"We hire summer and articling students with the intention of helping them and our clients succeed. Because we involve students in client service at a deeper level than a lot of other firms, we look for people who apply creative, practical thought to their work, and who focus on solutions to client problems.
No other firm in Vancouver offers the variety and quality of litigation work found at Harper Grey. If you are passionate about becoming a barrister, this is the firm for you."
Bernie Buettner, Partner & Chair, Harper Grey Student Recruitment Committee
Ready to apply? Send your cover letter, transcripts and resume to:
Bernie Buettner, Partner
Harper Grey LLP
3200 - 650 West Georgia St.
Vancouver, BC V6B 4P7
"I chose Harper Grey because I wanted to learn from top litigators. During my articles, I juniored a senior partner in a week-long civil jury trial and I appeared in court several times. I was given both responsibility for files and guidance on how to run them. Having access to excellent, respected lawyers who are eager to teach confirmed that I made the right choice in joining Harper Grey."
-Lee Mauro, Associate
"During my summer articles, I accompanied a senior partner to Small Claims Court, where he sits as a night court adjudicator. My role was to brief all his cases for the evening. It was like an opportunity to clerk without clerking. This is a unique feature of the student experience at Harper Grey."
- Carlee Campbell, Summer Student 2011
"Liisa Tella, our senior librarian, has been an amazing resource for me during my time at Harper Grey. She has a keen eye for identifying the most recent and relevant texts on any legal issue. As an articling student, I find this to be one of the most valuable features of the firm as it saves me a lot of time and points me in the right direction."
- Lawrence Bau, Articled Student, 2011-2012
- Devon Peck, Summer Student 2011
"During my articles, I was given meaningful projects that were integral to ongoing litigation. It was rewarding to feel that my contributions were of value, and that I was part of the litigation team."
- Ryan Irving, Associate
"I had an invaluable articling experience at Harper Grey. I expected that I would not see the inside of a courtroom as a student, however nothing could be further from the truth. I appeared before the Provincial Court on a regular basis and I attended the Supreme Court of BC with two senior partners for the duration of a one-month trial. "
Lindsay Johnston, Associate
Harper Grey will participate in On Campus Interviews (OCI's) in fall 2011 at:
and 
We have recently hired law students from:
- University of British Columbia
- University of Victoria
- University of Alberta
- University of Calgary
- Dalhousie University
- Queen's University
- University of Windsor
- University of Edinburgh
"I interviewed for articles with Harper Grey in 2004. I was immediately impressed by the obvious collegiality of the associates and partners I met; I knew Harper Grey would be a great fit for me.
That initial impression turned out to be absolutely correct. Throughout my career I have received an incredible amount of mentoring and support from my colleagues at the firm, including valuable practice-related guidance and encouragement to pursue my full potential. I now have a practice that I truly enjoy - I find myself chairing the associate committee and providing that same advice and guidance to our junior associates and students.
The practice of law is not always easy, but strong mentorship and genuine friendship from those who have passed through doors before you is, in my humble opinion, the key to success and happiness in this profession."
- Sandra Kovacs, Associate
If you think you want to be a litigator, think about applying to Harper Grey LLP.
The firm that you choose for summer and formal articles sets the stage for your career. We know that students have questions and criteria. It's just as important for you to find the right place to learn as it is for us to hire the right students to contribute to our firm.
This section describes what you could expect from the student experience at Harper Grey LLP. If you need further information or if you have any questions, please contact Bernie Buettner at any time.
Articling at Harper Grey LLP - Quick Facts
- We have 56 lawyers, most of whom concentrate on litigation and dispute resolution
- Our firm is rated by Lexpert Canada as one of the top 3 litigation firms in Vancouver
- Harper Grey is the largest litigation boutique in British Columbia
- We handle the broadest variety of litigation of any firm in Vancouver
- We are not a rigid, corporate firm - our culture makes room for individuality
- Harper Grey LLP typically hires five articling students and two summer students each year
- We hire students from law schools throughout Canada, and occasionally from foreign countries
- We look for motivated self-starters with a genuine interest in litigation
- We hire people from a variety of backgrounds - our clients are not all the same, and neither are our lawyers
- The firm has a very collegial environment - we look for students who are respectful of lawyers and staff
Program
We will do everything possible to ensure that your articling year is successful (i.e. to ensure that you are hired back as an associate, should you choose to stay, or that you are well prepared for a successful career at another firm should you decide a different route).
This requires a commitment from you and a commitment from the firm.
