Our London office offers legal services in a wide range of areas:

• Banking and Insolvency
• Business Law
• Commercial Litigation
• Commercial and Residential Real Estate
• Construction Law
• Class Actions
• Criminal Defence
• Employment Law
• Estate Planning, Administration and Litigation
• Family Law
• Health Law
• Insurance Defence
• Landlord and Tenant
• Municipal Law
• Personal Injury Claims
• Professional Liability

Articling Students

Our articling program is organized according to four rotations.

They have been structured to give students a chance to work with many different lawyers and to get exposure to many different areas of practice. This kind of professional "cross-training" during articles helps you develop a strong base of knowledge and skill. This will help you in your career no matter what shape it takes. For example, family lawyers need to understand basic personal income tax law to advise clients about support payments. A trial lawyer handling a lawsuit over an aborted real estate deal may need a working knowledge of the law of tender. Articles at Lerners will help you understand "the big picture."

To give you an idea of how our rotation system is structured, here is a description of the rotations of our 2010-2011 articling students:

Litigation rotation

• During this rotation, the student handles research, drafting, trial preparation and other assignments related to litigation files, including criminal defence files. This rotation lasts for approximately 27 weeks, which may not be consecutive. For example, the student could be in the litigation rotation for twelve weeks, then complete the remaining weeks later in the articling term.

Solicitors' rotation

• The student assists lawyers in the Real Estate/Land Development and Business Law practice groups with non-litigious matters. These could range from drafting corporate documents and wills to researching the legislation governing condominiums. This rotation lasts approximately five weeks.

Advocacy rotation

• This rotation is designed to give each student an opportunity to handle court appearances and hearings, such as criminal court appearances, and contested and uncontested motions in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice. The student in the advocacy rotation is the first one selected for court appearances during the rotation. Court appearances are handled by other students only if the student in the advocacy rotation is unavailable. This rotation also gives students a great chance to learn by watching. The student in this rotation handles very few research or drafting assignments and so can take the time to accompany lawyers to observe proceedings such as trials, motions, appeals, hearings and discoveries. The advocacy rotation lasts approximately six weeks.

Family rotation

• During this rotation, approximately five weeks long, students learn the ropes of family law practice. This rotation offers students a great chance to build their knowledge of the rules and procedures particular to family law, and also a chance to develop their skills in communicating with clients.

In the rotations, you will see what day-to-day practice is like in many areas of law. Research is a significant part of the articling experience, but by no means the only activity. You will have plenty of real-world contact with clients in interviews and meetings. You will draft commercial agreements, pleadings and opinion letters. You will assist in the conduct of examinations for discovery and prepare for trials and appeals. You will acquire valuable advocacy experience by appearing in court on contested and uncontested motions, assisting on trials, conducting small claims court or provincial offences trials on your own, and representing clients at tribunal hearings. You will meet with new clients, and by doing so you will develop your skills at interviewing, identifying legal issues, and assessing when you can assist someone with a legal problem and when you cannot.

Summer students

Summer students work primarily on litigation matters and have limited exposure to the solicitor's world. Their work, however, still has a great deal of variety, covering a wide range of substantive areas of law under the litigation umbrella.

Summer students have similar responsibilities to those of articling students. The only significant difference is that they have fewer opportunities to appear in court.

There is no rotation structure in our summer program. Our student administrative team, in assigning work, makes sure that summer students get diverse assignments—with different lawyers and in different areas of law—over the course of the summer.

How is work assigned?

We think both articling and summer students benefit from a structured system for assigning work. That way we can be sure each student gets a similar volume of work, and as much variety in experience as we can offer.

The key to our system for assigning work to students is our student administrative team. Kim Morrison, our Student Administrator, is a very experienced legal assistant who has worked at Lerners for over 10 years. She has been assisting our students since mid-2008. She has primary responsibility for directing assignments to articling and summer students. She considers the workload of each student and the type of experience each student already has or still needs, and then assigns projects accordingly. This approach ensures that, by the end of the articling or summer term, each student has worked with several different lawyers, on a variety of tasks, and in most of the major areas of law in which we practise. If Kim is away, Sylvia Davis, our Director of Associate and Student Development, looks after assigning work to our students, in the same manner. Sylvia has worked with the firm for over 25 years, first as an articling student and then as an associate lawyer and in recent years, has served as a senior administrator in the firm with responsibility for our students and associate lawyers.

If there are particular experiences you'd like to have as a student at Lerners, beyond the assignments you would receive in the normal course, there is definitely a chance for you to seek them out. We encourage students to approach lawyers to find out about opportunities to assist them, from sitting in on a new client interview to attending a trial. Lawyers are very receptive to having articling and summer students join them for meetings or court proceedings, so students can soak up all the training they want.

Training

In addition to a comprehensive orientation program provided to our articling students when they first join us, we organize over 25 seminars and workshops on practical topics for them during their 10 months of articling. These include reviews of more obscure but important areas of law that are often not covered in law school, such as construction law, and "how-to" presentations on drafting wills, arguing motions and conducting examinations for discovery.

