Each year, hundreds of eager law students gear up to secure articling positions, the final hurdle on the road to becoming a lawyer. Over the past few years, the information available to students has grown exponentially; with the addition of Career Development Officers at almost all Canadian law schools, students have access to more advice and support than ever before.

The upside is that students are better equipped to find an articling position that suits their personality, work ethic and lifestyle — large firm, small firm or government. The downside is that with so much information, it can be difficult to identify which firm best suits your needs.

Here are some suggestions, from a law firm’s recruitment professional, on how to best prepare for an articling interview, help you distinguish one firm from another and secure the job you want, along with tips on what to do (and not to do) once you’ve got it.

1. Preparing for the interview

While researching articling positions and preparing application packages, you will likely have identified the type of work environment that best fits with your personality and lifestyle. If not, you should go back and define what it is you’re looking for — this might include a collegial work environment, the opportunity to take on significant responsibility, sophisticated work and clients, mentorship, ongoing training, or the ability to forge your own career path.

Try to meet as many people at the firm as possible. This will keep you in the forefront of people’s minds when hiring decisions are being made.

Once you’ve completed that process, then it’s time to start your due diligence. Review firm websites. Talk to former classmates who are articling at the firms you’re targeting. Speak with any lawyers you might know there and try to determine if the firm provides what you’re looking for. But don’t stop there: bring along what you’ve learned to the interview and ask the interviewers to address any questions or concerns you may have.

While some of the standard questions are fine, you’ll need to dig deeper to truly determine if this is the right fit for you. Try these examples:

• I understand your firm has a rotation system. What, in your view, is the benefit to a rotation system?
• What type of ongoing training programs do you have? Are these ad hoc or is it a formal program?
• As a national firm, how do your offices interact? Is it a teamwork atmosphere, or is each office a separate entity?
• How much responsibility are students given?
• What kind of support is available for students? What if I run into problems during my articles? How would this be addressed, and what resources are available to ensure success during articles?
• What distinguishes you from your competitors? What opportunities will I have here that I might not have elsewhere?

The key is to ensure you are getting the best information possible, directly from the source, to ensure a long-term fit.

2. Zeroing in on the job

Once you’ve asked all the right questions and settled on the firm that will provide what you’re looking for, how do you get the job? Securing an articling position is a very competitive process, and there are no guarantees. However, there are some key things to do (and not do) that will improve your chances of success:

Do:

• Clearly communicate your interest to the firm. Playing your cards close to the vest will get you overlooked in favour of someone who’s being clear about their interest.
• Try to meet as many people at the firm as possible. This will keep you in the forefront of people’s minds when hiring decisions are being made.
• Be authentic. Pretending to be someone you’re not in order to get a job is the best way to ensure an unhappy working relationship.
• Show good professional judgment during all of your interactions — and not just with your target firms. Even in the largest cities, it’s still a small legal community!

Don’t:

• Tell every firm that it’s your No. 1 choice. Lawyers talk, and your insincerity will catch up with you.
• Pester your prospective employer. There is a line between being proactive and rude. Don’t cross that line.
• Be the one everyone’s talking about — if you are, the talk is probably not flattering.

3. You’ve got the job! Now what?

Congratulations! You’ve landed your dream job and you’re preparing for your articles. Here are some tips that will help you not only survive articles, but also thrive:

• Ask questions. People know that you’re learning and are willing to answer almost any question. But they will be unimpressed if you ask questions you could have answered yourself with a little research.
• Learn to bill your time efficiently. This is a crucial step in the articling year and will set you up for success later on in your career. Seek out guidance on this point from your articling principal.
• Do not treat your fellow articling students as competitors. While in some cases, there may not be enough associate positions for all of the students, contributing to your peers’ failure is detrimental to your own prospects of being hired back.
• Always be professional, courteous and respectful to everyone in the firm – lawyers and staff both. They're all future colleagues.
• Be present and become part of the team. Integrating yourself into the team will help you identify resources available to you during your articling year and beyond and make the articling experience more enjoyable.

Kyla Sandwith is the Director of Professional Recruitment at Borden Ladner Gervais’ Calgary office and a member of BLG’s National Student Recruitment Committee. Kyla focuses full time on recruiting, training and developing BLG Calgary’s students. Prior to taking on her current role, she practised in the area of civil litigation.

