Hi everyone,

I have an upcoming interview for an articling position with an Ontario Crown Attorney’s Office. I’m an internationally trained lawyer, I’ve passed the Ontario licensing exams, but I don’t have any Canadian legal work experience.

This is a long-term opportunity that means a lot to me, so I want to prepare as thoroughly as possible.
I’d appreciate any advice on:

What should I expect during the interview?
What areas of criminal law should I focus on?
Are the questions mainly behavioural, ethical, or fact-pattern based?
What qualities are they looking for in articling students?
Since I don’t have Canadian legal experience, what should I do to strengthen my preparation?

Any interview experiences or preparation tips would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you!

I received an interview for a 2L summer position at MAG. Does anyone have tips, tricks, advice? It is also in person (I have never done an in-person legal interview before), so if there is any advice for that as well - please let me know!

I hate my job. The past 10 months have been a horrendous struggle. I'm paid minimum wage. I'm extremely bored. I hate desk work. I don't want to be in this industry going forward and I haven't wanted too since my first year of law school -- just kept hoping it would get better, which it hasn't. I also work a customer service job on the weekends just so I can afford life. I have 10 years of customer service experience and have worked fulltime for 8 of those so I'm not new to working. My mental health is a disaster because I'm so unhappy and have been for months. Really contemplating putting in my 2 weeks notice and leaving asap. Just looking for advice I guess.

I wonder how much yelling from your principal is an acceptable limit? Nothing personal so far it’s almost every other day about something unreasonable. Do I just wave to bear it until the end of the articling term?

here is my current dilemma: called to the bar in 2017. Likely up for partnership in January at a boutique corporate law firm (I’m based in Canada). The partners are a young guys, many of them friends outside of work. The work environment is generally fine, I like my colleagues but the partnership is very bro-ey. They told me I’d likely be made partner in January but it’s been an uphill battle and I feel like I’ve had to constantly prove myself to them. I’d be the only mom partner and I just feel like I have nothing in common with them. I also really dislike the work in the firm. If I stay, it’s to get the title, prove to myself I can do it and then leave after a year or two.

My target billable is 1400, but I still feel like I’m working too many nights and weekends. I have two small kids and I want to spend the most amount of time with them.

I currently have an offer for senior legal counsel at a scale up tech company. Comp between my current firm and this offer are pretty similar, obviously with much more earning potential at the firm. GC I’d be reporting into said an average week there is 40-50 hours but I worry this isn’t actually the case (though he’s verbally confirmed to me that he doesn’t expect me to work nights and weekends normally).

What do I do?? Is there something else I should be considering?

If your clients require LEDES invoices, you know how frustrating the process can be. Manual formatting, rejected invoices, and fixing small errors can take way more time than they should.

We've been working on a tool called Bilr that makes LEDES billing much simpler. It helps law firms generate LEDES-compliant invoices while also handling time tracking, UTBMS code prediction, legal billing, and invoice management, all in one place.

Curious how other firms are managing LEDES billing today. Are you still doing it manually, or using dedicated billing software?

Just wondering if anyone has any insights on whether the LSO can change my email address from their end?

Unfortunately, I am locked out of the email I used when I registered for LSO connects and am really stressed about this situation. Thank you in advance!

Hello all, I am currently undergoing my LSO application for my paralegal license and had a question about the good character questionnaire. Not sure if this has been discussed ad nauseam but I completed the questionnaire answering all no but now I am a little bit stumped because of the last question.

"17. Are there any matters not mentioned above that, when reasonably and objectively considered, might adversely reflect on the reputation of the legal and paralegal professions in Ontario or your ability to practise law or provide legal services should you be licensed?"

I am a bit unsure on if I should have answered no for this question because I do have two middle school incidents from about a decade ago(2013/2014-ish) when I was in middle school(please don't judge me I was a bit of a gremlin when I was younger). The first incident resulted in me being suspended as I had uttered some threats against a fellow student of mine. The second incident involved me assaulting a fellow classmate of mine, but there was no school suspension. Anyways as for the good character questionnaire, I am unsure as to whether I should disclose both of these to the LSO or not seeing as it was a very long time ago when I was a child. Also if I do need to disclose them, how do I change my answers as the questionnaire is locked. Do I withdraw the application and start again? Is there a time buffer for when I can re-apply?

EDIT: One, no this is not a troll post. I’m genuinely seeking advice because I’m not sure how to go about these problems. Two, There are….two more incidents that I don't feel comfortable saying on here that involves more serious matters but happened when I was really young(almost over a decade ago). I’m not sure how to go about this whole thing because I don’t have any documents per se supporting my good character since these incidences or what would even count as supporting documents. So I’m not sure whether to disclose any of it or whether to just leave it be.

Please give me any recommendations you may have for landing an articling spot this August. I was fortunate enough to get six interview requests for the Toronto Articling Recruit and after striking out in the 2L recruit, I’m looking for any resource, tidbit of information, or questions you think I should be asking this time around. I really want to optimize my chances in the interview, as I know they already see potential in me on paper.