To give you an idea of the topics on which the articling students can expect training, the workshops for our 2011-2012 London articling students will include the following:

• client interviewing skills
• small claims court trial procedure
• construction litigation
• operation and management of trust and general accounts in a law firm
• drafting pleadings
• courtroom decorum and advocacy skills
• class actions

Our summer students have a full orientation at the beginning of their summer employment. We also offer four to six additional in-house lectures on litigation topics for them during the course of the summer.

Articling and summer students usually have an opportunity to attend one continuing legal education program outside the firm during their articles or summer employment. The students can select a program of interest to them (within reasonable parameters as to location and cost). The most commonly attended programs are half-day or full-day seminars put on by the Ontario Bar Association or the Law Society of Upper Canada.

Staff support

Kim Morrison, a very experienced legal assistant, serves as the student administrator in the London office of the firm. In addition to assigning work equitably, she also makes sure that students get a chance to observe before doing. For example, if you will be arguing a motion for the first time next month, she'll make sure that you go with a lawyer or experienced articling student to watch them argue a motion before it's your turn, so you will feel more confident on your feet. She also acts as a resource on office procedures. If Kim is away, our Director of Associate and Student Development, Sylvia Davis, steps in to help.

Lawyer support

Each of our articling and summer students is paired with a senior and junior mentor. The senior mentor is a partner or a senior associate, while the junior mentor is a more junior associate. The mentors meet with students periodically during the articling or summer term for lunch or just a chat, and are available when students are looking for advice or just a friendly "sounding board."

As you can tell, if you're a student at Lerners, you'll have several of us watching out for you!

Library support

Lerners is committed to providing a professional library environment for its lawyers and students. Students make regular use of the firm’s extensive print and electronic resources. They benefit from the commitment of the firm's librarian to assist them with initial orientation to the firm's research and information services, and to assist them with research and information needs throughout their summer or articling experience.

Our newly-automated library and knowledge management platform is a tool all students have come to rely upon to navigate through the muddy waters of locating reference and research materials. Our rapidly expanding subscriptions to electronic resources are efficiently accessed through an automated software system and the firm uses electronic checkout to track all items within the firm. Students and lawyers can renew or request books directly from their desktop, with over 170 key electronic titles currently available on the system.

While many law firms train students in either Lexis or Westlaw, Lerners offers training and passwords to both services. This offers students an opportunity to explore, compare and become very proficient in both services, and helps them conduct superior computer - assisted legal research.

Our London office students benefit from close geographic proximity to the Middlesex Law Association library and to the library of the University of Western Ontario Faculty of Law, where they can access additional resources.

With this range of library support, our students can tackle their research assignments with confidence.

Students want to know that they are doing a good job and how they can improve their work.

Many of our lawyers provide informal feedback to students on assignments shortly after they have been completed. To make sure that students have a full picture of how they are doing, however, we also conduct formal evaluations. Summer students can expect one evaluation at the midway point of their summer experience, and one after their summer employment has been completed. Articling students will have at least two evaluations during the course of their articles.

Lawyers are asked to prepare written feedback on articling and summer students' assignments as the assignments are completed. This feedback is relayed to the students as soon as it is received. At the evaluation meetings, our Director of Associate and Student Development meets with each student, along with the student's senior mentor, to discuss the feedback received during the time period for which the student is being evaluated. The meeting provides a good opportunity to identify areas of strength for the student, as well as any areas needing greater attention.

The evaluation process is not only about the evaluation of students; it also serves as a chance for students to evaluate our articling and summer program. At their evaluations, we ask students what aspects of their work with the firm they are most enjoying and what changes would make their experience even better.

A workplace encompasses far more than just the place you work; it's a full constellation of opportunities for living and expanding your experience while you are with Lerners. London offers an excellent environment in which to live. London was ranked 12th out of 179 Canadian communities in "Canada's Best Places to Live 2010" (MoneySense Magazine). In May, 2009, fDi magazine announced that London ranked in the top 5 in the "Best Quality of Life" category for its "North American Small Cities of the Future" 2009/2010 ranking. This assessment followed a review of nominations from nearly 400 North American cities. In July 2009, London was ranked 9th in Canada as a top Canadian city for young professionals to work and live. This survey, released by Next Generation Consulting, was based on an analysis of all Canadian cities with populations of more than 100,000 people.

Those of us who live in London believe there is much to recommend working in a mid-size city, especially one of London's calibre:

• very limited time spent in commuting between home and work
• increased opportunities to become acquainted with lawyers outside your own firm and to develop collegial working relationships with the other 800 lawyers who practise in London
• affordable housing (as an example, the average executive two-storey detached home in London costs $316,100 compared to $645,000 in Oakville, $615,000 in Markham and $424,000 in Ottawa (Kanata). (Royal LePage, Survey of Canadian House Prices, Second Quarter 2011)
• amenities within the city and nearby, such as performances by Orchestra London, productions at The Grand Theatre, the John Labatt Centre and the nearby Stratford Festival, and water sports on Lakes Huron and Erie.

And there is much more if you are looking for more. You can make a mark as a Lerners student in London—and have a pleasant and stimulating time living in an affordable community.

For more information about living in London, we invite you to visit the websites of the London Economic Development Corporation and The City of London.

