The final report of the Law Society of Upper Canada’s Articling Task Force has been delayed from May 2012, to the autumn of this year due to the overwhelming level of feedback that the group received. According to the Law Society’s Communications office, word of when the report will be release cannot be expected before the end of this month, but no firm time table was provided.
LSUC began a review of articling in June 2011 in response to an increasing shortage of available articling spots. The question has since grown so that an interim report, published in May 2012, identified the concern as being how Ontario can fairly train competent lawyers. This focus was confirmed by LSUC Treasurer, and Task Force Chair, Thomas G. Conway. In a recent statement to UV, Conway wrote, “the Law Society’s focus as the regulator is on ensuring that the public is served by lawyers who are fully competent and professional, while also ensuring that our licensing requirements are fair and accessible.”
The Toronto Lawyers Association suggests that the articling shortage is unique to Ontario, where law schools have increased their enrollment by 15% since 2001. The number of students who go without a placement has doubled in the last 5 years to 10% of new grads. The Career Development Office was unable to provide statistics for the University of Toronto because their collection was being updated and compiled at press time.
The process has seen the LSUC Articling Task Force consult with schools, students and legal service providers regarding five options that cover a host of possibilities. These proposals include keeping the status quo, creating a more accountable status quo, shifting practical training to post-licensing by abolishing articling, and creating a law school-based practical legal training course (PLTC) to be delivered concurrently or consecutively with law school. In their interim report, the Task Force notes that the PLTC has attracted the most attention.
The Task Force has held 25 consultations, including at all of the law schools in Ontario. The student societies of 5 Ontario law schools, including the University of Toronto’s Student Law Society, made submissions directly to the Task Force, along with over 100 other individuals and groups.
Law students across Ontario held a spectrum of views on how articling should be reformed. Generally, though, students have expressed a desire that fairness be top of mind in whatever solution is reached. According to the Financial Post, this can mean making the solution affordable for students, avoiding solutions likely to stigmatize new grads, and ensuring that the entire profession is invested in new lawyer development.
The submission of our Student Law Society focused on PLTC option and advocated that “students who complete clinical legal education (“CLE”) courses during law school” should receive credit toward the training requirement if it is selected going forward.
Current SLS President, Albert Lin, declined comment before this year’s SLS has had an opportunity to discuss this topic.
More information, including the original consultation report and an interim report released in May, 2012, are available on the LSUC website: http://www.lsuc.on.ca/articling-task-force/.