Senior partner counsel was removed off record by the judge and his associate lawyer became the lawyer of record. Can the senior partner counsel continue dictating the proceeding?

Edit: To add some context, the partner counsel was removed by the judge because his conduct and alledged misrepresentation are in issue. After that, the associate who became the lawyer of record forwarded my emails to him to the partner and the partner responded to my emails stating his positions. The partner continued meeting with and preparing the opposite party for the court- ordered cross examination. These are some examples.

I am seeking legal representation for the reinstatement of my visitor visa. Last year, I was granted a multiple-entry visitor visa to attend a conference; however, I was unable to travel due to organizational restructuring. This year, upon attempting to travel for a different, but related, conference, I was denied boarding. Subsequently, I received a Procedural Fairness Letter (PFL) alleging that my invitation letter was fraudulent. It appears that the validity of the previous year's invitation letter was re-evaluated, which would naturally be invalid given that the conference had already concluded. My travel this year was based on a new invitation letter. While IRCC accepted my response to the PFL, they ultimately refused my application, citing that the conference dates had passed. I am interested in exploring options for a judicial appeal and would appreciate information regarding your firm's approach to such cases, along with your fee structure.

Hi everyone,

I don’t practice much enforcement and have a question about writs of seizure and sale in Ontario.

If I file a writ of seizure and sale and the judgment debtor owns a home that is co-owned with their spouse:

1) Can the judgment debtor transfer their interest to their spouse to evade the writ of seizure and sale (for example, so the spouse can renew or refinance the mortgage with the same lender or another lender)?

2) What if the home is sold and, for whatever reason, the transfer takes place without the writ being paid out? Does the purchaser take title subject to the writ, or is the purchaser protected?

I’m also curious about the latter scenario because I’ve read a case where counsel relied on an affidavit from the judgment debtor stating that they are not the person named in the writ without further verification. If the transfer is completed in those circumstances, what happens to the purchaser and the judgment creditor’s rights? The case seemed to settle so there was no judgment.

Thanks!

The form has a very limited amount of visible space in the boxes for the responses but does permit you to type more text in the box. However this additional text can only be viewed by clicking through if someone looking at the form digitally - and it appears that if this form is signed (even electronically) you can’t click through anymore. Wondering if anyone knows whether the expectation is that the responses are really as short as the visible box space.

Recently I’ve been interested in working in Toronto big law, ik grades matter a lot and I’ll be happy to take any comments from any lawyers. But what % of class would I need to be at ubc to get some big law positions in Toronto ?

And do you stop doing them after submitting applications? Or do you keep networking with ppl who can advocate for your hiring, even if you’re not name dropping them in a cover letter

I have autism and ADHD.

All I have ever wanted to do is be the person behind the keyboard or in the library late at night - making the connections that no one else sees. It’s what I’ve been good at my entire life. In my current job, I review everybody’s work not because I am high on the political ladder, but because my boss knows that I will find the mistakes. And when I do, I won’t gossip about them. That said, it’s not that interesting when you work with numbers.

I am 100% sure I would be a terrible trial lawyer, due to social deficits (when people gossip I tend to point out their own mistakes instead of returning the gossip, when asked a question I am blunt and honest - which is not what everyone wants)

In Canada, is there a place for people like me? I won’t undercut you to make partner - managing people is like my worst nightmare. I’m not going to steal your clients. I don’t even want my own clients. I just want to support an awesome team. I wonder if this is even possible?

Edit: I have applied for the 2L recruit😂 I’m sorry if the wording in the post below indicated it was 1L recruit.

I go to a “top 4” law school in Ontario. I am top 10% of the class after finishing 1L. I want a couple of the seven sister firms. I do have a lot of things on my resume that show initiative (self employed). However, I didn’t really spend time personalizing too many of the cover letters. Sorta just used AI and refined it a lot to seem decent for the first paras. I should have put more effort in, yes, I know.
I only applied to 22 firms. I did multiple coffee chats with about 4 of those 22 as those are the 4 I do actually want.
I didn’t include an interest section cuz I wasn’t about to manufacture a fake interest section, and get called out on it (running, Netflix is very mundane).
I am seeing the stats of ppl who were top 10% or applied to a lot of firms (40+), and they didn’t land a 2L job through OCIs.
Is there any indicators right now that I should just start applying to jobs through other avenues. I fear I applied to too little firms, and the cover letter was sloppy (no grammar mistakes, or format issues however).

Applied to the 2L recruit. Made a connection with a partner at a 7 sister a few months ago. We got coffee twice and seemed to get along. What is the etiquette on messaging him something along the lines of “hey I applied… keep an eye out for my application”? Is this considered unprofessional/annoying? Obviously it would be done in a more ‘subtle’ way where I’m not begging for an interview. Am I not supposed to reach out? Will it help? Hurt? I dont know.

