Canadian Lawyer 4Students

* EMBRACE NEW TECHNOLOGY In a competitive articling environment, you have to make yourself stand out. And the earlier, the better, according to Simon Borys, a second-year law student at Queen's University in Kingston, Ont., who has put a great deal of effort into building his online profi le. "Everyone comes to the table with law degrees, so you have to demonstrate to future employers what you bring in addition. Online activities are a great way to showcase that," he says. Borys highlights his own history as a police offi cer 4 on his blog, which he uses as a platform to link up with fellow students, senior practitioners, and potential future employers. He's also active on Twitter and participates in online legal discussion groups. And it's paid divi- dends, because he's already secured a summer position at a criminal law fi rm, with a strong chance to return to complete his articles. "It's been very well received and I've made lots of connections," says Borys. KNOW YOUR OPTIONS Articling requirements are not as rigid as they once were. Most jurisdictions allow some form of joint articles, which means that students can split their term across two or more placements. Vani Selvarajah splits her week between Toronto immigration law fi rm Jackman & Associates and the offi ce of sole practitioner Gary Anandasangaree. "Gary gets a lot of solicitor work done, like wills and estates and real estate, so it's complementing really well. I'm passionate about immigration but I'm not sure if I'm going to build a career solely based on it," says Selvarajah. "It also gives you exposure to lawyers who'll have different ways of handling things. I think that's important, because starting out, we don't want to be moulded in just one way." Angela Sordi says law students can't afford to forget tools of a more old- school variety if they want to set up their own articles at a smaller fi rm. "Look in the Yellow Pages, and pick up the phone. Keep your eyes open when you're driving down the street, and pull over and knock on the door," she says. "How are you going to come across those small fi rms unless you proactively seek them out?" That approach worked for University of New Brunswick grad Andrew Su- dano, who found that high marks and strong extracurriculars weren't enough in the competitive Ontario market. After unsuccessfully cold-calling law fi rms in the phonebook of his hometown of Markham, Ont., he expanded his search. "I was really interested in criminal and family law, so I searched for some of the professional associations. The Family Law Association of Ontario web site had e-mail addresses of feature members, so I sent resumés," he says. One of the recipients, Toronto family lawyer Robert Shawyer, was im- pressed. "I thought that was pretty innovative and entrepreneurial," says Shawyer, who is now Sudano's articling principal. C ANADIAN Lawyer 4STUDENTS SPRING 2012 21 EMBRACE OLD TECHNOLOGY 5 3

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