Canadian Lawyer

22 M a r c h 2 0 1 4 w w w . C A N A D I A N L a w y e r m a g . c o m Cross EXaMinEd A rmed with an undergrad- uate and a master's degree focused on music, Emily MacKinnon turned her eyes to the study of law in 2009 at the University of British Columbia after finding the halls of academe were not for her. "I came to law school after doing a degree of ethnomusicology," says MacKinnon. "The idea of law to me as a cultural construct is really fascinating. I see the law as a musical theme to life. It's a set of rules we've built toward this cultural agreement and we can apply this cultural agreement to life which is pretty fluid and doesn't fit into boxes. "It's so practical," she explains. "It touches people daily. By working with the law, you can change peoples' lives." But, the Ottawa native adds, her time performing will put her in good stead as she has learned how to present herself and has studied how others perceive her as she performs. And it's as a young litigator, she says, that the performance aspect of her experi- ence will be invaluable as she argues cases. "As part of voice practice, you spend some time recording and listening to yourself," she says. "It's a really good exercise in examining how you look to people." With involvements including clerk- ing for Supreme Court of Canada Chief Justice Beverley McLachlin, opera sing- ing, military service, and volunteer work, MacKinnon, 32, has been an associate in the litigation group in the Vancouver office of McCarthy Tétrault LLP since September 2013. After high school in Ottawa, MacKin- non received a bachelor's degree in voice performance from the University of Otta- wa in 2005, continuing at UBC with an MA in ethnomusicology and graduating in 2008 with her thesis exploring the use of music in HIV/AIDS education. That interest is one she carried to law school, receiving a fellowship to research the criminalization of HIV non-disclosure. While at law school, MacKinnon received awards including the Richard R. Sugden Prize in Trial Advocacy, the UBC Research Abroad Award, and the David Roberts Prize in Legal Writing. She has worked as an elected member of the faculty's Academic Issues Council helping craft a student code of ethics. Then, between 2012 and 2013, MacK- innon clerked for McLachlin, an experi- ence she calls indescribable. "Chief Justice McLachlin is one of the most remarkable women I've ever worked alongside," she says. Moreover, she says, the experience introduced her to other clerks who will be among her career colleagues. "They are brilliant and fascinating," she says. "I feel really lucky. Now we have this great network of clerks who have moved on to other things." Now, though, MacKinnon, a member of both the B.C. and Ontario bars, works 'Law as a musical theme to life' Experience as a performer will be invaluable in arguing cases for Emily MacKinnon. by jereMy hainSWorth Emily MacKinnon performing in La Traviata . JaMes golightly photography

• Cover