Reneging Articling/Continuing to apply after already having secured a position

[Anonymous]

Long story short, I accepted an articling offer through the recruit but have been seeing articling job posts in areas more suited to my interests. 

Would it hurt to apply to these positions while I already have one secured and how frowned upon will that be? 

[BlockedQuebecois]

If you’re in Ontario, it’s a breach of the LSO’s rules for you to continue applying for and interviewing for articling positions once you have accepted an offer. In general, breaching your professional obligations is frowned upon in this profession. 

If you want to pursue other opportunities, you should ask your firm to release you from your articling commitment and then pursue those other opportunities. 

[Psychometronic]

Even if you can manage to do everything cleanly, keep in mind that this is not a good look. The legal community is small and people talk.

[123]

I think that you posted this anonymously suggests you knew that this will be frowned upon. And I agree with the others that your instincts are correct.

12 hours ago, Psychometronic said:

Even if you can manage to do everything cleanly, keep in mind that this is not a good look.

I would go further and say that even if you manage to do everything cleanly and you suffer no blowback, this is not a good way to start your career. Do you want to be the kind of lawyer who honours their commitments? Do you want your word to be trusted, and to carry weight with your colleagues? If you don't, you should.

I actually think that the worst thing for a student or junior lawyer is to do something like this, and suffer no negative consequences. It teaches you that promises can be broken to your advantage, and that you don't need to be upfront with people. And if you're willing to bend the rules once to your benefit, I don't see why you would stop there. Regardless of whether you get burned here, it's a bad precedent to set early in your career. 

I agree with blocked. You can continue to look. But you should notify your firm first.

[Hegdis]

16 hours ago, Guest Anonymous said:

 

Would it hurt 

Yes. Potentially lots.

If I interviewed a student and found out they'd done this, I'd bin their application AND remember their name, and repeat it. No one wants to hire a person who can't be trusted. When you're a lawyer your word is everything. 

[JustHereNotStaying]

If you accepted an articling position through the recruit, you likely gave a firm yes to the firm, which is evidenced through email or some other way. This means you are locked in as per LSO rules, and the only way to get out is to basically state to the firm you no longer want the articling position. Although this makes you clear of the LSO rules, it may make you liable monetarily. 

It would be different if you were in negotiations with one firm and were still applying. The result is that you never actually committed to the first firm. 

I wouldn't burn the bridge unless there is a major reason why - for example - the firm is taking a mental toll on your mental health, offering you a bonus but will never give you it. In this case, it's not the workplace but the area of interest. I wouldn't risk it unless you were really being taken advantage of.

[TheChosenOne]

There is absolutely a cost to your decision. But only you know the particular facts to your circumstances. 

I know of a few folks who accepted articling offers at Bay Street firms but bailed a few months before their start dates for New York City offers. A first-year associate in New York City at a big law firm makes $215K/year USD (~$290K CAD). They were not concerned about morality or personal reputation when they went south to make nearly $6,000 CAD PER WEEK.

Bottom line, you do you. But remember the legal world is small and people talk. We Canadians love to take the puritan view let's not forget that these laws firms do not care about most articling students. We are cheap labour.