How private practice prepared her to effectively support and mentor law students
This semester, we welcome Theresa Chan to the Faculty of Law as the Director of Career Development Programs with the Career Development Office (CDO). In an interview with Ultra Vires, Theresa Chan shared her experiences and thoughts about how her work in private practice prepared her for a role of support and mentorship.
Ultra Vires (UV): Can you tell us a bit about your background, education, and career?
Theresa Chan (TC): I was born in Toronto but spent my childhood in Saudi Arabia. I attended high school in the U.S. and completed an undergraduate major in biology at Harvard. Then I came back to Toronto for law school at U of T. Since being back at the law school during these past few weeks, I’ve been very nostalgic, and particularly so as we step into the 2L recruit season.
I participated in the 2L recruit and accepted an offer at Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP (Blakes), which for me, was an easy decision to make for a variety of reasons. The practice group I chose, the infrastructure and procurement group, was my home for many, many years. There, I learned my craft, received mentorship and mentored others, gained confidence, and grew into leadership positions. I ultimately became a partner. But I wasn’t done learning and growing—I took the space I needed to pursue my interest in coaching and counselling when I felt it became a calling. That’s how I found my way back to the law school. It’s hard to remember sometimes that we’re people first and foremost and lawyers second, and sometimes the ways we grow as people can lead us to take unexpected turns in our careers.
UV: At Blakes, you assumed leadership roles in the recruitment, mentorship, training, and retention of diverse lawyers. Could you please discuss these roles a little bit more?
TC: I had lots of roles! I was a recruit host, then an on-campus interviewer, and a firm interviewer for every major recruit we did during my years at Blakes. I was on the student committee and the equity and diversity committee for a number of years and in those roles, I championed students and associates from equity-deserving groups. Certain lawyers led student mentorship groups at Blakes and I was one of them. I was one of the key decision-makers for hiring in my group and one of our primary goals was hiring diverse candidates.
It is one thing to hire folks from diverse backgrounds, and it is quite another to train, engage, and retain them. To do that, they have to feel like they belong and that they are seen, accepted, and promoted (introduced to clients, staffed on the best files, mentored effectively). When I started at Blakes, there were not many people who looked or sounded like me in positions of leadership. I was never the most outspoken, outgoing, or confident associate. It took me time, mentorship, skill-building, and self-reflection to reach the point where I felt confident enough to own my expertise. It took time to become an effective mentor because we can’t really give back until we come into ourselves. It didn’t even feel like a choice to mentor diverse associates—I don’t know if I would be an effective mentor to anyone else! I felt that I understood what challenges they might be facing and what they needed to hear to learn and grow. One of my mentees is up for partner this year, and nothing makes me happier or prouder.
UV: Why did you choose to move from private practice to law school career development?
TC: Coaches and counsellors have always been helpful to me at various points in my career. The more I learned about coaching and saw what an impact it could make, the more I started to build coaching into my own mentoring. More than anything I have ever done, coaching gave me joy and seemed to line up with who I am intrinsically as a person. I noticed that and started moving into that space in my volunteer life, becoming a trained peer support facilitator and running mental health peer support groups in my free time.
During the pandemic, I had time to myself to think. I wasn’t in the office all the time, immersed in the hustle and bustle of the firm and the folks in my group. The voice that had kind of always been there, saying, “is this all you’re ever going to do, all you’re ever going to be?” grew louder and louder, and soon it was saying, “what if you’re not done learning and choosing? What if you could take yet another path?” That thought seemed to fill me with impossible joy. I started doing some informational interviews with folks whose work included some element of coaching/counselling. The year I was put up for equity partner, I told the senior partner in my group that I might be looking to make a career change and that I wanted a sabbatical. During the sabbatical, I followed my joy—I took coaching classes and started coaching young associates, and then this role at the law school came along.
It was not an easy decision because in many ways, I was perfectly content in my practice. Yet the change felt like an imperative because I had grown so much as a person. With every choice, we choose not to do something else, and all we can do is make sure our choices are conscious and deeply true to ourselves.
UV: How do you plan to assist students with mental health and wellness concerns when navigating the recruit?
TC: This is an important question, and much bigger, in fact, than the recruit. The decisions students are called upon to make as they commence their legal careers can feel profoundly important and can make looking for a job feel very fraught. The process of looking for a job can bring up some very complex and powerful feelings and emotions which directly impact the mental health of students.
Through Student Services, we have provided some important context to the University’s Health and Wellness Office about the potential effects of the 2L recruit on the mental health of our students so that students can be better supported. I am in contact with Student Services to ensure the CDO continues to be involved in the conversation around mental health at the law school.
UV: How does the CDO plan to better engage with non-corporate paths and to support students interested primarily in public interest careers?
TC: The support we provide goes far beyond our programming (which includes the Public Interest Career panel, Lawyers Doing Cool Things, and other panels where students can learn about the public interest opportunities). It goes beyond doing a full review of the public interest fellowship opportunities available to students. The support is very individualized and tailored for each student who comes to us and says that they are looking for a public interest position. We ask questions to learn about what the student is interested in and [we] help them make connections in the field that excites them the most.
We will continue to build and strengthen relationships with public interest employers. For those of you who are interested in public interest opportunities, do visit our office—the more we understand what kind of opportunities you are looking for, the more we can assist!
UV: I know it’s still very early in your time at U of T Law, but can you tell us about any changes you would like to implement at the CDO?
TC: It is early days and I have the benefit of inheriting a beautifully run office populated by an incredibly passionate and talented team. One of the things I’m incredibly excited about is our Leadership Skills Program—I am working on finding speakers who are fun, engaging, and will add to the already formidable skillsets of our students to ensure success in those summer and articling positions, and beyond.
UV: Do you have any advice for students currently going through the 2L Toronto recruit?
TC: Where to start! Trust yourself deeply. Breathe. Be present. Be kind to each other. Take time to enjoy the things you love doing and be filled up by things that are separate from law school, the recruit, and your career. Be yourself because there’s a long road ahead and it will only be sustainable if you are being true to yourself and your own values.
For those who get everything they want from this recruit, and for those who don’t (yes, it’s the same message): Bravo for going for what you wanted. This is the beginning of the beginning and I’m so excited to see what you make of this opportunity. It is so very easy to make this recruit mean more than it does. In truth, five or ten years from now it will seem like a very small and insignificant moment. Whether or not you were successful in the recruit means absolutely nothing about your worth, how good a lawyer you will be, or whether you belong here. Everyone reading this has a long career ahead. Everyone reading this belongs here. Everyone reading this will figure it out. We are here to help in any way we can, and we are honoured to be part of your journeys!
UV: Thank you very much for your time, Theresa. In closing, how can students looking for career development help reach you?
TC: They can email me at [email protected]. Can’t wait to meet you all!
This interview has been edited for brevity and clarity.
