Students who accept an articling position with the Montréal office are given the opportunity to work at the Firm on a full-time basis as summer students, prior to articling. The student program is structured so that students can familiarize themselves with the Firm's major areas of practice, its members and the day-to-day activities of the Firm.

Upon arrival at the Montréal office, students attend a week-long orientation session that introduces them to the Firm and its resources.

The Montréal office does not have a structured rotation program for their students as there is for articling students. Instead, students have the opportunity to work in all practice areas during their time at the Firm. The major areas of practice in the Montréal office include:

• Mergers & Acquisitions
• Business
• Corporate Finance & Securities Regulation
• Financial Services
• Information Technology
• Intellectual Property
• Litigation & Dispute Resolution
• Tax
• Infrastructure
• Pension & Employee Benefits
• Labour & Employment
• Restructuring & Insolvency

Each student is assigned a mentor, usually a junior or mid-level associate. The mentor's role is to ensure that students have a good working experience at the Firm.

We also offer in-house seminars to provide exposure to various areas of practice. These seminars focus on exposing students to different practice areas and help them develop substantive skills. You are invited to view the 2008, 2009 and 2010 (in French) Conference Lists.

Students receive ongoing feedback from the lawyers they work with as well as from their mentors. Our goal in the evaluation system is to help each student develop his or her skills as lawyers in training.

Students are included in the Firm's various social events held throughout the year. Such events may include casual lunches, cocktails, parties, and organized student events to ensure students get to know one another as well as lawyers at the Firm.

As an integral part of the Montréal office team, students are invited to participate in client functions.

The size of the Montréal office, our position within a first-tier national firm, as well as salaries at the top of the Montréal market makes our office a privileged environment and an exciting place to practise law.

Please send your application including a cover letter, résumé, law school and post-secondary transcripts to:

Sindy Peixoto
Director, Students, Associates &
Professional Development
Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP
600 de Maisonneuve Boulevard West
Suite 2200
Montréal, QC H3A 3J2

Telephone: 514-982-5043
Fax: 514-982-4099
Email: sindy.peixoto@blakes.com

Our Montréal office is steadily growing and attracts high-quality professionals. Our team consists of approximately 70 lawyers who share common values of excellence, teamwork and commitment to clients, vision and creativity. We consider our articling program an excellent way to maintain such growth.

The articling program at the Montréal office is divided into rotations between the corporate/commercial and litigation departments.

Articling students' responsibilities vary depending upon the department the student is rotating through. For example, articling students may be asked to draft various commercial agreements, participate in major transactions from due diligence to closing, draft court proceedings, as well as participate in examinations out of court and in negotiations. Articling students are also given the opportunity to attend and plead before administrative and judicial courts.

In addition to the continuing mentoring program, the articling students are assigned a principal (“maître de stage”) who assists them in their development throughout the articling period. Additionally, articling students are invited to participate in local and national information sessions and training workshops to improve communication skills and develop their interests and knowledge of the various areas of the law. The principal, mentors and members of the Recruitment Committee are always available for assistance and problem-solving in order to enhance student development.

Articling students benefit from the assistance of a paralegal team and a librarian in charge of the Firm's library. In addition to the Firm's internal library, each student workstation is linked to the national electronic library at Blakes, as well as to the main national and international legal databanks. A training session to familiarize articling students with the office computer resources is scheduled at the beginning of each articling program.

Formal evaluations of each articling student are conducted on a periodic basis. These evaluations provide useful and constructive information for the students and afford them a formal opportunity to express their views on the Firm, the opportunities given to them, and the direction they would like to see for the balance of their articling program. This is in addition to the "open-door" policy we have for accessibility to all lawyers.

Our articling program constitutes a valuable opportunity for students to explore their areas of interest and enhance their skills.

As part of our commitment to attract and retain top legal talent, our compensation and benefits package is highly competitive with other large first-tier national law firms in the Montréal market and is reviewed on an annual basis. Furthermore, the Montréal office pays all fees to the École du Barreau on behalf of the articling student and pays a salary during the École du Barreau.

Please send your application including a cover letter, résumé, law school and post-secondary transcripts to:

Sindy Peixoto
Director, Students, Associates &
Professional Development
Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP
600 de Maisonneuve Boulevard West
Suite 2200
Montréal, QC H3A 3J2

Telephone: 514-982-5043
Fax: 514-982-4099
Email: sindy.peixoto@blakes.com

* This student is not currently at Blakes.

