Five Queen's Law Students to Undertake Clerkships in 2008-09

Photo By: Bernard Clark

Megan Williams, Law '08, and Claire Houston, Law '07, will both be clerking at the Ontario Court of Appeal in 2008-09.

 Five Queen's Law students were selected in spring 2007 to clerk at various courts in Canada - Ontario Court of Appeal, Saskatchewan Court of Appeal, Ontario Superior Court of Justice, and the Tax Court of Canada. Claire Houston, Law '07, and Vanessa Lam, Chris Slade, Lauren Wihak and Megan Williams of Law '08 will commence their clerkships in 2008. Clerking provides a unique opportunity to work closely with judges and to observe the development of the common law. To be competitive for these prestigious positions, the candidates must have impeccable academic records. "I am proud of our students," said Dean Bill Flanagan, "Queen's continues to do very well in placing its students in clerkships at a wide range of Canada's leading courts, providing our students with an unparalleled opportunity to develop their legal skills."

Lauren Wihak

Although clerking positions are time-limited (usually ten to twelve months), the experience provides an excellent foundation for legal careers - both in Canada and internationally - in a variety of areas, including private practice, academia, not-for-profit and the public sector. Indeed, some of the students applied for clerkships because they do not want to limit themselves to one particular legal area after graduating from law school. "Clerking is a unique opportunity to keep my options open," said Megan, who will be clerking at the Ontario Court of Appeal and is currently working at the Crown Law Office - Criminal. "I will be involved in many different areas of law, and that [provides me with] a great opportunity to make a more educated decision about what I want to do with [my career]."

Claire, on the other hand, knew for some time that she wanted to pursue a public interest career. She thinks clerking will further this career goal because it will allow her to see how judicial decisions affect people's lives. "I can't imagine a more exciting way to influence social change," said Claire of her upcoming clerkship alongside Megan at the Ontario Court of Appeal.

Vanessa Lam

Vanessa echoed these sentiments. Although she is not dead-set on a particular career path, she is particularly interested in family law. Since Vanessa will be clerking for the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, which has a specialized Family Law Branch, this is an ideal experience for her. "I think clerking will be a great way to see how I enjoy actually dealing with family law issues in a practical way, while leaving the door open for other opportunities," she said.

Chris, who intends to practise tax litigation, will be clerking at the Tax Court of Canada. He appreciates the value that this experience will bring in pursuing his career goals. "A tax clerkship would prepare me well for any sort of commercial litigation, and would be a fantastic start to a career in tax litigation," he said.

During their clerkships, the students will research and analyze legal arguments, and in so doing will influence the course of the jurisprudence in their respective courts. Furthermore, they will have unparalleled access to some of the greatest legal minds in the country. "I'm particularly interested in appellate litigation, so getting an inside and behind-the-scenes look at the process will be uniquely valuable," said Lauren, who will work with three judges at the Saskatchewan Court of Appeal.

Each of these students stressed the invaluable contribution of clerking to the development of their legal skills. From observing advocacy in the courtroom and the reaction of judges to different styles, to researching and drafting legal memoranda for various judges, a clerkship paves the way for a bright future in the legal profession. "The opportunity to work closely with judges is unique to clerking," said Vanessa, "and beneficial to all types of future career paths."