We want students whose solid law school grades show their abilities in legal analysis and reasoning. But Dean's Honour List marks are not our sole measure of potential. We are looking for articling and summer students who fit our firm's working culture: outgoing personality, attentive to detail, hard-working, excellent oral and written communication skills, a good sense of humour, well-organized and good at managing their time so they can balance work with the other dimensions of their lives.

We also want law students who appreciate that excellent legal work is only part of what clients are entitled to expect from their lawyers: excellent client service is equally vital.

Articling and summer students in our London office work hard. But that is true of any student at any firm offering summer experience that counts for something in the real world. The workload of our London articling students fluctuates, but generally they count on working 50-65 hours per week. Our summer students would typically work 40-50 hours per week. We try our very best to ensure our students work on matters that matter. Photocopying, making deliveries or other clerical tasks are exceptional occurrences for them.

You will be busy, but we do not expect that you will abandon family, friends or social activities. Client service comes first, but we also respect the important role that downtime—recreation and relationships both—plays in making you a whole person, not just a legal drone.

To help our students take a break from work, we organize social outings for them from time to time. Activities have included a corn maze tour, attending baseball games, bowling and theatre outings, among others. Students also participate in our annual summer picnic, join our firm sports teams and decompress at parties during the December holiday season.

We encourage our students to help out as volunteers with local charities and community groups. Students from Lerners have volunteered in a school lunch program; collected donations for fund-raising auctions; bowled, swam, ran and walked for pledges; and served on boards and committees of not-for-profit groups. They are not just training to be lawyers. They are training to be good contributors and leaders in the community, and we support them in doing that.

Sometimes students are a little hesitant to ask "the money questions" in interviews. To save you anxiety, here are the answers.

Articling

Salary

Our London articling students receive a salary that is at the upper end of the pay scale for London firms. In addition to receiving their salary during articles, students will also be paid for 14 days while they are studying for and writing their licensing examinations.

Vacation

Our London articling students are entitled to two weeks of paid vacation, which they can take when they choose.

Law Society fees

The firm pays the licensing process fees for all our London articling students. The firm pays each student's fees to join The Law Society as a student member, and the Call to the Bar fees for students if they are hired back as associate lawyers.

Health care plans

The firm's benefit plan covers 80% of the cost of extended healthcare and dental benefits for articling students and their spouses and their children during the time that students are preparing for and writing their licensing examinations, as well as the time that students are articling.

Fitness allowance

The firm provides articling students with an allowance of up to $300 per year, to be applied to the cost of membership in a fitness facility or the cost of participation in a recreation or wellness program.

Summer students

Our London summer students receive a salary that is at the upper end of the pay scale for London law firms. They are not entitled to vacation days during their summer employment, but do receive vacation pay equal to 4% of their total compensation. Because of the shorter term of their employment, they are not entitled to other benefits.

Interested in your future beyond your articling or summer experience? So are we. We look to our summer students for our future articling students, and to our articling students for our future lawyers.

Our hire-back record proves it:

Articling

• 2010-2011: 6 students, 4 hired back as associates
• 2009-2010: 6 students, 4 hired back
• 2008-2009: 7 students, 2 hired back
• 2007-2008: 8 students, 4 hired back
• 2006-2007: 8 students, 2 hired back

Summer Students

• 2011: 4 students, 4 hired back for articling
• 2010: 4 students, 3 hired back
• 2009: 4 students, 4 hired back
• 2008: 4 students, 3 hired back
• 2007: 5 students, 4 hired back

One thing to remember: when students are not hired back, it does not necessarily mean the firm was not interested in hiring them. For example, students may decide to move to another city because of a spouse's job change. Sometimes they pursue graduate studies, or decide they want to apply their legal skills outside of private practice.

If we are not able to offer associate positions to all of our articling students, we try hard to support the job search of those we do not hire. For example, we give feedback on draft resumés and covering letters, provide reference letters and contact lawyers in other firms to encourage consideration of our former students if those firms are expanding.

Whether their legal careers will be at Lerners or elsewhere, we believe that our articling students finish their articles well-positioned for their careers with a background of very good training. In fact, we are often contacted by other firms to inquire if we have articling students whom we are not able to accommodate as associates. This reflects the confidence other lawyers have in the calibre of the students we hire and the training we give them.

Lerners—a great stepping stone to the rest of your legal career.

"You know a firm is special when you wake up in the morning with excitement and enthusiasm for what the new day offers. Undoubtedly, this was my sentiment as a summer student at Lerners.

"My student experience at Lerners has far exceeded all expectations I had going in. The level of support provided is extremely helpful, and includes thorough feedback, extensive training, and an ever helpful team of staff and lawyers who go out of their way to make you feel like part of the team. Such support operates in tandem with the high confidence Lerners places in its students as they work on major files in a variety of capacities and in many different areas of the law. It has truly been a great experience."

Nolan Downer, 2008 London summer student, 2009-2010 London articling student

"My summer at Lerners was an invaluable experience. The lawyers were extremely helpful, often going out of their way to ensure you took as much as possible from each learning opportunity. Additionally, the staff were an invaluable resource as I tackled my various tasks. The tasks were wide ranging and challenging and included courtroom advocacy, legal research and writing as well as direct contact with clients. I believe that the breadth of experiences I had at Lerners in the past summer will serve me well as I prepare for my articles and in the years ahead."

