Ottawa v Toronto

[denning]

Hi everyone, 

With the recruits coming up I'm trying to decide which city I want to work in. At the biggest business law firms in Toronto, summer/articling salary is about double what they pay in their Ottawa offices. I'm not completely driven by money so that isn't an Ottawa dealbreaker for me, but I'm wondering if the pay difference indicates that there is more work-life balance in Ottawa? I realize that there's going to be long hours in either city, but is it true that Toronto is more of a grind? For me, I think that would justify the pay difference. 

[DrSeal]

For whatever reason, there is a rumour that Ottawa firms offer superior work life balance, but I have never found this to be the case. Regardless of whether you work in Toronto or Ottawa, you will likely have the same targets and work similar hours. The Toronto offices of the major firms are, to my knowledge, all larger, more profitable, and have more diverse practice areas than their Ottawa equivalents, so in my opinion most people would be better served by starting in Toronto. 

[AHappyLawyer]

I used to be at a large Toronto firm that worked frequently with our Ottawa office. Let's just say if we're on the same deal, the Ottawa folks didn't get to say "sorry, wrong city" and log off their computer mid-deal in the evening. 

In that sense, if you're going for a large national firm, I think you're better off aiming at Toronto. However, your mileage might differ if it's an Ottawa based firm that generates most of their work through their local Partners.