Please send your application including a cover letter, résumé, law school and post-secondary transcripts to:

Sindy Peixoto
Director, Students, Associates &
Professional Development
Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP
600 de Maisonneuve Boulevard West
Suite 2200
Montréal, QC H3A 3J2

Telephone: 514-982-5043
Fax: 514-982-4099
Email: sindy.peixoto@blakes.com

For additional information, please do not hesitate to contact any of the members of our Recruitment Committee chaired by Angelo Noce:

• Philippe Bourassa
• Natalie Bussière
• Shannon Consedine
• Marie-Hélène Constantin
• Hélène Deschamps-Marquis
• Liviu Kaufman
• Marc-André Landry
• Angelo Noce, President
• Sindy Peixoto
• Eric Poole
• Francis Rouleau
• Patrick Shea
  

Please send your application including a cover letter, résumé, law school and post-secondary transcripts to:

Sindy Peixoto
Director, Students, Associates &
Professional Development
Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP
600 de Maisonneuve Boulevard West
Suite 2200
Montréal, QC H3A 3J2

Telephone: 514-982-5043
Fax: 514-982-4099
Email: sindy.peixoto@blakes.com

	The Interview at the Firm
	Cocktail Receptions
	Dinner Receptions

Note: This is advice based on our experience at Blakes, a large business law firm. Interviewing at boutique firms and for governmental positions may be very different than the experience described here.

The Interview at the Firm

Do arrive on time for interviews as they are often tightly scheduled. If you are late, just explain the reason why and move on.

Wear business attire for the interviews. Most of the lawyers you meet will be wearing business attire. Also, make sure you are comfortable. It's not a good idea to try out new shoes!

Let the interviewer know where you can be reached in case the firm wants to contact you.

How to deal with problems that may arise:

• The "too-talkative" interviewer just wants an audience. Be an active listener.
• If you are too nervous, do everything you can to relax. In the case of our Firm, talking to your host may help you calm down. The host is usually a junior associate and remembers exactly how it felt. Remember, many of the interviewers are very nervous about making a good impression.
• If you don't "hit it off" with an interviewer, try to meet other people at the firm. Keep in mind that lawyers can have bad days too and that one lawyer is not indicative of the entire firm.
• If you are asked an inappropriate question, examine who is saying it. Sometimes a lawyer doesn't appreciate how their question is perceived. Consider whether you think the question is being used for a discriminatory purpose. For instance, sometimes a lawyer who has children will be interested in whether you have children simply because they like talking about them. While this doesn't make the question appropriate, there is no negative intention. Other times, a lawyer may be out of line. There are several things you can do. First, consider whether the behaviour is a reflection of the culture of the firm. We would suggest speaking to the person in charge of recruitment and gauging their reaction. Second, you can contact the Law Society about the behaviour.
• At Blakes, we are committed to a fair recruitment process. Before students are interviewed, we make sure that all our interviewers understand the importance of treating everyone with respect and being sensitive to cultural differences.

Cocktail Receptions

Firms know that not everyone enjoys cocktail receptions. However, they do provide an opportunity to see how lawyers in a firm interact with one another. At Blakes, we sometimes have a small reception at a restaurant before dinner so that you can meet more lawyers from the Firm.

If you are not comfortable in these settings, you can make a short appearance.

If you are interested in a firm but cannot go to a reception, just let the firm know this.

Do not drink heavily at a reception.

Treat other candidates well at a reception as lawyers do note if you are unfriendly to your colleagues.

Dinner Receptions

Don't panic - it's just dinner!

This is an opportunity for more relaxed conversation. Use this time to learn more about the culture of the firm. Listen to the lawyers' stories about their experiences and observe how the lawyers communicate with one another.

Don't worry if you spill something. It's not a big deal. If you are really concerned, order something you are comfortable eating.

Dinner gives you an opportunity to provide more details about yourself. Consider again what you want to convey (i.e., interest in the firm, experience you have, etc.)

Don't double-book dinners. If two firms ask you out, try to determine which firm you would prefer. Perhaps you could suggest lunch with one of the firms instead of dinner.

Please send your application including a cover letter, résumé, law school and post-secondary transcripts to:

Sindy Peixoto
Director, Students, Associates &
Professional Development
Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP
600 de Maisonneuve Boulevard West
Suite 2200
Montréal, QC H3A 3J2

Telephone: 514-982-5043
Fax: 514-982-4099
Email: sindy.peixoto@blakes.com