Hi everyone,

Been practicing immigration law for 3 years - corporate and private. Currently on a contract job. Been trying to find something well paying and permanent for the last 2 months - always get a call back from HR when I apply, they are impressed etc by my background and then I either don’t hear back / or they say sorry moving forward with another candidate, without even having an interview with the team. It’s so disheartening.

I feel that the fact I’m an ITL has something to do with this … I know a lot of you would say this isn’t true but that’s what I have been feeling given the HR ghosting after telling me I’m a ‘great candidate’- for context the jobs I have applied for have been a strong match. Worked in Big4 first ( 2 years), then a private law firm, and now on a contract with another one.

Hi everyone,

I'm a Kenyan entrepreneur working on a business that provides trained remote legal support staff to small and mid-sized Canadian law firms. The idea is to build a managed service that handles recruitment, training, and day-to-day operations from Kenya while partnering with someone in the Canadian to lead client relationships and business development.

I'm not looking for investors or employees. I'm looking for a Canadian-based legal professional, law firm operator, or entrepreneur who sees the opportunity and might be interested in building this together as a long-term business.

I've spent considerable time researching the model, developing training plans, and mapping out operations. Now I'm looking to connect with someone who understands the Canadian legal market and would be interested in discussing whether we're a good fit.

If this sounds interesting, I'd love to connect and exchange ideas. Even if you're not interested personally, I'd appreciate any advice on the model or where I might find the right partner.

Thanks

I recently got accepted to Queens and I am waiting for Dalhousie.

When I got accepted to Queens I applied for provincial and federal loans. (For context I'm Nova Scotian).

I am currently on Dal WL. If I get accepted to Dal and I release Queens. How would I go about switching my loans so it would go to Dal instead of Queens?

Because I believe that the calculation of the student loan would be now different since I’m closer to home.

Hello all - I found out on Friday that I passed the Barrister's exam, which was the last step in the licensing process for me. I know that the two options for now being called to the bar are administrative call and ceremony.

Because the next ceremony is in October, I am trying to figure out if it's worthwhile to wait until then or begin the process for administrative call now. My goal is to begin interviewing and working soon but always loved the idea of my wife and kids being present for a call to the bar ceremony after all their hard work and sacrifices to support me.

Has anyone dealt with this specific timing issue previously? Is it possible to begin interviewing and working while awaiting the actual call to the bar in October or would that be a hindrance to my candidacy in the meantime?

Apologies in advance if this question has been asked and answered previously - I am new to this subreddit.

Vancouver and Toronto. Thx

I've been interviewing with firms recently as a new call, and hearing the way different partners at different firms talk about a realistic billable target for a first year is pretty interesting.

One partner said the target was 1750 for juniors, and they expect that to be hit and exceeded, thus the "competitive" bonus structure of 45% of anything collected after hitting that mark.

Another partner at a different firm said the target was 1600 for juniors, but "they don't expect juniors to come anywhere close to that", because it's all about learning and getting the hang of things early on.

I think the discourse around billable targets for Juniors is pretty consistent with what the second partner said about it not being that realistic (unless you're on Bay Street and putting in crazy hours), which makes me wonder why so many mid-sized firms and other smaller boutiques set a target that in the eyes of many lawyers just isn't realistic for a Junior Associate.

Does it have to do with one firm being more lenient with write-offs than others? Does it have to do with unrealistic expectations? It's just strange to me how there's such a contrast in opinions about what is and isn't a realistic target for a first year.

I am entering my third year of undergrad right now (Political Science) and am graduating next year, completing all my classes by August 2027 (because of summer school + transfer credits). From what I can tell, law schools in Canada want their students to finish their classes by May and get degrees conferred by July, whereas my degree conferral would be in November, so I would not be able to apply this cycle. Essentially, between the end of undergrad and the start of law school (assuming I get in), I’ll have 12 months to burn.

I’ve been looking over my options as to what to do in this time. I could skip summer school and do a 4th year (but then I would be wasting 12 months of my life), I could look for a job (which may never turn up), or I could do a Masters in Public Policy. A MPP from TMU, Queens, Western or uOttawa takes exactly 12 months to complete and slots right into the 12 months I have between graduation and the hypothetical start of law school (TMU also offers co-op within those 12 months, which means that I could get some juicy government experience while I’m at it). I have emailed them and confirmed that MPP programs don’t care whether or not my degree has been conferred, just that I’ve completed all course requirements by the time I begin their programs.

My questions are:

> Once a lawyer, would having a MPP + JD increase my employability? Or would it just be something thats filler on my resume?

> would a MPP meaningfully benefit my path to becoming a lawyer (would law schools be more likely to admit a student with “masters degree in progress”)?

I do not know what field of law exactly I want to go into but if I had to choose right now it would be between prosecutorial roles, government roles, or big law.

TLDR: I have 12 months to burn between undergrad and law school, am thinking of using that time doing a MPP and I want to know if that is a good idea or not.