Trevor Fisher, 2009 summer student, 2010-2011 articling student

"Being a summer student at Lerners was a fantastic experience. The variety of work made every day interesting and exciting, though I was particularly impressed with how readily available lawyers were to answer questions and provide guidance on assignments. As a student, you're given a healthy amount of independence, but never left without the support of the student program administrators. Everyone was so friendly and congenial, making the experience that much more enjoyable. Needless to say, I am looking forward to articling at Lerners and all the new experiences and opportunities that are sure to follow!"

Shereen Singh, 2009 summer student, 2010-2011 articling student

"Lerners offers an ideal learning environment for someone who wants exposure to a diverse array of legal work. Importantly, students are also given a chance to seek out work that is of particular interest to them. As a result, I have found my work to be both personally and professional fulfilling. The learning process is fostered by the helpful support and feedback students receive from both the staff and lawyers for whom they work. For all of these reasons, I feel much more prepared to practise than I did prior to working at Lerners."

Tyler Kaczmarczyk, 2009 summer student, 2010-2011 articling student

"Lerners London provides unique and fulfilling opportunities for students entering the legal profession. As both a summer and articling student, I was provided with high level training, various educational seminars and an abundance of opportunities to pursue my personal interests. Given Lerners' broad range of practice areas, I have been exposed to a wide array of files. The diversity of work at Lerners, when coupled with formal rotations during articles, ensures that few areas of law are left unexposed. Moreover, I have found the work to be sophisticated and exciting, the partners approachable and the social events fun and diverse. I have been treated as a valued member of the team and given important assignments.

"Lerners has provided me with many great role models and mentors throughout the firm. My time at Lerners has undoubtedly helped me develop my legal skills and prepared me for entering my legal career. There is something in Lerners' culture and approach that puts the firm in a class of its own."

Christopher Dawson, 2008 summer student, 2009-2010 articling student

"After spending time at Lerners a student emerges feeling integrated, inspired, confident and rewarded. My summer experience far exceeded my expectations. The student program at Lerners LLP is exceptional and I feel extremely grateful and fortunate for the experience. Students are assigned real and relevant work. The firm's formal mentoring program, as well as a devoted student administrative team, facilitates growth and legal understanding. Lerners is composed of an outstanding group of senior lawyers, associates and support staff always willing to offer guidance, support and encouragement. If you wish to cultivate positive workplace relationships, acquire practical hands on legal experience, and develop essential legal skills in a warm and dynamic work environment, I encourage you to apply to Lerners! To say that I remain pleased with my decision to apply to Lerners is an understatement. I enjoyed every moment of my summer work term and I look forward to articling in 2010!"

Natalie Kingston, 2009 summer student, 2010-2011 articling student

"Articling at Lerners has been an excellent experience. I have had the opportunity to observe various proceedings, such as an appeal, settlement conferences, trials, and examinations for discovery. The assignments are also varied, and include appearing in motions court, conducting client meetings and settlement conferences, and the traditional research and drafting. In addition to the practical training that Lerners provides, everyone at Lerners has been very helpful in answering questions and providing advice. This open-door policy and the mentoring program generate a great work environment at the firm."

Julia Wallace, 2009-2010 articling student

"Having finished law school and knowing very little about the practice of law, I wanted to article at a firm where I could quickly start learning what it takes to be a successful lawyer. For me, Lerners has been that firm. My experiences have been diverse, challenging, and gone beyond my expectations. From sitting at counsel table assisting and observing senior counsel on a 4 week civil trial, and working intimately with counsel on a significant class action matter, all the while managing my own files, I have gained invaluable insight into the role of junior counsel. The confidence which Lerners has in its students certainly makes it easier to rise to the occasion. I couldn't be any happier with my decision to article at Lerners LLP."

Alfonso Campos Reales, 2008 summer student, 2009-2010 articling student

“My student experience has been absolutely fantastic. The student experience at Lerners is truly unlike any other student experience in London. The Director of Associate and Student Development, Student Administrator and senior and junior mentors ensure that you have access to a full arsenal of resources, guidance and support. In addition to the formal resources that are available to you, all lawyers and staff are more than willing to assist you with any questions or problems that arise. The student position will not only develop your research and drafting skills, but will also provide you with the opportunity to carry files, meet with clients, attend discoveries, mediations, trials, conferences, etc. Ultimately, I wanted to work at a law firm that would enable me to learn as much about the law as possible, while still providing an appropriate work-life balance. I have no hesitation in saying that Lerners has exceeded this expectation."

Tyler Frook, 2011 London summer student, 2012 - 2013 London articling student

“The best part about being a student with Lerners is the wealth of resources available. From the student administrators to the library staff to our mentors, there is always a friendly face to help when you need it. The opportunity to work on a variety of assignments in a range of practice areas as a summer student has also been invaluable. Additionally, there is ample opportunity to observe our lawyers in practice, whether it's in court, in a client meeting, or otherwise."

