Before you start your articling, it is a good idea to know what awaits you during this important time. You should be aware of what the firm expects of you and what you should expect of the firm that employs you. Articling is overseen by the Comité de la formation professionnelle du Barreau of the Barreau du Québec. Firms that hire articling students and the articling students themselves have certain rights and obligations during the articling program.

THE PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM

The objective of articling is to put the theory learned in university into practice, to develop the skills required to practice law and to prepare to transition into the profession of attorney.

Your training must enable you to acquire and develop, among other things, the following skills:

• Consultation techniques;
• Writing techniques;
• Negotiation techniques;
• Representation techniques;
• Research;
• Application of research methods;
• Analysis and determination of the applicable law and possible solutions;
• Management of files.

This list is not exhaustive and the firm is free to add other skills to your training. At LRMM, we consider the development of each articling student’s field of interest very important. As our articling is non-rotational, we offer articling students the option to work in the fields that are of interest to them during their time with us.

Plus, the chance to work with both seasoned and younger attorneys and other articling students every day over six months will help you develop such interpersonal skills as teamwork, collaboration, analytical thinking, communication, self-confidence and even managing stress and learning to be a good listener.

In return, articling students are expected to commit to giving their best and to respect the firm’s rules and the  attorney’s profession. Discipline, thoroughness, resourcefulness, open-mindedness and respect for the confidentiality of the files are the prerequisites to articling. Here are a few tips to help you distinguish yourself during your articling:

• Manage expectations. By being prepared for the unexpected and always allocating more time than expected for each mandate, you can make the best impression by submitting the mandate to the attorney who gave you the work ahead of deadline.
• Treat all the attorneys equally. Junior attorneys usually report to a senior attorney. Therefore, it’s important to treat all the mandates the same while always delivering the same high quality work for whoever gives you the mandate.
• Add value to your mandates. By raising certain questions, for example, questions that clients should be asked or whether further research should be done.
• Go beyond expectations. For example, if an attorney requests that you do research for an originating application, you could then propose to prepare a first draft.
• Show a positive attitude, and demonstrate interest and ambition.

SUPERVISION

Each articling student is overseen by an articling supervisor responsible for their training. The articling supervisor must see to it that everything goes smoothly during the articling period and follow up regularly with the articling student and other members of the firm who work with them.

Your articling supervisor must follow the evolution of your learning, ensure that all required skills are acquired during the articling period and make sure you are offered a variety of duties.

You should be able to communicate easily with your articling supervisor and have your mandates adjusted to meet your interests, strengths and weaknesses. Your articling supervisor should give clear, insightful feedback and be ready to advise you on any difficulties you may encounter. Never hesitate to speak openly with your articling supervisor, as it is a relationship based on trust that will most help you move forward and help you with any obstacles as they come up.

“The role of the articling supervisor is not only to accompany the articling student in their personal and professional development, but also to be a mentor to them whose mission is to pass on a tradition and a know-how.” – Julien Grenier, Civil and commercial litigation attorney at LRMM since 2014.

« The role of the articling supervisor is also to ensure the articling student learns everything they need to know, so as to transition smoothly into the legal profession. » – Julia De Rose, attorney in insurance law at LRMM since 2009.

THE EVALUATION

During your articling at LRMM, you’ll work with several attorneys who will give evaluations to your articling supervisor. Your supervisor follows your progress and is in the best position to advise and evaluate you.

The evaluation periods are set by the École du Barreau:

• Formative assessment during the 15^th week of articling, to evaluate the articling student’s progress and the skills that need to be improved;
• Summative assessment during the 23^rd week of articling, to assess the completion of the articling.

The articling student will be evaluated on their knowledge, know-how and skills.

We invite you to consult the detailed information on the École du Barreau website.

We wish you great success!