Life of a Law Student

Submitted by Andrew Dilts

Andrew Dilts in Dean Mary Anne Bobinski’s office as he takes over Dean duties for the day.

On one sunny spring Friday, I was officially installed as the Dean of UBC Law . . . for a day.

 The experience was both enriching, educational, and fun. UBC Law’s widely-respected (real) dean, Mary Anne Bobinski, had hosted a competition to see who would fill her shoes. The opportunity was open to all law students, requiring a 500-word submission on what each would do as “Dean for a Day”. It was designed as a true prince-and-pauper experience: one student would take over the dean’s office, parking spot, and responsibilities, and Dean Bobinski would attend that student’s classes for the day.

 After my submission won me the honour, Dean Bobinski and I decided that my day would be Friday, March 23. However, I was approached by students, faculty, and staff as early as mid-February. Issues ranged from serious faculty issues to relatively minor technical problems (“can you fix the hot water in the showers?”) to humorous requests (“can you give everyone an ‘A’ this year?”). True to the real dean’s job—or so I imagine—I spent many hours behind the scenes preparing for the job.

On my day as dean, I barely had time to check my email. I have no idea how Dean Bobinski actually manages to get work done, though I know her incredibly helpful staff certainly plays a role. From the minute I showed up in the morning, I had serious meetings with students, staff, and faculty. I also had a few people stop by throughout the day “just to see what the dean’s office was like”. I’m told that the dean often spends many hours late into the evening catching up on emails, and I completely believe it.

Despite the busy-ness, I was able to organize a few creative initiatives of my own. I led students in hosting an inaugural faculty and staff appreciation session in the morning, and ran a special UBC Law edition of Ignite in the afternoon, helping to showcase the diverse experiences and backgrounds of a few members of our extremely talented student body. I was also able to achieve a few UBC Law dean “firsts”: first to use social media, and first to participate in the proud, long-standing tradition of the Trike Race (think: law students relay-racing tricycles in costume while their peers throw water balloons at them). After all, a (temporary) dean should take his job too seriously.

I’m admittedly suffering a bit of withdrawal since the experience. After all, when is the next time I’ll have the opportunity to have such a high-profile leadership role? But I have gained a new respect not just for the dean, but for the staff and faculty who assist her in helping make UBC Law one of Canada’s top law schools. Perhaps I’ll apply again next year.

So what did Andrew’s hectic day as the Dean look like? Here was his schedule:

8:30am: student meeting in “my” office. Issues addressed focused on ensuring proper support systems are in place for all UBC law students, not just those who enjoy success in the current system.

9:00am: meeting with members of the UBC Law Development Office. Two key issues were addressed:

(1)    How to better engage students as they become alumni, and engage them in alumni events

(2)    Inviting Governor General David Johnston to UBC Law for various speaking events, including the one-year anniversary of Allard Hall (schedule permitting).

 9:45am: preparation for other events of the day. Also, updated my Facebook profile to reflect my new position – likely becoming the first dean of UBC Law to use social media.

 10:20am: faculty/staff appreciation event. Terrance Lounge at Allard Hall, where coffee, donuts, and fruit were provided for any faculty and staff who wished to attend. Students from representative organizations in the student body (e.g., LSS, Law Review, Careers Committee) were present to offer words of thanks to various staff members. The event will likely become an annual appreciation.

11:00am: another student meeting in my office, followed by a meeting with a faculty member.

Noon: UBC Law inaugural “Ignite” event, helping to showcase the diverse backgrounds and talents of our student body. The event was a real success, and will likely be instituted as an annual event.

1:00pm: UBC Law Review Annual General Meeting. As a member of the Law Review’s board, I was required to attend (as a student). I also officially became one of two Editors-in-Chief for the 2012–2013 year.

2:00pm: meeting with staff members at the UBC Law Library on a number of issues, including non-law student policies in the UBC library, and how to better use the classroom in the library.

 2:30pm: more meetings with students.

 3:00pm: 40th annual UBC Law Trike Race, where I participated as a member of the “National Trike Race Champions” team (the team that won the inaugural national trike race at the 2012 Law Games). Likely the first dean of UBC Law to participate in this event, though future deans were strongly welcomed.

 5:00pm: finally able to relax and celebrate the day – and check my email for the first time – in the office.

 6:00pm: closed and left the dean’s office, Dean for a Day no longer.

A couple days ago I had the opportunity to be a part of legal and social media history. It was the first time that a legal appeal has been argued over twitter. The Vancouver Sun article on it can be seen here. The moot competition brought together teams from several of the top Canadian law schools and judges from across the country. The case at hand was an appeal of the West Moberly decision.