There’s a world of difference between the term papers that law professors assign and the research memos that articling principals require of their students. The following excerpts from the Student Survival Site at McMillan Binch Mendelsohn LLP’s website explain the differences and provide tips on how articling students can produce first-rate client research memos.

The purpose of a research memo is to answer a legal question in the context of a specific set of facts.

For example, your firm’s client — a bank — has called a lawyer at your firm wanting to know whether an agreement into which it has entered with one of its corporate customers is enforceable against that customer, even though the customer didn’t provide the bank with a corporate resolution authorizing the customer’s decision to enter into the agreement.

Did you.... get... a copy of the memo?

The lawyer knows that there’s a principle of corporate law known as the “indoor management rule,” which prevents corporations from asserting the invalidity of a transaction as against a third party because of non-compliance with the corporation’s governing documents.

The lawyer is concerned, however, that special rules may apply to banks. So she asks you to research and write a memo on this issue, so that the lawyer can report back to the client. Always remember that the lawyer will be relying on your research when advising the client.

Memo Components

Most research memos have the following eight components:

1. Heading
2. Introductory Paragraph
3. Facts
4. Assumptions
5. Issues
6. Conclusions
7. Discussion
8. Scope of Research (Sources Consulted)

1. The Heading

Although each firm will have its own format, this part of the memo usually identifies:

1. the recipient(s) of the memo
2. the writer(s) of the memo
3. the date of the memo
4. the file details
5. the subject matter of the memo

2. The Introductory Paragraph

This first paragraph is an introduction to the topic that you have been asked to research.

3. The Facts

Here, you succinctly set out the important facts about the file that you have been given. This brief summary only includes the facts relevant to the issue that bear on your analysis. Do not include unnecessary facts.

4. The Assumptions

This section is not always necessary. But if you’re making assumptions that are going to affect your conclusions, you should state them, so that the reader understands the basis for your conclusions.

5. The Issues

List all of the issues that you’ve been asked to research. Sometimes lawyers will list the issues for you in a way that can be incorporated directly into the memo. More often, however, lawyers will give you a broad assignment that you may have to break down into sub-issues.

List the issues in order of descending importance. They should mirror your discussion of the law. If new issues arise during your research, speak to the lawyer about them. The lawyer may already know about these issues and may not want you to spend time on them.

6. The Conclusion(s)

You should have a conclusion for each issue listed in the Issues section. Try to reach a conclusion (one way or the other), both on what the law is and what the answer is for the client. Lawyers prefer to have a clear answer in a memo, rather than a wishy-washy discussion that does not come to a strong conclusion. Trust your judgment, and be sure that your discussion section fully supports these conclusions.

The conclusions should be brief and not contain too much detail. The aim is to give the lawyer the answer right up front, and then explain how you reached this conclusion under the Discussion and Analysis section.

7. The Discussion and Analysis

This section should include your analysis of the law and an application of the law to the facts you have been given. You should address each issue under a separate heading, and sub-issues under sub-headings. This will make your memo easier to read.

If there are conflicting lines of authority on an issue, you should set out each of them. Try to distinguish or reconcile the authorities and explain why you think a court would follow one line of reasoning over the other. Try to come to a solid conclusion based on the particular facts of the file.

You might want to attach the most important cases or excerpts of legislation to the memo.

8. Scope of Research (Sources Consulted)

You should list all the sources you consulted in the course of your research. This will help you if follow-up research needs to be done. A detailed section will also assist other students and lawyers when they use your memo for other files. For example, at McMillan Binch Mendelsohn, all research memos go into a computerized Work Product Database and are used as a starting point for most research.

Tips on Research Memos

• After you’ve finished your research and before you start writing the memo, prepare an outline of the memo. This will help you organize and write your memo in a logical manner.
• Do not underestimate how long it takes to write memos. Drafting a concise, well-written memo takes more work than simply regurgitating everything you’ve learned.
• Write for your audience. In most cases, the audience will be one or more lawyers at your firm. In other cases, the audience will be the client.
• Answer the specific question that was asked. If you’re not clear on that question, get clarification. There is nothing more frustrating (for student and lawyer alike) than seeing many hours of research wasted looking for answers to the wrong questions.
• Focus on the issue at hand. Lawyers don't have time to read a treatise on contract law. Instead, focus on the particular questions raised.
• Don’t raise questions without answering them. Your job is to give answers, even if the answer is that there are no cases or other authorities on the issue.
• Do not provide case summaries instead of analysis, unless you were specifically asked to do so. Avoid policy discussions unless absolutely necessary or if expressly asked to do so.
• Avoid legal jargon and an overly-complex writing style. Your memo should be easy to read and contain only the necessary information and analysis.
• Ensure that all sources and case law upon which you’re relying are current to the date of your memo.
• Proofread and spell-check your memo before you hand it in. Don’t rely on spell-checkers as a substitute for careful proofreading.
• Save old drafts of your memo. You never know when something you took out in previous drafts needs to be put back in.
• Be prepared to give an oral summary of your memo.
• Finally, always remember that your memo will be used to give legal advice to a client.

