We offer summer employment to students hired as articling students. Only our articling students are offered the possibility of working as students during the summer preceding the beginning of their articling period. It is not, however, a condition to being hired that an articling student accepts a summer work assignment before beginning his or her articling period.
Student Experience
For articling students who accept our offer to work during the summer before an articling period begins, we offer experience in a variety of areas, generally in project format, such as preparing facta or research memoranda, updating databases, knowledge management and translation of precedents. The idea is to develop experience without taking work away from articling students, who are also present during summer months.
Students can use the summer period to experience our work environment. They are fully integrated into office life and enjoy first-hand a real-life work experience.
Rotations
There is no formal rotation over the summer.
Mentoring
The lawyer in charge of articling (Maître de stage) oversees the summer students, and interacts with them and lawyers with whom they may work to ensure the students understand what being a lawyer at Miller Thomson is all about, and what is expected of them as summer students and, later, as articling students.
Feedback
An informal evaluation is done at the end of the summer. During the summer, students participate in training sessions and conferences on various areas of law, procedure and office policies.
Articling Program
Hiring
The Montréal office usually hires six to eight articling students, divided into two groups. The articling period is six months and, with Bar School (completed before articling) being either four or eight months, some juggling of timetables may be required.
In general, the first group starts in January and ends in June. The second group then starts in June and finishes in December. We strive to have at least three articling students at all times present at the Montréal office.
Rotations
We do not have a rotation system for our articling students. We favour a “real life” approach where lawyers are seen as clients, to be approached for work and with whom relationships and affinities may develop.
Our Students
Our students are available to answer any questions you may have about our summer and articling student programs.
The Montréal office is proud to offer summer employment to its articling students. This work opportunity allows students to become familiar with the office and gain valuable work experience before officially beginning their articling. Only articling students are offered the possibility of working as students during the summer preceding the beginning of their articling period.
Applications limited to summer work as a student are generally not considered. All other applications are evaluated in accordance with the selection process for articling students.
Montréal – Articling Program
The Montréal office adheres to the agreement among large Montréal law firms dealing with recruitment of articling students. Therefore, we follow, with certain adaptations, the rules set out in the agreement. Whether or not a candidate is governed by the agreement, we treat all applications the same. In principle, we do not recruit articling students outside the period of recruitment stipulated in the agreement.
The interview period is as set out in the agreement (typically, beginning the second Monday in March for articling positions that are two years away). For example, in 2021 we interviewed for articling positions in 2023.
For actual dates and for a review of the agreement, please access the following sites:
You can submit your application through the viRecruit portal. All applications received by the deadline date are read in full and considered.
All applications must contain your curriculum vitae, letter of presentation and transcripts of law studies. Letters of reference are not essential, but recommended. For more information please contact:
Me Léna Taylor Miller Thomson LLP 1000 De La Gauchetière Street West Suite 3700 Montréal (Quebec) H3B 4W5 Email: [email protected] Direct Line: 514.871.5467
The selection process for articling positions at the Montréal office is as follows:
All applications are reviewed and graded based on different criterias.
The Montréal office does not make a pre-selection based strictly on law school marks, nor on a given benchmark general grade-point average, but instead, focuses on the candidate’s entire application package. Approximately 85 candidates are selected for a first interview.
First interviews, lasting approximately 40 minutes each, are usually held between 8:30 a.m. and 7:30 p.m., Monday and Tuesday, with twelve interview teams made up of two lawyers.
Out of the group of first interviewees, approximately 35 are referred to a second interview before two senior lawyers. Second interviews are usually done in the second week of the recruiting period.
From the second interviewees, approximately 20 candidates are invited to an event, where they can meet other lawyers of the firm. This event is held several days before the date when formal offers can be made, according to the agreement.
From this short list, we establish a final list of candidates, and offers are made on the day set aside for such purpose in the Agreement.
Contact Law Student Recruitment
For more information about Miller Thomson’s Montréal law student program, please contact:
Léna Taylor
Director, Legal Talent Miller Thomson LLP 1000 De La Gauchetière Street West, Suite 3700 Montréal (Quebec) H3B 4W5