“The West Moberly First Nations’ court case focused on mining exploration being carried out by First Coal Corporation in the habitat of the Burnt Pine Caribou Herd.  … The government’s own experts cautioned against the impact on the Burnt Pine herd, which previous development has reduced to 11 members.”

Within the case we were set to focus on two key issues: the extent to which a right to hunt could be limited to a specific herd of caribou, and the extent to which previous development should be factored into the decision making process. Through a lottery, Team UBC was set to represent the Province of Alberta. This meant that we had to support the views of the provincial government without reflecting our own personal beliefs. On the first issue, Team UBC was focused on showing that the right to hunt should not be narrowed to a single herd of a single species, but should be a broad right to hunt within a general geographic area. Team UBC also supported the view that past actions should not be included in the decision making, and should only relate to the development at hand.

I first became involved with this project because of my familiarity with the great work of West Coast Environmental Law. I have been undertaking an internship at this organization since September and have gotten to see the impact the people here have on protecting the environment every day.  I decided to undertake this level of work at West Coast because of my belief that our politics has become too focused on the short-term, ignoring those long term challenges that include climate change, the growing debt and deficits, and the growing inequalities in society. This is what I have written about in my book New Liberalism, which you can find out more about here: www.new-liberalism.com

The purpose for writing this article is that I have been asked to discuss the experience of taking part in the world’s first Twitter Moot. It is only natural to begin with the preparation that went into it. We were given our team positions, and were set off to research the case. We then had to put together a two page factum setting out our points. This factum needed to explore our position on the two issues described previously. The next big step was to go through a practice run with WCEL. The organization sent out the rules and a memo discussing what should take place, followed by a Webinar that allowed more interaction – including some test tweets.  This was an online training course that allowed teams from across the country to take part. I then met with my teammate to discuss our strategy. Since we were pretty much meant to support the views of the two teams that would go before us, we decided that we would put forward a ‘hail mary’. We thought it would be best to focus on the ‘twitter’ end of the twitter moot. While we still made sure to present solid arguments, we also thought a debate over this medium needed to include references to @vikileaks30, and the likely retweeting of our arguments by @AshtonKutcher because of their popularity. This helped get #twtmoot trending in Canada. This approach led to the comments that can be found here: http://blog.skunkworks.ca/tag/history-made-in-twitter-moot/

On the day of the event itself I woke up early to discuss this turning point in the legal profession on CBC Early Edition. I then went to the office, where I got my computer set up to show four things: the twitter feed on the WCEL website, the twtmoot list on Twitter, a page with notes, and my personal twitter page so I could compose messages.  Needless to say it was a little crammed. I got the chance to watch two teams present before Team UBC, but that still could not prepare me for the fast paced event that was yet to come. It did not feel like a traditional moot that rewards speaking at length. Instead, it was furious typing and refreshing, trying to continue submissions while being blasted with questions from three prepared judges. It was definitely a new experience! I never thought that I would ever be measuring how long it takes to write out a single tweet, but such is the journey of life.

The big question that comes out of this is the future of social media and the law. As we have seen in most other areas of our life, modern technology continually changes the culture that has come before. I don’t believe that this medium could ever replace the traditional courtroom, but social media certainly will change the way the law is communicated, just as it has changed politics, the news and life in general. Law at its core is a communication and organization tool in society, and so it seems highly unlikely that our actions in making history will not lead to more interaction between these two worlds. It is exciting to be at the turning point of a new legal profession, and I am energized to see its shape and contour in the coming years.

First of all, my apologies for the delay in posting this. As it turns out, there is no easing into second semester and this year’s factum/moot combo consumed a great deal of January and early February. On the bright side, we all made it out alive and it was a very rewarding and interesting experience.

And now for Law Games! If the task were put to me to sum up the Games in one word, it would be “whirlwind”. From the moment we arrived at the hotel downtown, where 600+ law students would be staying for the four days, things were a mixture of chaos and hilarity…

As we pulled up outside the hotel, we caught our first glimpse of the UBC uniforms which were, wait for it… Gold lamé tracksuits. We had been informed prior to the games that this was what we were in store for, but it really is hard to conceptualize what it will look like to be dressed entirely in shiny gold fabric. To say the least, as a team we looked completely ridiculous absurd fantastic.

Everyone seemed to be checked in by around 3, and by 4 some of the schools were already full-swing in Law Games mode. It was confirmed that the week was going to be interesting when students from the University of Saskatchewan were playing bagpipes on one of the floors by 6 p.m.