The Student Survival Site at McMillan Binch Mendelsohn LLP’s website (http://www.mcbinch.com/StudentSurvival.aspx) is a leading online source of information about the transition from law school to legal practice.

It’s time to start preparing your articling applications — but where to begin? Most law students haven’t applied for full-time work before, and the articling process has a system all its own. Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg LLP supplies answers to these and related questions on its website — the following article is excerpted from the site’s Student Section.

Your cover letter and résumé are often your first introduction to the firm, so you want to make sure you convey your experiences and interests to the reader in an effective manner.

1. Always include a cover letter to introduce yourself and your résumé.
2. Proofread! Spelling mistakes, awkward grammar and inconsistent verb tenses are distractions and can muddle your message. Have a friend or family member read through the letter.
3. Personalize your letter. Tell us why you are interested in joining our firm. Make sure to address it to the recipient by name, rather than “Sir/Madam.”
4. Use the cover letter to highlight a skill or strength that you think would be of value to our firm — e.g., leadership, entrepreneurship or creativity.
5. Highlight an experience that may be of particular interest to our firm, but be sure not to repeat everything that is in your résumé.
6. The reader wants to learn about you. Be sure to highlight accomplishments or activities that truly excite you and reflect your interests. This will also help us choose the right interview partners for you.
7. Make sure your letter is clear, concise and interesting to read. Two to three paragraphs is the best length.

   Keep your résumé to no more than about two pages. Use headings to guide the reader, and present your most recent work experience and education first, descending in reverse chronological order.

8. Keep the cover letter businesslike and professional. Avoid legal jargon such as “hereinafter” or “heretofore.” Avoid gimmicks, and stay away from the overboard sales pitch.
9. Don’t forget to sign your letter. Make sure to include your contact information on the cover letter.
10. Use 8½ x11 good-quality paper — nothing fancy or colourful. Use the same paper and font style for both your cover letter and résumé. Deliver them in an 8½"-by-11" envelope, and always send the original letter rather than a photocopy.
11. Include your transcripts.

Résumé

1. Keep your résumé clear and concise.
2. Include all post-secondary education. Identify the institution, years attended, degree obtained, and major area of study. Omit high school information.
3. Include recent and relevant work experience. Identify the dates, employer and position. Provide a brief description, using active verbs to describe your duties and accomplishments.
4. If you have gaps in your education and work experience timeline, explain them in your cover letter.
5. Include interests, extra-curricular activities, and awards. These help to spark conversations during your interviews and give us insight into your achievements beyond work and school.
6. Stay true to yourself. Don’t exaggerate work experiences or personal interests.
7. Omit LSAT scores, career objective statements, photographs and personal information such as age, health, SIN, or marital status.
8. Keep your résumé to no more than about two pages. Use headings to guide the reader, and present your most recent work experience and education first, descending in reverse chronological order. Margins should be equal on both sides and the font should be easily readable.
9. Include your contact details on the résumé. Write “Curriculum Vitae” or “Résumé” at the top of the page.

In just the last 10 years, intellectual property has moved from a little-known area of the law to one of the hottest. More and more people are aware of IP and the impact it has on the economy, so there’s an increased interest in this area of the law — and an increasing demand for professionals who can advise on IP issues.

Intellectual property covers a range of practices including patents, trademarks, and copyright, as well as related forms of licensing and litigation, and even mergers and acquisitions, each of which is generally accessible in law school.

This article will describe the special requirements you need and steps you can take now to best position yourself to build a career in intellectual property law.

1. Patent Law

Patent law involves working with inventors, either individuals or within a company, to help them protect their new innovations by obtaining patents and to enforce their patents or defend against others to allow them to conduct their business.

