Articles 2019

Managing stress is a continuous struggle for many lawyers. The holidays bring extra worries for many people. As young lawyers, it’s important to develop habits and strategies to better position ourselves for new challenges. In this article, the author shares her plans in the hope young lawyers can benefit from her lessons learned and maintain balance during this busy time.

In civil litigation, while obtaining the judgment feels like a solid win for your client, the most difficult work is just beginning. Once you have a judgment, in order to recover any debt, you must enforce the judgment. The good news is that there are a number of ways to enforce a judgment against a debtor, depending on the information that you possess. Read on for a survey of enforcement methods against individuals judgment debtors in Ontario.

The idea of smart robots walking and talking amongst us, capable of performing our daily tasks without complaint, and (perhaps more importantly) without any concept of labour rights or sleep, is so sensational that it leads to a misunderstanding of what AI is and what it is capable of. In this article, the author provides an overview of AI and how it will continue to impact junior lawyers’ legal practices over years to come.

Drawing on successful examples from other fields and jurisdictions, this article suggest several ways to encourage young lawyers to practice in rural areas. Among other things, this article suggests that law schools should persuade articling students to article in rural areas, governments should provide loan forgiveness programs to lawyers who practice in rural areas and townships or counties could offer incentives for lawyers to move there.

On September 10, 2019, two members of the OBA's Young Lawyers' Division Executive attended the Momentum Summit on gender equality and equity. The event was a capstone on the OBA’s 2018-2019 initiatives to advance gender equality in the legal profession. In case you missed it, this article has 7 takeaways from the summit's sessions.

I always knew that I wanted a family and a rewarding career, both of which are extremely important to me. Somehow, I am lucky and extremely privileged to have it work out so far. I should not be naïve as I know that I’m only a few miles into a life-long marathon in this balancing act, but for those who might be at the start line, here are a few of the (somewhat) expected and unexpected challenges to parenting and lawyering that I have encountered so far.

It’s no surprise that young lawyers tend to be workaholics who don’t take care of themselves. After all, we are still fresh out of the all-nighter mode of law school and the crazy hours of articling. Plus, there’s the ever-present pressure to prove yourself as a recent call. But wouldn’t you rather get that dream job AND be mentally healthy?

As an articling student, and even as a young lawyer, direct interactions with clients can seem daunting. So, for those of you heading into your first solo or lead file, or for those of us who are still developing and fine-tuning this skillset, here are some considerations and tips for client management from colleagues and hard-learned lessons.

The number of Canadians without a Will should astonish lawyers. A recent study found that the majority of Canadians do not have a Will. In my experience, anecdotal evidence suggests that these statistics are consistent among young lawyers, particularly among those who are just beginning their practices. As a young lawyer (potentially with student debt, but also on the verge of significant financial milestones such as home ownership and child rearing) you should seriously consider making a Will.

Non-competition clauses in employment contracts present a conflict between two long-standing common law principles: discouraging restraints on trade and respecting freedom of contract. To make the terms enforceable, employers need to ensure they are drafted carefully, clearly and as narrowly as possible. Employees should similarly take caution before agreeing to a non-compete provision. Read on for more insight on non-solicitation clauses to assist your clients in the future.