Danielle Gauvreau, 2011 London summer student, 2012-2013 London articling student

If you are interested in summer or articling opportunities in our London office, we encourage you to contact students who have worked with us to ask them about their experience at Lerners. The names of our recent students, along with the law schools they attended, are listed below. If you need help in contacting any of our past students, please contact our Director of Associate and Student Development, Sylvia Davis, at 519.640.6309 or sdavis@lerners.ca. She would be happy to put you in touch with them.

Articling

2011-2012 Students (commencing July 25,2011)

2010-2011 Students

• Trevor Fisher (Ottawa)
• Patricia Goodman (Western)
• Tyler Kaczmarczyk (Ottawa)
• Natalie Kingston (Windsor)
• Shereen Singh (Windsor)
• Matthew Wilson (Western)

2009-2010 Students

• Christopher Dawson (Windsor)
• Nolan Downer (Western)
• Ken Fraser (Western)
• Alfonso Campos Reales (Windsor)
• Julia Wallace (Ottawa)
• Leanne Zawadzki (Queen's)

2012-2013 Students (commencing July 23, 2012)

• Jonathon Barnett (Western)
• Jennifer Foster (Western)
• Tyler Frook (Western)
• Danielle Gauvreau (Western)
• Sarah Martens (Western)
• Cassandra Tarrataca (Western)

Summer

2012 Students (commencing May 14, 2012)

• Jake Aitcheson (Western)
• Brandon Duewel (Western)
• Katherine Serniwka (Western)
• Shawn Steele (Western)

2011 Students

• Tyler Frook (Western)
• Danielle Gauvreau (Western)
• Sarah Martens (Western)
• Cassandra Tarrataca (Western)

2010 Students

• Nga Dang (Western)
• Talia Gordner (Windsor/University of Detroit Mercy)
• Gillian Kafka (Queen's)
• Genevieve Samuels (Windsor)

Articling

The London office has filled all of its 2012-2013 articling positions.

Lerners, like other firms in the City of London and Middlesex County, conducts articling interviews according to guidelines established by the Law Society of Upper Canada. Applications for 2013-2014 articling positions are due by Friday, May 4, 2012. We will contact those students being invited for interviews on Tuesday, May 15, to arrange scheduling. Interviews will be conducted during the week of May 28, and offers will be made on Monday, June 4. Out-of-province candidates may request an interview to take place before the week of May 28. If granted, however, no offers of employment will be made until June 4. Students may consult the Law Society guidelines at www.lsuc.on.ca for further details.

Articling applications should include the following:

• covering letter
• résumé
• a copy of your undergraduate transcript and your law school transcript to date, as well as your graduate transcript, if applicable. (If the timing of release of marks at your law school is such that your transcript will not reflect your most recent grades, please feel free to provide whatever unofficial record about those grades that is available from your law school.)
• a list of the law school courses in which you are enrolled, or in which you anticipate enrolling, in your third year.

Reference letters are not required, but are welcome.

You are welcome to submit your application by mail, courier, fax or email.

Applications and inquiries should be directed to:

Summer

The London office has hired four second year students for the summer of 2012, and does not anticipate hiring additional summer students.

A timetable for hiring for the summer of 2013 has not been established. Typically, the firm hires four students for each summer. To be eligible, students will need to have completed their second year of law school by the time their summer employment would begin. Applications are due in late January, and interviews are conducted in mid-February. Students interested in summer positions should check this website in late fall of 2012 for more detailed information about the hiring process.

• covering letter
• résumé
• a copy of your undergraduate transcript and your law school transcript to date, as well as your graduate transcript, if applicable. (If the timing of release of marks at your law school is such that your transcript will not reflect your most recent grades, please feel free to provide whatever unofficial record about those grades that is available from your law school.)
• a list of the courses in which you are currently enrolled if your transcript does not already include this information, and as well, a list of the courses in which you anticipate enrolling in your third year of law school.

Reference letters are not required, but are welcome.

You are welcome to submit your application by mail, courier, fax or email.

Applications and inquiries should be directed to Sylvia Davis, whose contact information appears above.

Articling and summer students in our Toronto office receive broad exposure to an exciting range of litigation—commercial disputes, insurance defence, professional liability matters, defence of medical negligence claims, personal injury claims, securities litigation, employment law, shareholders’ disputes, investment dealer negligence claims, banking and insolvency law, class actions, civil sexual assault matters and, from time to time, issues involving native rights and constitutional law, to name a few.

Many of the cases handled by the Toronto office are cutting-edge, with high stakes and novel issues. They are not just cases that students will hear about at Lerners. They are the cases on which students can expect to be working themselves, under the guidance of senior lawyers.

Our students perform research assignments, draft a wide range of litigation documents such as pleadings, facta, motions and mediation memos, prepare motion records, assist with trial preparation, handle small claims court actions, conduct examinations in aid of execution, assist on trials and appeals, and appear in court on contested and uncontested motions. They occasionally assist lawyers in the preparation of articles for publication and papers for presentation at continuing legal education seminars.

We also encourage our students to accompany lawyers on court proceedings as often as they can—examinations for discovery, inquests, mediations, motions, trials—so they can see all aspects of the litigation process.

How is work assigned to students?

We think articling students benefit from a work-assignment system that aims to give each student a similar volume of work, and as much variety in assignments as we can offer.

The key to our system is our full-time student administrator, Angela Todd. Angela is an experienced legal assistant and law clerk, whose sole function is to assist and guide our students.

