A new pilot program introduced earlier this year by the Law Society of Upper Canada is being billed as a solution to declining availability of articling positions for new law school graduates. Yet, questions remain as to whether the new system will inadvertently create two tiers of graduates, and some say the fix does little to address the root of the problem: Ontario is producing more law school graduates than ever, leaving some with dim job prospects upon graduation.
Articling, which refers to the formal, year-long system of on-the-job training for new law school graduates, has traditionally been the surest path to getting hired at a firm. Yet, like so many other job markets in Ontario, a surplus of graduates pursuing a limited number of articling positions has left many empty-handed at a key moment in their careers.
“Qualified law graduates are barred from access to the profession if they cannot find a position,” wrote dean Lorne Sossin of Osgoode Hall Law School on his blog. According to the Council of Ontario Universities’ law school applications statistics, between Ontario’s six law schools, there has been a 41 per cent increase in law school applicants, combined with a 27 per cent increase in registered law students, from 1997 to 2012.
With an abundance of law school graduates flooding the legal job market, some in the legal profession have questioned “whether articling was a valid regulatory barrier for entry to practice,” according to one post in Slaw magazine. The bar association created a task force to examine this question and proposed an alternative in the hope that graduates can acquire some work experience without having to find a year-long articling position at a firm.
In November, the task force announced their proposal: a pilot program featuring a four-month long Law Practice Program (LPP), coupled with a four-month co-op placement. A detailed curriculum has not yet been released, but the task force promises that the largely academic solution will be focused on providing practical training in lieu of an articling position.
The decision was controversial from the moment it was first announced, with 20 out of 56 benchers with the Law Society voting against it. Some skeptics wonder if the new program is effectively a waiting room, keeping students in a holding pattern and sheltering them from a job market unable to absorb new graduates in such large numbers.
Others have expressed concern that the move will create a “two-tiered” system, whereby only students with very good grades or personal connections could earn coveted articling positions, while the rest will effectively be sent back to school for another year.
There will be heavier financial burden for those in the pilot program, who must pay tuition for an extra year, versus those who achieve articling positions and are instead earning a salary. Questions are being raised as to whether firms will harbour some bias against students in the pilot program, since articling positions are typically given to the students at the top of their class.
“There is legitimate anxiety accompanying the prospect of a ‘two-tier’ track to licensing,” wrote Dean Sossin on his blog. “One well-remunerated and well-regarded, the other leading to greater student debt, uncertain career prospects and stigma… I would argue that it is unacceptable for the Law Society to shut the door to those who cannot afford the cost of the pathways to practice.”
“Articling has really outlived its usefulness and it’s time to move on with a different process,” said Peter Wardle in an interivew with the Law Times. Wardle, a voting member of the Law Society who opposed the pilot project, believes that the time has come to dispose of the articling system altogether. “The time to make the hard decisions about articling is now,” says Wardle.
“One of the main reasons I chose to apply to law schools in the U.S. was to avoid articling altogether,” said prospective law student and recent U of T graduate Brandon Bailey. The U.S. allows students to go directly to their state bar exams post-graduation and jump right into vying for positions within firms. This is clearly more appealing, as the income difference between an articling and an associate lawyer position is substantial.
This program is the first of its kind in Canada, and as of yet, no other provinces or territories have deviated from the traditional articling system. Student success in acquiring articling positions varies by school. U of T’s law school, widely regarded as the best in the country, says 90 per cent of its graduating students secure articling positions. Students from lower-ranked schools have a more difficult time, and a growing number of graduates are likely to encounter difficulties as their ranks continue to swell. Lakehead University recently announced the opening of a new law school, the seventh in the province.
The alternative to articling will be available for students graduating in the 2014–15 year. If the pilot program is found to be successful, it will be extended for up to an additional two years.