The first night involved Opening Ceremonies at the Commodore Ballroom downtown Vancouver, and it was really great to get to meet students from other schools who we would normally never cross paths with. In addition, the evening provided our first real look at everyone’s uniforms, which were, shall I say, fashion-forward across the board. Western’s contingent was sporting camouflage pants, Dalhousie’s students were decked out in sailor costumes, UVic’s group had rabbit ears, and yet Team UBC was definitely the belle of the ball in our shiny gold suits. In fact, the other teams were so jealous that it became some schools’ sole goal (not going to name any names here, you know who you are!) to steal our jackets for the rest of the games. Lesson learned: gold lamé pants are surprisingly desirable.

After the first day, the weekday schedule was full of every imaginable sport; flag football, inner tube water polo, kickball, dodgeball, hockey, and volleyball to name a few. Western ended up winning the Sports cup, while UVic took home the much desired Spirit Award (well-deserved, might I add). The University of Saskatchewan, with their beloved battle cry of “Trac-tor”, took home the “Fun Games” Award. This involved excelling at competitive events such as the Polar Bear Swim at Wreck Beach, the trike race, and Jumbo Jenga.

In addition to the day-time games, there were social events every night. The second evening featured a Gastown Pub Crawl, which rapidly devolved into a Cab Crawl as teams raced to make it to all the locations in time. There was also a talent show held at Venue nightclub, featuring several surprisingly good choreographed dances, and esteemed judges from our faculty who were fantastic sports. The last night entailed a Closing Banquet at the Vancouver Convention Centre, during which video parodies were aired from each school. I am proud to say that UBC won with a video entitled “As Long As You Pay Me”, a take on the Backstreet Boys’ hit “As Long As You Love Me”.

My sport of choice for the week was soccer and I had a great time bonding with Team UBC, as well as competing against other schools in a fun atmosphere. I would say that next to our triumphant soccer wins, my personal highlight of the Games was probably the first night. The hotel had grouped participants from the same school together, so a lot of students ended up exploring the different floors throughout the evening. Everyone I met that night was incredibly friendly and genuinely interested in meeting other law students, which is exactly what the Games are about.    

Overall, the Law Games were an excellent experience and I would definitely recommend participating. Even if you don’t get a chance to really get to know students from the other schools, it’s an opportunity to meet students from your own school who you may not have any classes with. Plus, while I am admittedly slightly biased, I firmly believe UBC deserves to have a Spirit Award in our collection and next year could be the year!

I’ve heard lots of rumblings about factums in the hallways as of late, which can only mean one thing – the first year moots must be around the corner. Good luck everyone!

Although giving oral submissions is nerve-racking, and writing a factum is the most difficult assignment of 1L (in my humble opinion), I really enjoyed my first year moot. I went into law school thinking I’d like to be a litigator, and the moot was my first taste of what that actually means.

In March, there will be opportunities for first years to audition for an upper year, competitive moot. I say go for it! The audition process is painless: last year we were asked to prepare an argument for or against making first year pass/fail. The audition was 5 minutes long, but it felt like it was over in 30 seconds. So you really have nothing to lose by trying, and a heck of a lot to gain if you get drafted!

Doing a moot has been the coolest experience of law school thus far. In just a week’s time, I will help represent UBC in the hotly contested UBC/UVic moot. This moot is the only strictly civil law moot (we’re doing tort law this year) and UBC and UVic are the only participants (which means there’s a healthy rivalry). UBC has a strong record of wins, but last year’s team was defeated. The pressure is on as my team and I are determined to bring the Matthew Begbie trophy home!

Here are some reasons why you should moot!

1. You will actually learn how to write a factum

This is not a jab at the first year legal writing program – it’s just that you will have so much more feedback. The factum coaches for my moot are Professors Edinger and Blom. I have literally spent hours in Professor Edinger’s office going over drafts. Not to mention that I had Professor Blom, an expert in the field, as my own personal sounding board for my arguments. Sounds pretty awesome, right?

2. You will improve your oral advocacy skills tremendously

I’m going to sound spoiled pretty quickly here, but writing the factum is only one half of the task. In one week, we will have to get up in front of real judges and plead our cases. To help us prepare, Davis LLP has been hosting practice rounds with their experienced litigators, and our coaches have been rounding up their colleagues for weekly practices on campus. I can’t even begin to describe how valuable this has been. Not only have these practices helped me construct my arguments and polish answers to questions, I’ve also refined my style. At the beginning of this experience, I was a compulsive “um”-er with crazy, flapping hands. I also had to be told that when I get flustered, I get defensive and come across as aggressive to the bench… Those are good things to work on now, rather than when there are a real client’s interests at stake!

3. You will meet great people

This includes your moot team, professors, practitioners and judges.

