Canadian Lawyer 4Students

Spring 2010

Life skills and career tips for Canada's lawyers in training

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COMPILED BY MAT T POWELL Canadian Lawyer 4Students goes right to the top and seeks some words of wisdom from law firm managing partners around the country. We asked these law firm leaders for their thoughts on the following burning questions: 1 T O P Kim Thomassin McCarthy Tétrault LLP, Montreal 1. The practice of law is demanding, but rewarding. To succeed as a lawyer requires passion for your work and a commitment to lifelong growth and learning. Find a mentor, someone you trust and admire. Learn from their experiences. Be proactive. Don't wait for people to come to you with a project. Knock on doors and off er to help on projects that interest you. Don't be afraid to ask. You'll be surprised by the positive answers you receive. 2. My parents. My mentors. 3. Going back to my daughter at night relieves any stress. Otherwise, I try to go for a walk or exercise, read something totally disconnected from my day job. 4. At McCarthy Tétrault, attracting top students who will contribute to the development of our fi rm is essential to our long-term success. We cultivate a diverse and exciting profession- al environment that off ers many opportunities for success. We are looking for students who are genuinely interested in our practice and our clients, who can work in a team-based environment, are smart problem solvers, have a strong desire to learn, are highly motivated, and demonstrate initiative and judgment. 5. Play outside, practise sports, any activity with my daughter, invite friends over for good food, good wine, read, see a movie. 2 3 4 5 1. What advice could you give to young lawyers heading into the profession? 2. Who inspired you? 3. How do you deal with the stress of your job? 4. Other than good marks, what qualities do you look for in your summer and articling students? 5. What is your favourite thing to do when you have time off? Peter R. Forestell Cox & Palmer, Saint John, N.B. 1. Take a couple of your early years of practice to discern which areas of law you can be passionate about then focus on marketing yourself in those areas. If you don't have a passion for your practice, then it's just a job and not a career. 2. As a young associate, the senior partners in my fi rm were terrifi c mentors. They were wonderful lawyers, teachers, and superb role models. They were also a very collegial group and great fun. Those partners were very generous to their young associates and they gave me outstanding opportunities. I learned so much from just watching them in action. Today, I consciously emulate them in my practice and I try to repay their generosity by spending a lot of time with, and providing great opportunities to, our present-day associates. 3. Stress, what stress? One of the most impor- tant talents a lawyer can acquire is the ability to handle stress appropriately. For me, it helps immeasurably that I love what I do. But when I leave the offi ce, I try to actually leave the offi ce behind and I am very fortunate to be able to relax with all of the diversions that come with being part of a large, extended family. 4. There are many intangible qualities that we look for in students — qualities that, for the most part, can't be taught — they either have them or they don't. Two of those are superb people skills and a good work ethic. A student with strong people skills has good common sense and will be able to work with many diff erent (and sometimes diffi cult) personali- ties and adapt to diff erent situations. A student with a good work ethic will be passionate about the work and have good instincts about what needs to be done and how to get it done. 5. I occasionally embrace my other creative passion — cooking for my family. It's very relaxing, especially when accompanied by a good bottle of wine! C ANADIAN Lawyer 4STUDENTS SPRING 2010 9 tipsfr om the

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