Life skills and career tips for Canada's lawyers in training
Issue link: https://digital.canadianlawyermag.com/i/50905
ERIK MAGRAKEN, MacIsaac & Co. Practising in Victoria + PROS: • Victoria is a wonderful city for a legal career. With a mild climate and stunning surround- ings it is a highly desirable city for both work and lifestyle. • Victoria is large enough for an exciting lifestyle while retaining the feel of a smaller community. Being the provincial capital, there is no shortage of diverse and quality legal work as well. • One of the biggest draws to working here is the collegial nature of the bar. Th e Victoria bar is close-knit and there is a real sense of community among this city's lawyers. - CONS: • One drawback is that Victoria is a competitive market to break into. Victoria is comprised largely of small fi rms and sole practitioners. Th ere is a law school generating many graduates each year. Adding the lifestyle benefi ts of living and working in Victoria to the mix cre- ates an environment where many students are competing for rela- tively few positions. • Students looking to break into the Victoria market should start net- working with the local bar early to maximize their chances to learn about and compete for articling opportunities. Many articling posi- tions are not advertised and are fi lled by word of mouth. Practising in Victoria PROS: + • With a small city atmosphere and greater work-life balance than larger centres, Victoria is still large enough to provide opportunity despite lack- ing some big-city amenities. • Victoria has many advantages: short commutes, beautiful weather (less rain than Vancou- ver), and less pressure for billable or long hours. • Th ere is a greater chance for younger lawyers to get into court, handle diverse practice areas, and take on leadership roles while learning practice-management skills they would not get in a larger fi rm. • We have excellent and active Canadian Bar Association B.C. subsections that meet regularly for education and networking. 40 F A L L 2010 C ANADIAN Lawy er 4STUDENTS Practising tax law DAVID NATHANSON, Davis LLP, Toronto + PROS: • It's intellectually challenging and gen- erally lucrative work. • Tax law cuts across almost all other areas of law. - CONS: • Th e continual and voluminous reading required to stay up to date in the fi eld. • Th e high burnout rate of lawyers in this practice area. APRIL J.E. GILLILAND, Velletta & Co. • Th e local bar is very collegial with several Victoria Bar As- sociation meetings each year. - CONS: • Th e most obvious one would be the lower salaries in Victoria when compared to downtown Vancouver sala- ries; however, this does not mean that one cannot make a decent living here. • Th ere is also a lack of in-person legal education courses available on the island, which can mean a trip to Vancou- ver once a year. • A number of fi rms in Victoria do not hire articled stu- dents or younger associates. As well, there are fewer men- toring opportunities for young women lawyers with expe- rienced women lawyers in private practice. CONS PROS &