I think it’s safe to guarantee that you will bond with your moot team and add to your circle of law school friendships. While there are plenty of chances to get to know your professors, if you’re anything like me then you didn’t really pounce on your chances in first year. This is an opportunity to learn first hand what your intuitions have been telling you – professors enjoy helping their students. The lawyers at Davis are also incredibly generous, and I assume that any firm that offers to coach mooters does so because they want to help foster a budding crop of litigators. It’s nice to be on their radars. And lastly, you will be pleading before real judges, and you will get their feedback on your performance. For someone just starting out, that’s pretty awesome.

One word of advice

If you decide that you’d like to audition, have a look at which moots are available and which professors coach them. If there’s a moot you’re really keen on, send the coaches an email and introduce yourself, especially if you don’t have a class with them. The selection process is a bit like a draft, so it can only help you if the coaches know who you are and that you’re enthusiastic about their moot. Good luck!

Dear 1L’s, 2L’s and law school hopefuls,

I am currently a judicial intern through UBC’s Judicial Externship Program and I can definitively say, without hesitation, that this was the best way for me to end my last three years of law school. For those that know nothing about the program here is a bit of context. Every semester for the past nine years, eight third year law students from UBC are posted at Provincial Courthouses across B.C. I am at the Surrey Courthouse with another intern, there are three interns rotating through the Vancouver courts (Main, Robson, North Van and Richmond), one intern in Port Coquitlam, one in Victoria and one in Prince George. Monday through Thursday we work at our courthouse and on Fridays we have a three hour seminar at UBC to reflect on the experience. The program runs for the entire semester and we get 16 credits for the semester; the Externship is pass/fail but we receive a percentage grade for the seminar.

The work that we do at the courts mainly consists of observing court and doing research and writing memos for judges. However, that sentence does not begin to capture the invaluable lessons that we have all been learning from this experience. As an intern, I am no longer just an observer who snuck in the door and hesitantly grabbed a seat in the back corner, hoping not to interrupt anything and feeling out of place. As an intern, I have a “backstage” pass to the process. Literally, I have a security pass that allows me into chambers and my “office” is in the judge’s library. From there, I converse with the judges on the cases that they are hearing, they call us down to watch when something interesting is going on and they will often call us into chambers on breaks or stop by our “office” to discuss what was heard. I am on a first name basis with some of the clerks and sheriffs and they will stop and provide their perspectives and tidbits of information. Some of the sheriffs have been in the courthouse longer than the judges and have some great war stories to share.

To top it all off, all of we are being sent to a district court (in the North for most of us) and on a circuit with a judge. For example, on February 20th I will be heading to Haida Gwaii (formerly the Queen Charlotte Islands) for a week to observe court in Queen Charlotte City and Masset. On February 27th I will be heading to Prince Rupert for three days to have a one on one experience with the judges up there. This unique experience allows us to contrast the city court process to the ones in small towns and with predominantly First Nations communities. I cannot speak to this experience just yet, since I haven’t been on my circuit, but here’s a link to Marlisse Silver-Sweeney’s experience from last year, http://www.law.ubc.ca/news/2011/june/06_29_11_north.html. I have also posted a couple pictures from Rianna Molby’s experience in Bella Bella from a few weeks ago.

All in all, the actual experience of the Externship has been amazing so far. At the Surrey court all of the judges have been very welcoming and are happy to take us under their wing. This isn’t an experience where we are loaded with research work and are typing away in the court library until the wee hours of the night. Unless we have a busy week, most of us are at the courtsfrom 9-5pm and free on weekends. Oh yah, didn’t I mention that there are no readings, papers, or exams? Yup, you read me right, I have FREE TIME! It’s an amazing feeling that I haven’t quite gotten used to just yet. To clarify, there is some work involved, for the seminar we are required to post a weekly journal entry on Vista and then comment on each other’s journals. We are also required to do a half hour presentation at some point during the term, most likely on our circuit experience.

In contrast to the last couple years, the workload is significantly less, but I may dare to say that the learning experience has been significantly higher, at least in terms of practical learning. This experience has made the courts far less intimidating. I have learned what to do and what not to do from my own observations but also from the judges letting me know when a lawyer was effective or ineffective. I am enhancing my research experience by researching obscure issues that the judges rarely come across and sometimes from having to quickly find a case on point that they know is relevant but can’t quite remember the name. I am also learning the formalities of court, when the breaks are, when to bow, and who to make friends with. These are all things that I would learn at some point in my articling experience but now I already have and am hoping my first time in court will be a less terrifying experience. I know I will still mess up at some point but at least now I won’t mess up quite as badly, one would hope.

Ultimately, this is an experience that you can’t get again, unless you clerk, but even then, from what I hear, a clerking experience is more research and work focussed. The Externship program is very much focused on our education and ensuring that we spend time on not only research and writing but also watching court and learning from the judges and lawyers.

