Rural Lawyer with Work-Life Balance - Wills & Real Estate?

[GoatDuck]

Hi, I'm trying to figure out what areas of law tend to both have a good work-life balance and be in demand in rural areas (more precisely, Alberta). So far I've gotten an indication that I'm looking at either wills & real estate law or at government jobs. What other areas should I consider? Thank you!

[ZukoJD]

Municipal lawyers have a great work-life balance. I've heard this from others on this forum and witnessed it firsthand this summer. It seems fairly difficult to get municipalities as clients though, but it could be something to aim for. 

 

[SNAILS]

I see that you are an applicant. A lot of this will start making more sense after you attend law school and perhaps summer at a rural firm. In additional what you mentioned above, there is criminal, family, personal injury, etc.

[CleanHands]

10 minutes ago, SNAILS said:

I see that you are an applicant. A lot of this will start making more sense after you attend law school and perhaps summer at a rural firm. In additional what you mentioned above, there is criminal, family, personal injury, etc.

Criminal defence isn't what comes to mind for me when I think "work/life balance."

[Lawstudents20202020]

8 hours ago, CleanHands said:

Criminal defence isn't what comes to mind for me when I think "work/life balance."

Neither is family law. 

[TheDevilIKnow]

I am not sure why anyone would say that government jobs are an option in rural areas. Government jobs, like corporate ones, tend to be clustered in big cities or provincial capitals. Smaller cities, towns, or MDs (Alberta term) will either have a very small legal department or not have one at all.

One approach might be to simply snoop out the small firms that operate in some of the communities you're thinking of, and figure out what their practice actually looks like. From what I've seen, many are likely to feature a mix of PI, property, and business/corporatey stuff.

Given that it's nearly impossible to start out on your own roght out of law school, you might also want to connect with some larger rural firms... for instance, North and Co has 24 lawyers spread out/rotating among among 10 rural offices in addition a bigger one in Lethbridge. They are big enough that they sometimes take students. https://www.north-co.com/

(I have no present connection to that firm, just an example I'm aware of as they have an office in the town I was living in when I applied to law school).

Agree with the above that crim and family are not likely to provide a happy work-life balance, perhaps especially in smaller communities... where you will always see your clients (or opposing clients).

Edited August 28, 2022 by TheDevilIKnow

[CleanHands]

4 minutes ago, TheDevilIKnow said:

I am not sure why anyone would say that government jobs are an option in rural areas. Government jobs, like corporate ones, tend to be clustered in big cities or provincial capitals. Smaller cities, towns, or MDs (Alberta term) will either have a very small legal department or not have one at all.

FWIW rural areas in Alberta need Crown Prosecutors badly and struggle greatly to recruit and retain them, so they are a realistic option as they aren't the hardest jobs to land.

That said, those are abysmal job options if one is specifically looking for work/life balance, as they are brutally overworked (which is a vicious chicken/egg cycle in combination with the recruitment and retention problems).

[TheDevilIKnow]

1 hour ago, CleanHands said:

FWIW rural areas in Alberta need Crown Prosecutors badly and struggle greatly to recruit and retain them, so they are a realistic option as they aren't the hardest jobs to land.

100%. Rural Crown positions are probably a great option for the pay/cost-of-living ratio in most provinces. But decidedly not on the work/life balance measure, which I understood to be a key criterion for OP.