Generally, assignments from lawyers are directed to Angela. In determining which student should do an assignment, she considers the nature and urgency of the assignment, the existing workload of each student, the kinds of experience that students have had to date, and the kinds of assignments they have not yet tackled. Angela makes sure that, by the end of their time with us, each student has worked with several different lawyers, on a variety of projects, in all of the major areas of law in which we practise.

This system does not, however, stop you from seeking out experiences that interest you, beyond the assignments directed through Angela. In fact, it’s quite the opposite. Students are encouraged to approach lawyers to ask about opportunities to assist them. This could range from joining a lawyer on an examination for discovery and taking notes, to sitting in on a meeting with clients. We want to help you get the best chance to explore all avenues of the practice of law.

Training

In addition to hands-on experience, our students benefit from a comprehensive orientation at the outset of their time with us, plus lectures and demonstrations by several members of the firm.

For example, workshop topics for our 2011-2012 articling students include:

• drafting and arguing motions
• privilege and confidentiality
• judgment debtor examinations
• class actions
• securities litigation and investment dealer negligence
• civil sexual assault claims
• oral advocacy

Students usually have a chance to attend one continuing legal education program during their employment. The students can select a program of interest to them (within reasonable parameters as to location and cost). The most commonly attended programs are half-day or one-day programs put on by the Ontario Bar Association or the Law Society of Upper Canada.

Lawyer and staff support

Angela Todd, our student administrator, plays an important role in guiding our Toronto students. She helps ensure a balanced workload for each of them, provides precedents for documents that students are drafting, coaches them on the procedures for serving and filing documents, and generally offers invaluable administrative support. Our students look to Angela for guidance and support while they are "learning the ropes." They also have the help of a full-time legal assistant who aids them with typing and other administrative tasks.

The Executive Director of Human Resources and Administration for the Toronto office, Michelle Medel, is also a resource for students. A very experienced law firm administrator, Michelle works extensively with the students and associates in the Toronto office, and is always available as a resource for the students. As well, Sylvia Davis, the firm's Director of Associate and Student Development, is always available to help students with any concerns or questions. A former articling student and litigator with the firm, Sylvia has been involved in the student program with the firm for many years.

Students have significant support from our lawyers, too. Each articling student is matched with both a senior and junior mentor. The junior mentor is a junior associate lawyer. The senior mentor, who is a partner or senior associate, also serves as the student's articling principal, fulfilling the principal's responsibilities as defined by the Law Society.

Mentors meet regularly with their students. They offer general support and are available to discuss topics ranging from litigation basics and practice management issues to career development. Each articling student's senior mentor also participates in his/her evaluations during articles.

As you can see, if you're a student at Lerners, there are many people looking out for you!

Library support

Lerners is committed to providing a professional library environment for its lawyers and students. Students make regular use of the firm’s extensive print and electronic resources. They benefit from the commitment of the firm's librarian to assist them with initial orientation to the firm's research and information services, and to assist them with research and information needs throughout their summer or articling experience.

Our newly-automated library and knowledge management platform is a tool all students have come to rely upon to navigate through the muddy waters of locating reference and research materials. Our rapidly expanding subscriptions to electronic resources are efficiently accessed through an automated software system and the firm uses electronic checkout to track all items within the firm. Students and lawyers can renew or request books directly from their desktop, with over 170 key electronic titles currently available on the system.

While many law firms train students in either Lexis or Westlaw, Lerners offers training and passwords to both services. This offers students an opportunity to explore, compare and become very proficient in both services, and helps them conduct superior computer - assisted legal research.

Our Toronto office students benefit from close geographic proximity to the Great Library at Osgoode Hall and to the library of the University of Toronto Faculty of Law, where they can access additional resources.

With this range of library support, our students can tackle their research assignments with confidence.

Students often receive feedback on their work directly from the assigning lawyer, shortly after an assignment has been completed. To make sure students have a clear idea of how they are doing, however, we also conduct formal evaluations. Articling students have two evaluations during their articles.

For the evaluations, we collect written comments from our lawyers on each student's work. Our Executive Director of Human Resources and Administration, along with the student's senior mentor, then meets with each student individually to review the results. This allows us to commend the student on areas of good performance and to discuss strategies for improvement if there are areas of weakness. We also discuss what learning experiences the student has not yet had. For example, if a student has not yet attended a mediation, we can help find an opportunity for the student to attend one.

Evaluations aren't a one-way street. They offer a chance for us to let students know how they are doing, but are just as much the students' chance to offer constructive criticism on the student program. During evaluations, we ask students what they have enjoyed about their student experience to date, and whether there are any aspects that need improvement. Their suggestions are often excellent, and have helped us refine and enhance our student program over the years.