If this post has piqued your curiosity and you have anymore questions please feel free to send them my way, you can also email Sharon Sutherland, the program director, at sutherland@law.ubc.ca. The application deadline is February 15th, so get moving fast if you’re in second year!

Have fun reading this weekend, I think I’m going to go out now and enjoy the sunshine

~ Nikki

Well, I have come through the great blackout period of December 2011 relatively unscathed. Our class encountered our first ever law school exams and it was a mixed result. As we get our grades back, that statement takes on a whole new meaning. This blog will be a mixture itself (first I will respond to the few of you that have asked me questions—particularly about a part-time job and then I will review December).

To get started, I must say that all of the things you may or may not do in law school completely depend upon the person. I think the key to doing well and having the rumoured ‘work-life balance’ is priorities. Naturally, those will differ from person to person. Theoretically, you can do whatever you want. However, I would place two limitations on that. Firstly, no matter what, you cannot do everything and secondly, attention in one place will almost always mean something is neglected.

I myself do not have a part-time job. Extra money would be great but personally I felt like it would take up too much time that could be put to better use. Just to give you context, I held a job for the last three years of my undergrad working 12 hours a week. I felt pretty relaxed and not stressed about that workload. The transit system went on strike and I had to walk to work and school every day and I still felt less stressed. People are different though!

I do know some people who have a part-time job, although I have to say I do not know them as well as other classmates. Often it is those people running to the library right after class or immediately home after school (often, I am running with them but NOT always). From what I have seen, there appears to be a trade-off. Law school can simply be about class but as my blog has mentioned, there is a support network and a great culture at UBC. I’m glad that I am not forced to miss out on any of it. There are clubs, volunteering opportunities and extra-curricular activities (even this blog) that could potentially disappear if a job forced me to lose significant hours of studying.

Yet for those of you who REALLY need the extra cash flow, take heart friends because some people have jobs on campus for a really limited time per week or even month and they manage a lot better.

I would say this though, whatever time you are spending at work, something is not being done. If you are the type of person who doesn’t mind skipping a reading or two (or even all of them) or not getting an extra opportunity to edit your final paper, then maybe you could handle a job. Perhaps you will barter the few hours of rest you might have per day for the extra money. Just remember that come December, it will all add up.

******NOTE: BEST PIECE OF ADVICE I COULD GIVE YOU ABOUT A PART-TIME JOB****

Ask if your employer is able to accommodate you during exams or at the very least reduce your hours.

This part of the blog now turns to the Blackout period of my life: Dec ’11. There was a really unfortunate slum found in Vancouver during that month: my house. I do not think I cleaned my apartment once in the 3 weeks of exams; I stopped cooking regularly; exercising was laughable; stress was peaking and all of this for exams that can only help and not hurt my final grade. I am thinking about hiring a live-in nanny for myself and my cats for April (heavy sarcasm intended).  With only one exam remaining, all I could think about was the finish line, and just handing it that paper and walking out into freedom. For some people, that freedom literally did not come for DAYS after the exam as they suffered through some sort of post-traumatic stress. The one thing that got me through those awful days was the pack-mentality wherein we were all together…on a sinking ship…the Titanic…with no lifeboats. Honestly, my peers helped me through it and hopefully they feel the same way. I cannot say enough about the UBC support system. Go fellow first years! Now that we know what to expect, it can only get easier…right?

Of coursem like I said above, every one is different and some people appeared unbothered by the exams. Most of the people I encountered did not fall into that category (neither did I).

As a brief side note for those of you who asked about a part-time job, I most certainly would have quit or started crying hysterically at it during this month. I honestly believe my results would be significantly lower if I’d bartered time with a job during December. A further note: I mentioned this question to a fellow classmate whose response was heavy laughter.

Yet, after December I feel a lot more confident about law school this semester. Those exams helped me realize what worked and did not work in terms of studying for finals and also showed me what still needs improvement. My predictions on my exams weren’t accurate and many people had their highest mark on exams they were certain they had either failed or bombed horribly. You start to realize that you just never know until you get the marks back.

I can’t say I’m fully refreshed and ready to tackle the new semester yet (still feel a bit shell-shocked) but improvement happens every day.  There is a wine and cheese coming up and I am excited to get out there (possibly an upcoming blog post?) and start looking to the future—beyond April. If December was a blackout period, I imagine April as the Shadow of Doom. If you have any questions or wish for further elaborations, as always feel free to comment.

