accepting work and keep in mind my goals for balance. While I want to take on as many assignments as I can and go to court as much as possible, it’s also important that I schedule in some “me” time, including horse-back riding, running, and dinner and drinks with friends. The most challenging balancing act I have faced so far was being in court for 3 full days last week. While it was a fantastic learning experience, being out of the office most of the day meant I needed to stay late each night after court, to keep on top of the rest of my work. So this week, while I was in court for my first (and second!) motion, because I knew what I could manage and worked around the schedule I set for myself, I was able to stay on top of my work and make it out of the office for dinner.

The bottom line is that while there are never enough hours in the day, time management is a skill we all need in order to succeed in this demanding profession. While I think law students generally overreact to the expectations of articling (as they do with other things, has anyone else been following the saga of pineapple appreciation at Osgoode?), the life of a lawyer requires long hours (and some sacrifices) and articling is no different. Creating a successful balance will allow you to enjoy all the things that matter most to you. Tonight, I have tickets to Avicii; tomorrow, I will be summarizing transcripts.

Alyssa C.