Life skills and career tips for Canada's lawyers in training
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Marie Henein Henein & Associates, Toronto 1. That there are pros and cons. It is an extremely rewarding career that is never boring. It is however all consuming. There are no half measures when you are in the heat of battle. In the end, the only reason to do it is that you absolutely love litigation. 2. Too many to name that have inspired me in different ways. Professionally, certainly Eddie Greenspan, Justice Marc Rosenberg, Clarence Darrow, to name a few. 3. I don't. And I don't put pressure on myself to try. You can't be all things to all people all the time. So sometimes, my professional commitments take priority and sometimes my family commitments take priority. 4. Criminal law and evidence. 5. Blood Meridian by Cormac McCarthy. Michael E. Barrack Thornton Grout Finnigan LLP, Toronto 1. It is one of the rare careers that people enjoy as much, or more, when they are older as when they are younger. 2. My father, who never attended university, but believed his lawyer could solve his problems. 3. By trying to identify what is most important in my life, then committing time to those things and hoping there is enough time left over to do some really unimportant but seriously fun stuff. 4. Anything taught by Peter Hogg. Great teachers are a true gift. 5. Sailing Home: Using the Wisdom of Homer's Odyssey to Navigate Life's Perils and Pitfalls by Norman Fischer. Scott C. Norton Stewart McKelvey, Halifax 1. First of all, it is very difficult to appreciate the day-to-day work of a litigation lawyer based on the law school experience unless the student has an opportunity to do some sort of "real world" clinical work as part of the curriculum. In my experience, good liti- gators have all sorts of different personali- ties so that is not the defining characteristic. Good litigators have the following common traits: an inquisitive mind, a competitive spirit, a tough skin, and the ability to ask hard questions in emotionally charged circumstances. Litigators have the advantage of having an indepen- dent evaluation of their work product by the judge or jury. The reason I really enjoy litigation is that each file provides a completely new set of facts to understand and new people to meet. It provides me with daily education in such fields as medicine, science, engineering, and human behaviour. 2. I was very fortunate to spend my formative years of practice with a very ac- complished litigator in Halifax, Harry E. Wrathall. He took the time to teach me every aspect of the "art of advocacy." Harry practised through a period of time where the leading counsel would conduct 30 to 40 trials per year and regularly took issues up on appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada. I thoroughly enjoyed working with him. He taught me the key to being a successful litigator was to step back from the rote steps of production of documents and discovery to find the correct "focus" of the case that would win the day. I also learned a lot from litigating against tremendous lawyers like David Chipman and Ron Pugsley, who, while being great advocates for their clients, were extremely courteous to young lawyers like me. 3. Early in my practice, a senior partner in my firm told me that no one would ever thank me for not taking a vacation. I follow that advice religiously. When I go on a family vacation I have the e-mail feed from the office turned off by our IT people. My assistant will only contact me in a true emergency. What is the point of being in a firm with 200-plus lawyers if they cannot cover for you for two weeks? The practice of law can consume you if you let it. You have to find a schedule that works for you and your family. In my early years I was able to commit more time to the practice before being married and having a child. Now, for me, family comes first. That means I have to recognize that my billings and income will be lower than others who are able to commit more time to the practice. Each person must come to the balance that works for them. While technology provides some ability to work away from the office, the same technology can become a distraction from the time spent with family. Reading e-mail on a BlackBerry during family dinner is not a great idea. 4. Evidence. The professor was Clayton Hutchins, who was a retired lawyer from the Judge Advocate General division of the military. He had a very black-and-white view of the rules of evidence and required us to memorize them for a closed-book exam. That was great foundation for a litigator. He also had great "real life" stories to put the material in context. 5. Fiction: The Bishop's Man by Linden MacIntyre. Non-Fiction: The Boy in the Moon by Ian Brown. ■ Get more Tips from the Top online at canadianlawyermag.com/4students C ANADIAN Lawyer 4STUDENTS F ALL 2010 15