Staring in the face of a new year (2012 already? Is it just me or was it just yesterday that people were stockpiling water for the Millennium?), it is that time that we all begin to reflect on our past year went, so I thought it appropriate to offer some of my thoughts on the first semester of law school and what I learned.

 The first thing is that as much as we all may joke about it, it genuinely can be difficult to get yourself out of the law vortex. As one of our professors said during Orientation Week “Your friends and family will no longer understand you, nor be able to stand you” and to a degree, this could not be more true. You forget that not everyone can relate to your frustrations with the seemingly endless exceptions in contract law, knows the definition of various torts, or understands what it means that an exam is composed of fact patterns. It is important to remember that you had friends before you came to law school and that while it can admittedly sometimes be easier to hang out with your new friends who speak the same language, it is really important to make time for the people who matter. These people are the ones who will provide you with an excuse to NOT talk about law and will remind you that law school is not the entirety of your existence. Otherwise you might find your world limited to legal jokes (I admit to writing a few song parodies), and as much as everyone loves the classic “What do you call 1000 lawyers at the bottom of the ocean”, you don’t really want to be that guy/gal.

 The second thing is that you should (ideally) not do anything last minute because it will probably take you a lot longer than you anticipate. I think a perfect example of when a lot of us 1Ls learned this was during our first open memorandum. Set loose in the library and on legal databases, most of us, myself included, became incredibly overwhelmed at the sheer volume of information out there and had a difficult time narrowing down our searches to the truly relevant facts. In undergrad a lot of students, as long as they have done their research, can just sit down and write a paper in a few hours. This was absolutely not the case for our memorandum. Because law is a foreign area to all first years, you are simply not as comfortable with the material and it becomes a lot more difficult to write since you are constantly questioning whether what you are saying really is correct. I am sure that this process will speed up with practice, but needless to say…don’t leave it to the last minute. You will get it done, but your stress level will be far higher than is necessary.

 The last thing I will mention is: Make a plan and stick to it during exams. This was something I picked up after attending an academic success lecture held by upper years.  When you are in seven classes, studying for December exams is a complex juggling act and can seem unbelievably daunting. If you don’t have a plan, it seems as though there is an unmanageable volume of material to review and you spend more of your studying time staring forlornly at your stacks of books than actually studying. Making yourself study schedule will break the courses up and let you better focus your attention since you know exactly when you will be studying the other materials. I can honestly say that if I hadn’t taken this approach to finals, my studying would have been far less efficient and there would have been a lot more panicking.

 I will do an updated post to this effect in April, as I am sure that I will have learned a lot more by the time that finals (gulp!) are over, but if you have any specific questions in the meantime, fire away! I will be posting again within the next week or two about the Law Games (basic information regarding them can be found here: http://lawgames2012.ca/#/about/4554150810), which were a crazy and amazing experience. 

 Best of luck with your resolutions everyone!

I last wrote the night before on-campus interviews (“OCIs”): those 17-minute, preliminary interviews with big Vancouver law firms. I promised to report back on my experiences, but before I get into the details, I want to make a quick disclaimer. This process was pretty competitive and intense. This probably doesn’t come as much of a surprise – students across the country were vying for a small number of positions – but I think it’s worth emphasizing.

I feel extremely lucky to have come out of this whole thing with a position at a firm I really like. Without a doubt, this process didn’t end with everyone getting exactly what they wanted. I’m not trying to scare anyone, but out of approximately 200 second year students, only around 50 got jobs through OCIs. With that said, there are lots of jobs out there with firms that don’t participate in this process. This is but one possible path.

September 19^th – 20^th: On Campus Interviews

My nerves compelled me to be about an hour early for my first OCI. This meant I had plenty of time to scope out the set up, fret about missing classes, and make nervous chitchat with classmates while I waited. We reassured each other that our outfits were appropriate and that firms would be crazy not to hire us.

The interviews were held in small booths made out of curtains, which were not the most welcoming, but were very functional. For whatever magical reason, even though there was only a thin piece of fabric separating my interviews from others’, the acoustics were such that you couldn’t hear other people. By the time introductions had been made and hands had been shook, the other interviews melted away into background sound. This was a BIG relief because some interviews went better than others, so I could convince myself that what happened behind the curtains, stayed behind the curtains.

At the end of Day 2, I’d had so many adrenaline peaks and troughs that I was totally spent. There was a two-week wait before interview call day, when I would know the outcome of my OCIs. Interview call day is when firms call to schedule “in firm” interviews – the next step in getting a summer job.

October 17^th – 19^th: Interview Week

Interview week was truly an experience. I spent those three days running around downtown Vancouver, going from firm to firm, event to event. Thank heavens it was sunny. At times interview week was super fun, other times it was pretty stressful. It was an opportunity to meet scores of interesting and successful people, but it was also a week of tough decisions and some rejection.

