Life skills and career tips for Canada's lawyers in training
Issue link: https://digital.canadianlawyermag.com/i/50902
Chris Skelton on impr ing a large fi rm Get good marks and have an interesting background. Don't be afraid to take on jobs that are unrelated to law. We like to see fi refi ghters, truck drivers, etc. Come to the interview with stories to tell. We will not quiz you on the law. We want to know about you. If we enjoy your company, it is very positive for you. Students fret too much about what is being said about them. The partners talk about them less than they think they do. They are not being constantly evaluated and assessed, even though they think they are. well-rounded, experienced, travelled individual." Th at is what it means to be a good fi t. You want to be someone everybody likes, including students, lawyers, and especially clients. But don't be mistaken, your charm, sharp wit, and oſt en-stamped passport are not enough to get you noticed. You still need the grades. "We want people with horsepower and marks are still the best way to gauge that. Any fi rm that says it does not consider marks is lying," says Skelton. Panagiota (Betty) Koutsogiannis, a partner at the intellectual property boutique Robic LLP in Montreal, says fi t is the most important factor for her fi rm. "We are a medium-sized fi rm of 45 professionals, so there is a lot of in- teraction between the lawyers and the students. Chemistry counts," she says. If "fi t" means being someone per- sonable, do diff erent fi rms look for diff erent kinds of fi t? "Th at is diffi cult to answer," says Skelton. "I'm guessing that if I went across the street to one of the other big fi rms, I would look for exactly the same type of people that I look for here." But if companies all look for the same fi t, how does this address the needs of clients who are increasingly diff erent in age, race, reli- gion, and culture than the cookie-cut- ter lawyer? "We don't want everyone to fi t the same mould. We don't all wear grey fl annel suits and look and talk ex- actly the same," says Skelton. "We cer- tainly recognize that there are many people out there who are going to be very good lawyers; those who will ex- pand this fi rm into new areas because they have varied backgrounds." Philippe Alma, counsel for the fed- eral Department of Justice in Toronto, disagrees with the idea that there is one fi t for all. Hired in 2008, Alma believes there are multiple defi nitions of fi t. "For me, every law offi ce has its own culture. Th is is determined by the kind of law it practises, civil versus criminal for example, but also the size of the fi rm and its location. Is it in a ru- ral community or in downtown Toron- to? You have to ask yourself in which community will you be most comfort- able. Th at is fi t." Koutsogiannis agrees. "What works for us at Robic may not work for other fi rms." Skelton says there is no magic to be- ing a good fi t. "Some people come into the fi rm from day one and they are comfortable, confi dent, and capable. For them, being here is a natural fi t. For others, they have to learn the ropes." And yet some people never learn. His offi ce has a rehire rate of 90 per cent. Th e few who are not taken on tend to have certain things in common. A cou- ple of students felt they had to make others look bad in order for them to look good, he says. Th is is defi nitely the wrong approach. Firms look for people they can trust and if you are always putting someone else down, you are not the right fi t. Alma knew he had the DOJ fi t even before he applied. "Th e Toronto offi ce is all litigation, so that was one criteria down. I also knew that we would have our own fi les, which ticked off fi t-box No. 2. Some of the cases for young law- yers are of low complexity so you get to learn on your own. And most impor- tantly, I knew DOJ had a commitment to public service and to the public at large which is exactly what I wanted." Th e DOJ's Toronto offi ce trains roughly 16 articling students per year and re- hires 100 per cent of them. Alma says places like the DOJ look for leaders in their community, people who are not interested in law for the business aspect of it, but for how it fi ts into society. "Th ere is more to work- ing in law than money and a good gym membership. We work on cases that impact society. We have worked on same-sex marriage cases and class- action suits dealing with Agent Orange and mad cow." According to Skelton, one of the biggest mistakes people make in the interview process is feeling they have to be impressive in a way that does not come naturally to them. "Th ey make an extraordinary eff ort to mask their real personalities because they want to be someone they are not. In real- ity, lawyers like to work with students Betty medium-sized shop Koutsogiannis on making it at a Excellent language skills are essential for students applying to Quebec fi rms. Plus, we look for humility, fl exibility, motivation, and confi dence. Don't overdo your cover letter. It can come across as arrogant. Find a way to demonstrate your dedication. We look for people who are willing to work very hard. who are comfortable with themselves, those with confi dence and humility." He adds that another huge mistake people make is being dishonest. If there is something you would rather hide, like a poor grade, be entirely honest about it because "the person on the other side of the table probably knows what happened." C ANADIAN Lawyer 4STUDENTS SPRING 2010 23