We are seeking students for our Toronto office who have solid law school grades, reflecting a talent for legal analysis and reasoning. However, we also are looking for other qualities that are reliable predictors of your potential to be an excellent lawyer and to fit within our working culture. Beyond their academic prowess, students who thrive in our Toronto office usually have these qualities:

• demonstrated interest and aptitude for advocacy
• strong work ethic
• outgoing personality with an ability to work well with others outside and inside the firm
• excellent communication skills, both written and oral
• attentiveness to detail in their work
• well-organized and good at managing their time so they can complete their work commitments but still have time to enjoy life outside of work

Students who prosper at Lerners will also understand that excellent legal work is only part of a lawyer's responsibilities; excellent client service is equally vital. If your research skills are first-rate and your pleadings a work of art, but you do not return telephone calls promptly or speak to your clients in language they can understand, you will struggle to be a successful lawyer.

Students at Lerners work hard. So do our lawyers. That's one of the reasons our clients continue to hire us to handle their work. While workload fluctuates, a student at Lerners can expect to work an average of 50 to 65 hours per week.

While you will be busy, however, you won't be doing "busy work." We make a point of having our students work on meaningful assignments that will challenge them and equip them well for their future careers.

Even if your work as a student is rewarding, you still need to enjoy life outside the office. There are several ways for students at Lerners to do that. Participation in volunteer activities is one. Recent community activities in which our students have been involved have included helping in the firm's United Way campaign and spearheading a holiday food drive for a food bank.

Keeping fit is another. With the fitness allowance provided to articling students by the firm—and through the example set by many of our lawyers who make a point of hitting the treadmill or squash court regularly—we encourage students to build time for physical activity into their schedule.

We also organize social outings for our students from time to time, ranging from dinners to theatre outings. Students also participate in our office social events, such as our annual summer picnic and December holiday party.

Students are encouraged to take all of the vacation time to which they are entitled, so they can get away from work and recharge their batteries.

You'll work hard during your legal career, as student or lawyer. We help you get an early start on learning how to maintain a challenging practice without losing sight of the rest of your life—your family, your friends and activities you enjoy.

To save you wondering about the answers to "the money questions," here is some general information about the compensation and benefits available to our Toronto students.

Articling students

Salary

Our Toronto articling students are paid a salary comparable to that paid by large Toronto firms. We review salaries regularly to make sure that our students are fairly compensated. In addition to receiving their salary during articles, students will also be paid for 14 days while they are studying for and writing their licensing examinations.

Vacation

Our Toronto articling students are entitled to two weeks of paid vacation, which they can take when they choose.

Law Society fees

The firm pays the licensing process fees for all of our Toronto articling students. The firm also pays each student's fees to join The Law Society as a student member, and also the Call to the Bar fees for students if they are hired back as associate lawyers.

Health care benefits

The firm's benefit plan covers 80% of the cost of extended health care and dental benefits and life insurance coverage for articling students, their spouses and their children during the time that students are preparing for and writing their licensing examinations, as well as the time that students are articling.

Pre-articling bonus

The firm pays a pre-articling bonus to its Toronto articling students shortly after they are hired. Many students use these funds to defray costs related to their law school education.

Fitness allowance

The firm provides articling students with an allowance of $450 per year to be applied to the cost of membership in a fitness facility or the cost of participation in a recreation or wellness program.

Working as a student at Lerners can be a great stepping stone to the rest of your career as a lawyer.

Many of our articling students return to the firm as associates, as the figures below shows:

• 2010-2011: 5 articling students, 2 hired back as associates
• 2009-2010: 5 articling students, 2 hired back
• 2008-2009: 6 articling students, 1 hired back
• 2007-2008: 6 articling students, 3 hired back
• 2006-2007: 6 articling students, 3 hired back
• 2005-2006: 6 articling students, 4 hired back

In cases where articling students do not return to the firm as associates—either because we are not able to offer positions to them or because they have decided to pursue careers in different cities or outside of private practice—the firm tries hard to help them find the kind of position they would enjoy. For example, we give constructive feedback on cover letters and resumés, provide reference letters, and contact our colleagues in other law firms to encourage consideration of our former articling students for any openings they may have.

Whether our students return as associate lawyers or leave the firm to pursue their careers elsewhere, we think the most valuable contribution we make to students is excellent training that will serve them well in their careers wherever they choose to go.

"If you're looking to immerse yourself in the world of litigation, Lerners fits the bill on all fronts. As a summer student, not only was I exposed to an incredible breadth of litigation files, but more frequently than not I was asked to make substantial contributions towards meeting clients' objectives. More important than the work, however, was the fact that I felt continuously encouraged and inspired by the lawyers, staff and fellow students surrounding me. All in all, spending my summer at Lerners was a truly rewarding first foray into the practice of law."

Eric Baum, 2008 Toronto summer student, 2009-2010 Toronto articling student

"My summer with Lerners was fantastic. I was immediately part of the team and given the opportunity to contribute meaningfully to a variety of files from commercial and class actions to personal injury and insurance defence. As well, lawyers were always happy to have me attend court, discoveries, or mediations with them, providing me their insights along the way. I worked with and learned from a group of people who are friendly, fun, and above all dedicated to excellence. Lerners truly invests in their students, providing an enjoyable and invaluable foundation for a career in litigation."

Dylan Scott, 2009 summer student, 2010-2011 articling student

"Every day at Lerners presents an opportunity to learn something new - no two days are the same. From client meetings and discoveries to document drafting and court appearances, Lerners provides its students with a challenging and dynamic litigation experience. The student coordinator ensures that each student gets a balanced and varied workload, and the chance to learn from many of Lerners' most valuable resources: the people. The calibre of lawyers here, with a diverse array of experience, is inspiring to a young legal mind interested in pursuing a career in litigation."