Firms put a ton of resources into interview week (well, the whole recruitment process really). There were lunches and dinners, receptions and coffees.  I met dozens of partners, associates and students – many spent a significant amount of time answering my questions and telling me about their practices. Firms put a lot of effort into getting to know students, and while Career Services will be able to advise you better than I can, I think it’s safe to say that firms are looking for a bit of reciprocation in this process. The people I met weren’t concerned that I didn’t know what kind of law I want to practice, but they wanted to get a sense of why I wanted to work for them in particular.  They certainly gave me every opportunity to show my curiosity about their firm.

My focus for interview week was pretty general (because I don’t know what kind of law I want to practice).  I paid attention to the vibes I got from the people I met, and the kinds of things they emphasized as being important to their “firm culture”. I also asked lawyers about their pre-law background and what drew them to their practice area to get a sense of what my path might be if I ended up at their firm. Lastly, I tried to imagine what it would be like working at the firms I interviewed with.

When it was all said and done, I consider myself to be very lucky to have received an offer, and from a firm I really like. I’ve heard all sorts of stories from friends – some knew exactly who was going to be their first call with an offer; others were really surprised by who called and who didn’t.

The best advice I was given during this crazy month and a half was: Don’t read into anything. If you’re digging a firm but they don’t invite you to a lunch: don’t read into it. If you thought you nailed an OCI but the firm didn’t respond to your follow-up email: don’t read into it. If the firm gives you gifts, tells you they think you’re amazing, invites you to meet every lawyer in the firm: don’t read into it. I’ve heard lots of stories, and you may not know exactly where you stand with a firm until they call with a job offer.

For example, the firm that I will be working for this summer didn’t call me on interview call day to schedule an interview. Yup. They called me a full 30+ hours later. I thought for sure they must have gotten a cancelation and I was top of their pity list. It was hard not to read into it! But it turned out to be an awesome interview (sparks flew!), and they were my first call with a job offer (and they called me at 8:00 am sharp that time).

That’s a pretty long summary (I know), but if you have any questions- I’d be more than happy to answer them!

On my last post, I threw out an open request to anyone for the topic of this post. I received one (lonely) comment from a reader out there requesting me to adress the applications process and how it relates to life in law school.  So, below are my thoughts thusfar.

Disclaimer: Let me start this post by clarifying that I am from Toronto. I applied to Ontario and BC schools only, so my experience is limited to those two provinces.

The Hardest Part is Getting In.

To be honest, there is some truth to that statement. However, I think to leave it at that is a gross injustice to the amount of hard work law school students do. Depending on your university of choice, getting in requires communications for letters of recommendations, transcripts, composition of letters of intent and equivalent bureaucratic requirements. You need to achieve high academic standings throughout four years of university. You need to get a relatively decent LSAT result. All of these things combine to create your application. So yes, this is a difficult process.

However, law school itself is not EASY. The idea is that you get into law school because you are driven to do it. The requirements you must meet are designed (in my opinion) to make certain this is a career you will be serious about. You do not just put your name down to get acceptance, you need to work hard. Once you meet all of those standards of admission, it is not that requirements suddenly drop or that law school itself is easy. Rather, the main concept is that by meeting the requirements set out by admissions, you are better prepared to take on the assignments and you are committed to doing so. Hundreds of pages of reading will avert some people but the people who do get in typically are ready to handle it or if not, are willing to put in the time to get there.

Hopefully this helps both answer my one reader’s question and anyone else who is thinking of applying.  I would add one thing in terms of the application process and researching your schools. Try to get as much information about all of your choices (I—with a potential bias—suggest you closely look at UBC) and find out what gels with who you are. Talk to students, ask questions, and try to nquire. Go beyond traditional questions. Think about everything. Consider the location (can you see mountains from every law library? I think not). Consider the social requirements and look beyond the name on the pamphlet. Look at the facilities available.  I never would have advocated this until I was fortuitous enough to be among the first class of students into the new facilities at Allard Hall. Facilities can impact education and this new building has been incredible.

For my fellow out-of-province potential applicants:  do not be intimidated from a big move away from your home province. UBC has a really big mixture of Canadians from across the country and you will definitely meet people who are from where you are. There also is support from the university to help get you here. When I was applying last year, I remember thinking that it was just too far. I knew one person in the entire province of BC. Not only have I met people but, as funny as this may sound, I have not even had time to miss the people left behind. Make the
decision that is best for you and your future. Do not worry about a big move; it is completely do-able. In fact, it is a great adventure that I am so
thrilled I decided to undertake.

