Working for Legal Aid Ontario

[capybara]

Considering an articling offer from Legal Aid Ontario. Does anyone have experience working in a LAO office? Do you like what you do? 

[SNAILS]

I got an offer to article with LAO yesterday. They only gave me 24 hours to make the decision.

Pros 

• Competitive pay if you compare it to small firms outside the major cities
• Benefits
• The fact its unionized (which helps you with rehires if you want to work for LAO as a lawyer)
• 37.5 hour work week (by comparison, I had 55 hours last week where I am summering)
• Gives you insight into Legal Aid billing / process which can be valuable if you go into boutique / small firm practice that will be doing legal aid billing
• Helping people that have nowhere else to turn (poverty, other barriers) 

Cons

• Cannot compete with the $$$ of a "Baystreet" position
• It's really only for people with a passion for family and criminal 
• I feel that it is not as "prestigious" as working for a respected crim /family boutique
• May not be the best place to learn how to be a trial lawyer (which could be a barrier to rejoining private practice / going solo)

*** All opinions here expressed are those of a 2L law student who has never actually worked for LAO

[123]

8 hours ago, SNAILS said:

• Cannot compete with the $$$ of a "Baystreet" position
• It's really only for people with a passion for family and criminal 
• I feel that it is not as "prestigious" as working for a respected crim /family boutique

None of your options are going to compete with Bay Street salaries.  Also, if needing passion for family and crim is a con to you, I wouldn’t take the job. These positions are a a grind. If you’re looking for trial skills, rather than crim or family specific experience, articling with DC might not make the most sense. And clients deserve duty counsel who is fully committed to protecting them in their most vulnerable moments. That’s not a criticism of you — I also wouldn’t have taken a DC position, because it wasn’t ultimately what I wanted to do. But knowing that, I would’ve stepped aside and let someone passionate about the work take on those responsibilities. 

[Diplock]

9 minutes ago, realpseudonym said:

None of your options are going to compete with Bay Street salaries.  Also, if needing passion for family and crim is a con to you, I wouldn’t take the job. These positions are a a grind. If you’re looking for trial skills, rather than crim or family specific experience, articling with DC might not make the most sense. And clients deserve duty counsel who is fully committed to protecting them in their most vulnerable moments. That’s not a criticism of you — I also wouldn’t have taken a DC position, because it wasn’t ultimately what I wanted to do. But knowing that, I would’ve stepped aside and let someone passionate about the work take on those responsibilities. 

Given Snails was replying to someone else, I'm not sure that pros and cons list relates only to his own priorities. Although I agree with the general point you've just made, I'd wait for clarification before judging on that point.

[LMP]

14 hours ago, SNAILS said:

I got an offer to article with LAO yesterday. They only gave me 24 hours to make the decision.

Pros 

• Competitive pay if you compare it to small firms outside the major cities
• Benefits
• The fact its unionized (which helps you with rehires if you want to work for LAO as a lawyer)
• 37.5 hour work week (by comparison, I had 55 hours last week where I am summering)
• Gives you insight into Legal Aid billing / process which can be valuable if you go into boutique / small firm practice that will be doing legal aid billing
• Helping people that have nowhere else to turn (poverty, other barriers) 

Cons

• Cannot compete with the $$$ of a "Baystreet" position
• It's really only for people with a passion for family and criminal 
• I feel that it is not as "prestigious" as working for a respected crim /family boutique
• May not be the best place to learn how to be a trial lawyer (which could be a barrier to rejoining private practice / going solo)

*** All opinions here expressed are those of a 2L law student who has never actually worked for LAO

Tangential, but congratulations on the articling offer! 

[piranesi]

 

On 6/3/2023 at 1:56 AM, SNAILS said:

I got an offer to article with LAO yesterday. They only gave me 24 hours to make the decision.

Pros 

• Competitive pay if you compare it to small firms outside the major cities
• Benefits
• The fact its unionized (which helps you with rehires if you want to work for LAO as a lawyer)
• 37.5 hour work week (by comparison, I had 55 hours last week where I am summering)
• Gives you insight into Legal Aid billing / process which can be valuable if you go into boutique / small firm practice that will be doing legal aid billing
• Helping people that have nowhere else to turn (poverty, other barriers) 

Cons

• Cannot compete with the $$$ of a "Baystreet" position
• It's really only for people with a passion for family and criminal 
• I feel that it is not as "prestigious" as working for a respected crim /family boutique
• May not be the best place to learn how to be a trial lawyer (which could be a barrier to rejoining private practice / going solo)

*** All opinions here expressed are those of a 2L law student who has never actually worked for LAO

Congratulations on your offer! If you don't mind me asking, how did you come across the articling posting? I have been trying to keep up with LAO's job posts but I must have missed something.

Edited June 10, 2023 by piranesi

[SNAILS]

@realpseudonym It's not that I lack passion for crim/family (crim especially). It was more an "out loud" acknowledgement (for myself and the OP) that expanding into things like real estate, employment law, and civil litigation would have been available in private practice at many full service boutiques and that LAO does not offer that. I guess there is a small part of me that might want to expand my horizons.

@piranesi  These jobs were advertised through indeed.ca and the viLawPortal. I'm not sure if you get that at your school.