Fuelled by the technology boom, the patent area has arguably seen the largest growth in the last ten years, because almost all industries are starting to pay more attention to their IP and to patents in particular. Patent law is generally divided into patent prosecution (the process of obtaining a patent on behalf of a client) and patent litigation.

Patent Prosecution

Patent prosecution is the process of drafting, filing and guiding a patent application through the process to obtain an issued patent.

In order to have a career in patent prosecution, you need to become a patent agent. Patent agent qualification is generally obtained by working for one year with a patent professional and then passing a rigorous four-day examination.

Anyone interested in becoming a patent agent should have at least an undergraduate degree in science or engineering (many, particularly in the sciences, have advanced degrees as well). This technical background enhances the patent agent's ability to work well with inventors and understand and describe even the most technically challenging inventions.

A patent agent should also have good communication and writing skills in order to describe the inventions they protect. Typically, patent agents specialize in a specific technical area such as biotechnology, electronics, computers, mechanical devices or chemistry. The expectations regarding the levels and blend of academic qualifications and technical experience will vary depending on the particular technical area.

So, I don’t need a law degree?

A person considering a career as a patent agent does not need to have a law degree or be called to the bar, although a majority of patent agents in Canada are also lawyers. While non-lawyer patent agents have some restrictions on what they can do, a large portion of what you need to be a good patent agent is non-legal, such as being able to quickly understand the technology of the invention you are being asked to protect.

What’s the patent exam?

The patent agents qualifying examination is held in April each year. In order to be eligible to sit the patent agent examinations, a candidate must have worked in Canada in the area of patent law and practice for a period of 12 months. Regulations concerning the registration of patent agents are contained in Rules 12 to 19 of the Patent Rules.

The examinations are practically oriented, with a strong emphasis on patent practice, including the analysis of patents and rendering of opinions. The examination is paper-based, consisting of four-hour papers on each of four consecutive days. The topics of the papers are patent drafting, patent prosecution at the Canadian Patent Office, patent validity opinions, and patent infringement opinions.

Practising in the area of patent law is highly complex, and the exams are designed to test proficiency in the skills and legal knowledge required to address all of the major facets of patent practice. The exams are notoriously difficult: typically, one-quarter or fewer of the candidates sitting the exams will pass in a given year.

There are a number of courses and seminars led by patent practitioners that are available to assist a candidate with their preparation for the exams:

• McGill Summer Course in Intellectual Property
• Federation Internationale des Conseils en Propriete Industrielle (FICPI Canada)
• The Intellectual Property Institute of Canada (IPIC)

(b) Patent Litigation

Patent litigation is the process of enforcing or defending a patent in the courts, and can include other forms of litigation related to various issues surrounding patents. In recent years, there has been a significant amount of litigation related to pharmaceutical patents.

In order to have a career in patent litigation, you have to be called to a provincial bar. While an undergraduate degree in science or engineering is very useful, it is not as essential as a law degree. A technical background can make it easier to understand the technical issues involved and may allow you to explain these details in a simpler manner to a judge.

Similarly, it is not necessary, but can be beneficial, to have the patent agent’s designation (as discussed above). Having at least some experience in the prosecution of patents provides insight into the process that can be very important to understand in the litigation process. On occasion, a litigation team may consist of litigators and patent prosecutors working together.

Patent litigation typically involves high stakes and can take many years to wind its way through the courts. As such, patent litigators do not generally get into court as frequently as, for example, those working in the criminal bar.

2. Trademark Prosecution/Litigation

Trademark law relates to the protection of names, slogans and logos that represent a company, product or service. Branding has always been an important part of commerce, but it has become even more important in a global economy.

Lawyers who wish to become trademark agents can practise as a lawyer in the field of trademarks for a period of two years and then request registration as a trademark agent.

Similar to patent agents, there is also a separate designation for trademark agents. Non-lawyer agents have to work in the field for two years and pass the trademark agent’s qualifying examination, a rigorous two-day exam designed to test your knowledge of trademark law and practice. Lawyers who wish to become trademark agents can practise as a lawyer in the field of trademarks for a period of two years and then request registration as a trademark agent.

Trademark professionals come from a broad range of undergraduate studies and work experiences. One of the keys to this area is having a strong interest and having a good training experience when entering the field.