I will be coming up on exams soon so will be taking a brief hiatus from long-winded posts on my blog. Hopefully after my first set of law school exams, I can give you a better idea of what to expect. Any questions you may have are still welcomed and if I can answer it in short form, I’ll do that instead. If not, I will be back with a breath of fresh air (see what I did there with my use of imagery–you do not get to do this in legal writing) in late December or early January. I am thinking of topics for upcoming posts such as exams, preparation for law school, extracurriculars, firms and social events… if any or none of the above appeal to you, leave a comment or ask away.

Happy holidays to everyone out there.

It’s been a few weeks since my last post and the entire 2^nd year summer article recruitment process. Now is probably as good a time as any to reflect on how recruiting went and how classes are going in the dual MAAPPS – Law program before December exam prep begins and life gets crazy.

I want to start by saying I am fortunate enough to have landed a second year summer with a large national firm with one of the strongest Asia-Pacific legal practices in Vancouver. Another bonus is that I’ll be working with fellow blogger, Rebecca Coad. Check out her blogs too!

Myth #1: The dual degree’s requirement to do a 2-4 month practicum makes it impossible to summer second year at a law firm downtown.

It’s possible, and I’m looking forward to it. The MAAPPS program provides students a chance to write a thesis or a practicum. For those interested in practicing law, and basically those not interested in a career in academia, the practicum is the way to go. My senior in 3L, Theressa Etmanski, just completed her practicum working in a human rights tribunal in Cambodia. I came off a stint (for fun) at one of the 3 national law firms in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and I am beginning to brainstorm some exciting practicum opportunities.

The only issue is that it’s often expected to be done in the summer of 2L. You may think this is a scheduling conflict; luckily several of the firms downtown don’t think so.

Throughout the recruiting process, I’ve asked about the possibility of splitting the 4 month summer in half, two with the firm, and two doing my practicum. Most firms have been receptive to this idea. Of course, they would much prefer that you do the practicum at the end of your law degree (April – August of 3L) prior to beginning articles. This may, however, mean that you graduate in November with both degrees. I’m trying to figure out if there’s a way to graduate with my law buddies in May. Stay tuned.

Myth #2: If I do my practicum instead of summering, I will be in a better position for attaining articles in 3L.

This is a highly contentious opinion, but here’s my sense after speaking with the law firm recruiters for the past few months: if you have a summer offer at a firm that you like (maybe it has cool people, swivel chairs and a window, or more rationally, it does good Asia Pacific work), do that before your practicum.

Presumably, you’re interested in the dual program because you are interested in pursuing an Asia Pacific legal practice. In Vancouver, the firms best at this practice area, in terms of clients, size and type of files, and expertise, tend to be the big national firms. These national firms adhere to predominantly filling their articling positions with students who spent the summer with them in 2L. Consequently, many of these seats are filled already before you begin your search in 3L. It would be prudent to secure your summer/articling spot early (there’s a lot of peace of mind that comes with it) and then go off to do the practicum (which has no rigid recruitment process, timelines, or competition to worry about).

Most interestingly:

Myth #3: Being in the dual degree program got you a summer job. Win.

I want to say yes to this, but that wouldn’t be the whole story. Being in the dual degree program, particularly when the firms interview you 1-2 months into it, does not really mean anything much…yet. I say “yet” because firms are looking for potential (having one year of law under our belts doesn’t mean that much more either). In dual degree students, however, they see individuals willing to work hard for something  (as if law school isn’t hard enough), taking time to spend studying issues important to them and the rest of the world (it is a degree in the Asia Pacific after all). Being in the dual degree doesn’t make you an all-star automatically, but I think it shows that you have all the tools and determination to become one with time. For firms with a 5 year strategy to generate more business from Asia, you’ll definitely get more attention. For firms that are more regionally based, they may give you a pat on the back for your work ethic. The key is demonstrating to the firms you are interested in that you can, and if given the chance, will be a fantastic addition given your formal training in policy analysis.

Myth #4: I’m already in 1L. It’s too late to join this cool dual program.

Lies. The beauty of the dual MAAPPS program is its flexibility, and the fact that it is designed to start the MAAPPS component at the beginning of 2L. So you have not missed anything, and in fact, you have probably saved yourself some tuition money too, as the dual program (like law) is charged by the number of years taken to study, as opposed to credits (like in undergrad).

The application deadline is January 15, 2012. Here is a link to the application details and requirements: http://www.iar.ubc.ca/maapps/MAAPPSJDDualProgramDescription.aspx

If you have any questions about the program, you may always feel free to contact me directly: <nicco.bautista@gmail.com>.

In my next installment, I’ll talk about the different studying approaches needed to do well in law versus MAAPPS.