Jason Schmidt, 2009-2010 articling student

"Lerners takes a great interest in student development. I have had the opportunity to work on interesting files and follow them through the various stages of litigation. Along the way, I have received constructive and meaningful feedback in a collegial environment. Most of all, I feel like a respected member of the team."

Marc Flisfeder, 2009-2010 articling student

"My summer experience at Lerners was the push I needed to realize that all along, I really wanted to become and work as a lawyer. In just four months, I was able to get a firm grasp of what the litigation process entails and observe and participate in many of its aspects: from sitting in on phone conferences with clients where legal strategy was discussed, to attending discoveries, preparing motion records, and observing court appearances.

"Given the nature and size of the firm I really got to see the end product of my work, and I observed my research being incorporated into facta, then argued in court and finally find its way into judgments. Most significantly, I felt that my work was important and truly valued by the lawyers, while spending time with a staff who helpfulness and amiability was exceptional."

Andrew Carvajal, 2009 summer student, 2010-2011 articling student

"The decision of where to article is never one that a student takes lightly, and as a mature student, I know that I gave it a lot of thought. If someone had asked me to describe what my idea of an ideal articling experience in litigation might be like, I would have listed everything I'm doing at Lerners: legal research, drafting of court documents, preparing memos for clients, appearing on motions, arguing in Small Claims Court, etc. What I couldn't have known is how collegial and inclusive the Lerners people are. Working here means being part of a great team of support staff, students, associates and partners whose goal is to provide the most effective advocacy a client could ask for."

Anita Mielewczyk, 2009-2010 articling student

"Lerners offers a fantastic student experience. It's wonderful to work at a firm that values its students so highly. Both individuals and the firm as a whole invest in mentoring, training, and teaching the students how to lawyer - while simultaneously treating us as valued members of the team. We're given complicated assignments, involved in all kinds of files, and provided frequent opportunities to see lawyers in action. The challenging nature of the work would be its own reward, but Lerners adds to that warm and interesting people. Articling isn't supposed to be this much fun!"

Alexandra Saginur, 2009 summer student, 2009-2010 articling student

“I had an excellent articling experience with Lerners! As an aspiring litigator, I was thrilled with the variety of interesting work to which I was exposed during my articles, and with the numerous opportunities that were available to assist on trials and appeals with great, experienced counsel. Equally fantastic were those opportunities to get on my feet in motions court or provincial court in order to begin to hone my skills as an advocate. Articling with Lerners has also meant that I have had the good fortune of meeting a lot of very supportive and dedicated people, lawyers and staff alike, who are genuinely invested in seeing students succeed. Thank you, Lerners. A+."

Debra Newell, 2010-2011 Toronto articling student

If you are interested in summer or articling opportunities at Lerners, we encourage you to talk to students who have worked here as articling or summer students. Students who have worked with us recently are listed below. If you need information about contacting any of our past students, please contact our Director of Associate and Student Development, Sylvia Davis, at 416.601.2660 or sdavis@lerners.ca, so she can put you in touch with them.

Articling

2011-2012 Students (starting July 11, 2011)

2010-2011 Students

• Andrew Carvajal (McGill)
• Debra Newell (Windsor)
• Jessica Prince (Oxford)
• Yalda Riahi (Windsor)
• Dylan Scott (Western)

2012-2013 Students (Commencing July 9, 2012)

• Enid Eski (NCA/University of Sydney)
• Nadia Marotta (Toronto)
• Stephen Ronan (Queen's)
• David Shellnutt (Osgoode)
• Rory Wasserman (Osgoode)

Summer

The Toronto office did not hire summer students in 2011 and will not be hiring summer students in 2012.

2010 Students

• Mahsa Dabirian (Osgoode)
• Emily DaSilva (Toronto)
• Shannon Gaudet (Queen's)

2009 Students

• Andrew Carvajal (McGill)
• Yalda Riahi (Windsor)
• Dylan Scott (Western)

Articling

The Toronto office hires articling students each articling year, and complies with the guidelines of the Law Society of Upper Canada in conducting interviews for those positions. The guidelines can be found at www.lsuc.on.ca. Briefly, applications are due by July 6, 2012. Interviews will be conducted between August 13-15.

The Toronto office has hired its 2012-2013 articling students. It anticipates hiring five articling students for the 2013-2014 articling year.

Articling applications should include the following:

• covering letter
• résumé
• a copy of your undergraduate transcripts and your law school transcripts to date, as well as graduate transcripts if applicable (a copy of your transcript is acceptable for the application, but you should be prepared to provide an official transcript at the interview, if requested)
• a list of the third year law school courses you plan to take

Reference letters are not required, but are welcome.

You are welcome to submit your application through viDesktop, or by mail, courier, fax or email.

Applications and inquiries should be directed to:

Summer

The Toronto office does not plan to hire summer students for the summer of 2012. Hiring plans for the summer of 2013 will be posted on this site in the spring of 2012. In the meantime, any inquiries about summer opportunities should be directed to Sylvia Davis, whose contact information appears above.