3. Copyright

Copyright law relates to the protection of different forms of expression, including artistic works, books, movies, and music. The rise of the Internet has seen many new challenges in this area, most obviously in the areas of music and movies.

There are two broad areas where copyright plays a significant role. The first is information technology law, dealing with computer software licensing and related issues, while the second is entertainment law (including music, movies/TV, etc.), dealing with contractual issues in copyright rights and licensing.

In each of these areas, it is useful to have some background in the related industry, either through undergraduate studies or through work experience. These types of background will provide you with an ability to talk with your clients in a language they can easily understand.

Career choices

(a) Should I go with a boutique or a full-service firm?

There is a distinct difference between IP practice at a boutique firm and at a general-practice firm. As you would expect, a boutique is typically very strong in prosecution and litigation, particularly in patents and trademarks, while full-service firms are stronger in copyright (particularly IT law) and ancilliary areas such as licensing and other transactions.

This difference in practice is changing slowly over time, however — both types of firms are developing their practices to cover a broader range.

(b) What do employers look for?

IP professionals must have good legal judgment, show excellent attention to detail, and be persuasive when presenting their opinions orally and in writing. You also need good listening skills to understand what the value of IP to a client’s business — whether it’s a trademark that will be the foundation of an international franchise or a patentable innovation that will create a new market.

Personal characteristics, beyond the desired undergraduate or work experience qualifications, are an increasingly important feature used to distinguish candidates. You’ll find that each firm, boutique or general practice, tends to have its own “personality,” so there’s plenty of room for many different personality types in this field.

(c) How competitive is it?

Finding a position as an IP professional is becoming a highly competitive process, because the number of entry-level jobs is currently far smaller than the number of people seeking them.

For example, in some patent areas such as biotechnology, most candidates have a Ph.D., so a law degree will only get you so far. Highlighting accomplishments that indicate drive and creativity is important, and demonstrating significant academic interests outside your narrow specialty can also help.

One of the most important characteristics that IP professionals look for in new hires is a keen interest in the IP field. This can be demonstrated by taking IP courses in law school and by participating in groups and associations involved in IP, such as the CBA’s Intellectual Property Section.

(d) What about international connections?

One of the most interesting aspects of IP law, particularly patents and trademarks, is the fact that much of the work is internationally oriented, with patents and trademarks being obtained on a national basis around the world. As such, it is becoming more and more useful to have some facility in a second (or even a third) language.

Conclusion

It’s becoming increasingly important to determine as early as possible in your career the type of work that interests you and make a commitment to it. IP law positions in boutiques and law firms are generally filled early by those entering the field after first- or second-year law school, and it’s often difficult to shift into IP at a later date.

With a limited number of people practising this specialty, new positions in which you can receive the appropriate training can be difficult to find. However, with perseverance and drive, it is possible to get a solid start in the area and have a rewarding and interesting career.

Neil Henderson is a partner with Bereskin & Parr and practises in the firm's Waterloo, Ontario office. His practice focuses on software and high technology-related patents, trademarks, licensing, litigation and new media. Neil earned a B.A. Sc. in engineering science from the University of Toronto in 1986 and obtained a law degree from the University of Western Ontario in 1990.

Some of you will, in a matter of months, find yourselves in a law firm or legal department as an articling student. Some of you are already there, while for others, articling is still a year or two away in your future. Wherever you currently find yourself in the process of entering the legal profession, the articling year is the lynchpin of the whole process.

The profession, however, by and large, does a pretty lousy job of telling you what to expect when you get there. So this article aims to help you adjust your expectations, even if you’re already well into your articling period. To that end, here are what I perceive to be two broad and pretty universal truths about articling. My guess is that if you don’t already know the first one, you’re probably not going to like it.

1. The skill set you spent three years in school to develop will be of limited use to you in practice. That’s a hard truth, but the sooner you hear it, the better.

Your pace of work, your problem-solving approach, and the audience you’re trying to satisfy will change dramatically.

Generally speaking, law school trains you to thoughtfully consider a wide range of legal issues in a detached, analytical manner. But in most cases, legal employers will be paying you to grasp a client’s problem and deliver information and options for that client in a partisan fashion, as quickly, thoroughly and efficiently as possible. That’s what you call a disconnect.

