Life skills and career tips for Canada's lawyers in training
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Practising trusts and estates law + LIZA C. SHEARD, Evans Sweeny Bordin LLP, Hamilton, Ont. PROS: • Estate litigation includes disputes over the validity of wills, contested passings of accounts, will interpretation, and proceedings involving the care and property management of incapable persons. Some see this practice area as family law with dead people. For the most part, cases have either, or both, interesting facts and legal issues. • Provided you meet any limitation period, there is rare- ly any pressing urgency to the proceedings. Workload aside, it is a good practice area for work-life balance. • The area of law is relatively narrow, which makes it easier to develop expertise. • The evidence tends to be by affidavit. If you enjoy writ- ing, it can be challenging and fun to draſt affidavits and facta that are compelling and persuasive. • Although reviewing estate accounts can be finicky work, it is made worthwhile when you find a smoking gun: mis- appropriated or misused funds. It can be like solving a large, complicated puzzle. • There is usually a pot of money over which to fight. Pro- vided there is merit to the case, and the estate is large Practising trusts and estates law PAUL TRUDELLE, Hull & Hull LLP, Toronto PROS: + • The area of estate litigation is a professionally rewarding one. The legal issues are oſten complex and challenging. • It is a very real, very human lev- el of emotion that is not found in many other practice areas. There is great satisfaction in assisting clients to come to a resolution of their legal issues, and also in helping them deal with the emotional issues that oſten accompany the legal is- sues and the loss of a loved one. • The factual and legal issues are always unique, and the exposure to clients and others in dealing with these issues on a very personal level puts a very hu- man face on the practice of law. - CONS: • This challenge of dealing with the raw emotion that coexists with the legal issues also makes the practice of estate litigation a difficult one at times. n www.mathewsdinsdale.com enough, there is a really good chance that you will be paid. - CONS: • It can be challenging advising clients who are at war with family members. The client may demand emotional support, which can take a per- sonal toll. I have learned it is wise to have a balance of estate and non-estate disputes. • Estate litigation is oſten not just about money. Your cli- ent may be looking for an apology or an acknowledg- ment that he or she was the "better" child. It can be dif- ficult to please such a client. • You must like and understand numbers, at least a bit, to do the accounting litigation. Also, it may take many te- dious hours of reviewing banking records and accounts. • Oſten there is no clear right or wrong side in a dispute. Ca- pacity, proper management of property, and will interpre- tation all come in shades of grey. Experience and judgment are critical. If you are inexperienced, mentoring is a must. emp l oyme n t o c c u pa t i o n a l h e a l t h a n d s a f e t y h uma n r i g h t s wo r k p l a c e s a f e - t y a n d i n s u r a n c e pa y e q u i t y immi g r a - t i o n emp l oyme n t o c c u pa t i o n a l h e a l t h a n d s a f e t y h uma n r i g h t s wo r k p l a c e s a f e t y a n d i n s u r a n c e pa y e q u i t y imm immi g r a t i o n emp l oyme n t o c c u pa t i o n - a l h e a l t h a n d s a f e t y h uma n r i g h t s wo r k p l a c e s a f e t y a n d i n s u r a n c e pa y First in Labour Law Since 1956 Toronto 416.862.8280 Sarnia 519.336.5447 Sault Ste.Marie 705.253.3711 Since being founded in 1956 as the Country's first labour relations and employment law firm, Mathews Dinsdale has been dedicated to helping employers manage the increasingly complex laws relating to the workplace. For over 50 years, our lawyers have played a significant role in shaping labour – management relations. Today, with offices in Toronto, Sarnia and Sault Ste. Marie, Mathews Dinsdale continues to have one of the Country's most highly regarded management labour and employment law practices. It continues to be our goal to help management manage – and succeed. C ANADIAN Lawyer 4STUDENTS SPRING 2010 29