Articling Placement Program Update
The Law Society’s Articling Placement Program (the Program) assists articling students who are in unsafe or untenable articles due to harassment or discrimination. The Program supports articling students with exiting their current position and continuing their articles with a new firm/organization. The Program began as a pilot in February 2022 and was made permanent in February of this year.
Since its inception, the Law Society has received 35 inquiries about the Program from articling students. Less than one-third of those that made inquiries met the criteria to enter the Program and almost every articling student that met the criteria was placed at a new firm/organization.
For the articling students whose experience met the criteria, workplace harassment was experienced by the student in almost every instance. Discrimination may have also been a factor.
Slightly more students who identified as female made inquiries about the Program than those who identified as male.
More students from Southern Alberta contacted the Law Society to inquire about the Program than in Northern Alberta; however, more students in Northern Alberta met the criteria and were placed through the Program.
On average, students who were placed in the Program had eight months of articles remaining to complete their articling term. Some students have already completed their articles through the Program and others remain in the Program, articling at their new firm or organization.
Be a Leader
The Law Society has seen an increase in inquiries regarding the Program and learned from students that they had been referred by lawyers, even lawyers within their own firm. Placing students through the Program is becoming more challenging and students are waiting longer to be placed.
The Program has proven to be a lifeline for the students that we have placed and those waiting to be placed. Students who have utilized the Program have expressed their gratitude for the Program’s existence and support during a time of crisis in their articles. Principals who have participated in the Program report feeling fulfilled and grateful for the opportunity to have helped future lawyers in need.
The continued operation of the Program depends on roster firms and organizations partnering with us to accommodate students in need. Please consider leading by example and join the program roster.
Written and prepared by Susannah S. Alleyne, Equity, Diversity & Inclusion Counsel and Equity Ombudsperson