This will require some pretty major adjustments on your part. Your pace of work, your problem-solving approach, and the audience you’re trying to satisfy will change dramatically. Your research memos will be concise and precise delineations of how the law affects what your client wants to do. Take it from me: your supervising lawyer does not want to see Donohue v. Stevenson referenced in a memo about disputed insurance coverage.

Some of you might think you’ll avoid this because you’ve already summered. I’m here to tell you: in most cases, the difference between summer and articling work is like the difference between exhibition games and the regular season. You’ve figured out how the library operates and you know the partners’ names, and that’s a good start. But many legal employers treat summer students as guests visiting the cottage for a few weeks; they treat articling students as employees. That can come as a shock.

So what it comes down to is, you’re about to walk into a high-pressure job with not many of the skills you’ll need to succeed. That’s the bad news. Here’s the good:

2. Your employers already know that. They don’t like it very much — when you have a moment, ask one of the partners what he thinks of the law school and Bar admission system, then sit back a safe distance — but they understand it, and they’re not going to hold it against you.

The fact is, there is a sizable gap between what law school teaches and what law practice requires. The bar admission course tries hard to bridge it, but its time is limited. Frankly, even if law school were three years of nothing but skills training for private law practice — and for the record, I don’t think it should ever be — you’d still face a sharp learning curve once you started on the job. Doing is learning on steroids.

So, your employers know that new articling students are largely unprepared for what will be asked of them. The better ones will give you a ton of skills training of their own, supplementing what the bar ads taught you and tailoring it to the employer’s culture and the local legal community’s unique requirements. So you won’t be thrown into the deep end.

At the same time, your employer will be expecting you to learn, and learn quickly. And the good news is that you’re extremely capable of doing just that, with the skills you picked up in school and the ones that came with you already pre-installed. Here are a few suggestions to accelerate that process:

1. Establish expectations early. Sit down with your articling principal early on and find out what she expects from you. Ask her for copies of old research memos she especially liked from previous students, to get a sense of the approach and style you should adopt. Talk about your own skills and strengths, and discuss those areas you’d like to improve. Remember, your principal isn’t just your supervisor; she’s professionally responsible for helping to train you as a lawyer.
2. Ask questions often. If you’re reticent by nature, now is the time to take a deep breath and barrel into gregariousness. Find out how a particular lawyer or department likes to work. Ask for feedback on your performance, and be persistent — lawyers like giving evaluations even less than most people. Grill associates and secretaries (gold mines of information and potentially great allies) about procedures and etiquette. Soak up whatever you can.
3. Assess yourself periodically. You should receive official evaluations from the lawyers you work for, and they’ll be helpful. But you should also track your own progress. Keep a journal of the lessons you’ve learned (pleasantly and otherwise), the skills you’ve acquired, and the developments and accomplishments you’ve achieved. Even halfway through the year, you’ll be surprised and heartened by how much you’ve already picked up.
4. Stay positive and relaxed. This is the most important advice I can give. Remember that you’re an intelligent, skilled and hard-working professional, and that you have a great capacity to absorb new information and scenarios. The adjustment from school to work is often difficult, but it’s also very much do-able — thousands of people make the transition every year. Stay upbeat and be confident in your own abilities — no matter what happens at the end of the year, you’ll be ready for whatever else law can offer. And welcome to the legal profession.

Jordan Furlong has been Editor-in-Chief of the Canadian Bar Association’s National magazine for seven years, after spending two-and-a-half years as a writer and editor with The Lawyers Weekly newspaper (jordanf@cba.org). This article originally appeared in the February 2006 issue of New Queen's Counsel.

For the fourth consecutive year, National magazine is producing a special issue dedicated and circulated exclusively to Canada’s 10,000 law students. This year’s edition, to be released Sept. 1, will feature stories on:

• Social justice law careers
• Law school bloggers
• The new era of competitive moots
• Bar admissions course reforms
• Pro bono in a law firm setting
• And more!

Watch for National’s 2006 Law Student Issue this fall — and in the meantime, check out our previous law student issues, available free online at the Canadian Bar Association’s website.

Want to flex your writing muscles? Have something to say to the law school and articling student communities across Canada?

Now’s your chance — National magazine is now accepting submissions for articles written by students to be published in the next edition of Law Student Addendum, to be distributed to thousands of students nationwide.

Opinion pieces, research items, first-person anecdotes — anything to do with law school life and/or the transition from school to practice is welcome.

Send your suggestions and submissions to national@cba.org before June 30!