Comments on: Ontario bar admission overhaul, part 2 http://www.law21.ca/feeder/?FeederAction=clicked&feed=Comments+on+Articles+%28RSS2%29&seed=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.law21.ca%2F2008%2F02%2F01%2Fontario-bar-admission-overhaul-part-2%2F%23comment-&seed_title=Ontario+bar+admission+overhaul%2C+part+2 Dispatches from a legal profession on the brink Thu, 09 Sep 2010 04:35:25 +0000 hourly 1 By: Peter http://www.law21.ca/feeder/?FeederAction=clicked&feed=Comments+on+Articles+%28RSS2%29&seed=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.law21.ca%2F2008%2F02%2F01%2Fontario-bar-admission-overhaul-part-2%2F%23comment-18&seed_title=Ontario+bar+admission+overhaul%2C+part+2/comment-page-1/#comment-18 Peter Mon, 03 Mar 2008 06:07:01 +0000 http://law21.ca/?p=86#comment-18 Your two posts on the subject make for a very interesting read. I was especially interested to read your discussion of PLTC options, particularly your comments on the potential stigma attached to attending the program due to being shut out from traditional articles. I'm always struck by how Toronto-centric the Ontario articling process is, and I think that a similar stigma already attaches, though to a lesser degree, to people who article in smaller areas. That's unfortunate, because articling in smaller areas already has two strikes against it due to relatively lower pay and the fact that a lot of candidates are either from the GTA or strongly prefer to article there. It's even more unfortunate because I think think it's smaller (and more remote) centres that candidates who are struggling to find a position need to look into. In Toronto there will always be a steady stream of law school graduates eager to work, in towns and small cities there is more of a greying bar that is reflective of Canada's demographics as a whole. I would hope that lawyers in those areas recognize the need to train new lawyers as members of their local bar retires. I think in some places that is already true, and I've been told as much. I believe in Kenora right now there are five articling students for a town of about 13,000 people. Obviously the pay won't be great in places like that, but the opportunity to work closely with experienced lawyers and get face time with clients would be great training for someone looking to go solo. Though it would be far from a glamorous option, it may be more effective than a PLTC type program, and wouldn't be quite as stigmatizing one would hope. The obstacles I see for expanding the number of sole practitioners and small firms that offer articles are obviously money, but also candidates connecting with employers. The former could be addressed simply by articling for free, but of course no one really wants to work for free after seven or so years of school. I believe I heard about a program at the University of Ottawa where students got a bursary from the school to spend their summer working with a small firm or sole practitioner in a rural area. Maybe I'm making that up or I'm foggy on the details, but it seems like a similar program funded by the law society, government at some level or in some form (including Legal Aid Ontario or some sort of economic development group) in those rural areas could provide some assistance in the form of interest/debt relief, boarding/billeting, and/or a stipend. Not everyone would be happy in an isolated rural area where they are either paid lowly or not at all and are subsidized by others, but not everyone is happy in their job anyways. The latter obstacle I'm not so concerned about. Certainly articling in small centres and rural areas is about connections, but it's also about putting in the leg work. The internet has made this sort of thing a lot easier, and it's still just a matter of making a phone call. Maybe the law society could do more to solicit postings (admittedly I know nothing about what they currently do in that regard), but I have little sympathy for people who either aren't willing to put the effort into searching for a position, or aren't willing to go outside of their comfort zone to take a position. Your two posts on the subject make for a very interesting read. I was especially interested to read your discussion of PLTC options, particularly your comments on the potential stigma attached to attending the program due to being shut out from traditional articles. I’m always struck by how Toronto-centric the Ontario articling process is, and I think that a similar stigma already attaches, though to a lesser degree, to people who article in smaller areas.

That’s unfortunate, because articling in smaller areas already has two strikes against it due to relatively lower pay and the fact that a lot of candidates are either from the GTA or strongly prefer to article there. It’s even more unfortunate because I think think it’s smaller (and more remote) centres that candidates who are struggling to find a position need to look into. In Toronto there will always be a steady stream of law school graduates eager to work, in towns and small cities there is more of a greying bar that is reflective of Canada’s demographics as a whole.

I would hope that lawyers in those areas recognize the need to train new lawyers as members of their local bar retires. I think in some places that is already true, and I’ve been told as much. I believe in Kenora right now there are five articling students for a town of about 13,000 people. Obviously the pay won’t be great in places like that, but the opportunity to work closely with experienced lawyers and get face time with clients would be great training for someone looking to go solo.

Though it would be far from a glamorous option, it may be more effective than a PLTC type program, and wouldn’t be quite as stigmatizing one would hope. The obstacles I see for expanding the number of sole practitioners and small firms that offer articles are obviously money, but also candidates connecting with employers. The former could be addressed simply by articling for free, but of course no one really wants to work for free after seven or so years of school. I believe I heard about a program at the University of Ottawa where students got a bursary from the school to spend their summer working with a small firm or sole practitioner in a rural area. Maybe I’m making that up or I’m foggy on the details, but it seems like a similar program funded by the law society, government at some level or in some form (including Legal Aid Ontario or some sort of economic development group) in those rural areas could provide some assistance in the form of interest/debt relief, boarding/billeting, and/or a stipend. Not everyone would be happy in an isolated rural area where they are either paid lowly or not at all and are subsidized by others, but not everyone is happy in their job anyways.

The latter obstacle I’m not so concerned about. Certainly articling in small centres and rural areas is about connections, but it’s also about putting in the leg work. The internet has made this sort of thing a lot easier, and it’s still just a matter of making a phone call. Maybe the law society could do more to solicit postings (admittedly I know nothing about what they currently do in that regard), but I have little sympathy for people who either aren’t willing to put the effort into searching for a position, or aren’t willing to go outside of their comfort zone to take a position.

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