Articling Student Comments and Observations
What Our Students Say
“What sets KRMC apart is the tremendous amount of practical experience and high level of responsibility given directly to students right from the beginning. The students at KRMC are assigned various court attendances directly, including motions, settlement hearings and even trials, and are given ample opportunity and guidance to learn all aspects of the litigation process. These experiences allowed me to make valuable and meaningful contributions to challenging files and work directly with clients on a continual basis.
I had the chance to work with many lawyers engaged in a variety of different practices throughout both my summer and articling terms. KRMC’s “open door” policy allowed me to bring any questions and inquiries to associates and partners with ease. Throughout my time as a student, the lawyers at KRMC were genuinely invested in my continuing growth and success in the legal profession. Working at KRMC has reaffirmed my initial impression that the firm has a uniquely supportive and team-oriented environment to ensure the development of my legal career.”
“I had the ideal experience articling in the Personal Injury and Insurance Litigation group at KRMC. As an articling student, I was given the opportunity to do “real work” including appearing on motions, handling settlement negotiations and directly interacting with clients. The lawyers are all kind, genuinely interested in mentoring students and make the effort to include students in all aspects of files. I finished my articles amazed at how much knowledge I had gained in such a short amount of time and felt completely prepared to transition from student to lawyer. I am very grateful to have started my legal career in such a great place!”
Ashley Frydrych, articling term 2012-2013
“Before I joined KRMC, I knew of the firm’s reputation for providing their articling students with lots of responsibilities. Needless to say, the firm lived up to these expectations. Within my first week as an articling student, I received carriage of examinations, motions, settlement conferences, terms of payment hearings, and even a few trials. So far, I have drafted pleadings, factums, affidavits, research memorandum, and motion records. I have been at KRMC for a few months now and throughout this time the lawyers and support staff at the firm have provided valuable guidance, insight, and supervision.
KRMC is a great place to work. From the outset, I was perceived as an equal member of a close-knit team and was not assigned routine tasks. I have direct contact with the firm’s clients and feel that my work is valuable. I receive feedback both from the clients and the supervising lawyers. Most of my work is in KRMC’s growing Creditor’s Rights department; however, I receive files from many other practice groups within the firm. I look forward to developing my litigation skills during the rest of my articles and beyond at KRMC.”
“The most valuable part of my articling experience at KRMC relates to the numerous opportunities I had to work alongside the most highly-experienced, top-notch litigators, who are absolutely the best of the best in their field. Regardless of whether they held the title of partner or associate, each lawyer with whom I worked took the time to show me the ropes – from teaching me how to draft an effective letter; to demonstrating the art of crafting a persuasive argument; to advising me with respect to strategies that I might use to negotiate with opposing counsel.
My articling experience was no walk in the park – it was more of a brisk jog (which sometimes quickened to a sprint-like pace), but I had lots of great support along the way to help me rise to any challenges that came my way.”
Andrea Siu, articling term 2010-2011
“I was fortunate to secure an articling position with KRMC . It was a stepping stone to my success in this prestigious profession. The experience I gained at KRMC was exceptionally rewarding.
In order to get the most out of your articling term, you need to be able to expose yourself to great litigators, and participate in all aspects of a case, which I was able to do at KRMC. As an articling student you become a member of KRMC’s litigation team, with carriage of your own files. My expectation as an articling student was to receive quality training-KRMC delivered by allowing me to discuss files with senior lawyers, including the partners. The support staff at KRMC was exceptional as well. At KRMC, you don’t feel like you are a stranger, even on the first day of work. The friendly, courteous atmosphere allows you to concentrate on your work and learn. At the end of the term, I believe that I was richer than most of my articling peers in the areas of advocacy, drafting skills, legal research, procedural law-and professionalism. ”
Sanka Wijeratne, articling term 2009-2010
“To borrow a phrase from Dickens, articling at KRMC was the best of times and the worst of times. My own learning curve was steep and it seemed at the beginning that I would never even get the acronyms right – SOD, SOC, AOD? Yet, I did learn from the best group of mentors a student could have – the Personal Injury Group at KRMC. PI students do all different kinds of work for each of seven lawyers. That way they are exposed to all aspects of a file and to different styles. The lawyers have an open-door policy and are also eager to take students along to client interviews, settlement conferences, mediations, discoveries and Court. Students draft pleadings, documents and correspondence, attend motions, interact with clients, adjusters and defence counsel. By the time the articling period is done a student at KRMC could easily assume full carriage of a file and actually know what to do. Articling was a great experience and I am pleased to be continuing my personal injury practice here at KRMC.”