We do not move students from department to department within the firm. You will have the prospect of becoming involved in a specific lawsuit, contributing to and managing the case at considerable depth.
If you develop an interest in particular practice areas, you'll be encouraged to explore them in depth. You'll work with veteran lawyers who will share practical experience, mentoring you and showing you how the work you do makes a difference to real life issues.
At some point during the year, you'll complete the Professional Legal Training Course (PLTC) . You'll be given paid time off to study and prepare for the exam.
Welcome to the ballpark...
During your first week, you'll be trained on our office systems and given a full orientation about what you can expect from a typical workday. This includes a tour of the office and a skill testing questionnaire about where each partner's office is located. Just kidding.
Lori Williams, our Director of Training and Development will be here to provide guidance. She will pair you with a senior lawyer who will act as your principal. You'll meet your principal to discuss your expectations and ours, ways to approach work and various assignments.
Early innings...
In the first months, you will begin to work on assignments. This could include research memoranda, accompanying a lawyer to court, answering a question from a client or interviewing witnesses. The emphasis, right from the start, is on doing "real" work for real clients.
Our lawyers will guide you in recognizing what is needed from your work product and how it can be improved on. Learning from practical, applied experience is what your articling year will be all about.
Liisa Tella, our librarian will lead a library and research seminar for you. She and her team are an invaluable resource. They are patient, and they have trained many articling students on what the lawyers expect from you.
The first few months are crucial for students to show initiative. First impressions will be based on perceptions of your motivation, how you clarify expectations, your writing and research skills, your ability to meet deadlines and how you get along with others in the office.
This is one of the more stressful times in the articling year. No one expects you to be perfect. Ask questions, communicate with your principal and demonstrate that you are committed to doing a good job for our clients and that you are willing to learn.
Covering the bases...
As more lawyers become familiar with your interests and strengths, you'll receive more varied assignments. Lori Williams and your principal will help you manage your workload; this is the time when long hours can be spent at the office and you can be immersed in helping out with a trial or challenging request.
Throughout your articling year, you will be invited to attend professional development seminars (one or two per month), client luncheons, meetings with your principal and other events. You can expect to attend at least three seminars, lunches or events per month, if not more.
Some of the work you can expect to do at Harper Grey:
- Attending at chambers, assessments, discoveries, and applications at various levels of Court and trials
- Managing small claims cases
- Assisting as a junior at trials and inquests
- Drafting pleadings, wills, and corporate documents, and transferring real estate
- Preparing opinions and legal memoranda
- Interviewing witnesses and meeting with clients
- Participating in business development activities
The ninth inning...
Both you and the firm will have a good idea as to whether Harper Grey is the right fit for you before the end of your articling year. You will continue to meet with your principal and it's possible that you may be called to the bar before you officially begin work at the firm as an associate.
Summer Student Program
Our summer student program emphasizes the depth of each project rather than breadth of practice areas.You will work on specific projects. If this is your first experience working in a law office, you'll also learn how the office environment functions.
We view the summer student program as a way to determine if there is a fit for you as an articling student. Offers will be vetted and made by the end of your summer term.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q. How and when should I apply?
- We respect the articling guidelines set out by the Vancouver Bar Association. Please see their website for application details.
- Generally, the deadline for articling applications is June 30, and for summer students, it's September 15
Q. What should I include in the application?
- In your cover letter, please tell us about jobs, volunteer activities, travels, athletics and other experiences that you have found interesting. Tell us why you want to become a litigator and what it is about litigation that interests you.
- Please send a resume, transcript, undergraduate marks and a covering letter to:
c/o Bernie S. Buettner, Partner
Harper Grey LLP
3200 - 650 West Georgia Street
Vancouver, BC V6B 4P7
Q. What will I earn?
- Articling students earn $50,000/year. Benefits include:
- Extended health, dental, disability and life insurance
- Fitness subsidy
- 10 days vacation (and you're encouraged to use it)
- Volunteer support for any pro-bono or charitable work you do
- Payment of all continuing education, bar admission course, Canadian Bar Association membership and call fees
- Summer students earn a gross monthly salary of $3,750, pro-rated for time actually spent with the firm. Benefits include:
- A portion of your third-year law school tuition, up to $5,000
- A $500 book allowance for your third year of law school
Q. Are there any other benefits?
- Inclusion in all in-house education programs such as lunch presentations
- In-house seminars focused specifically on student skills - working with staff, litigation, writing, research, etc.
- Invitations to firm social events such as softball games, a trip to see a baseball game in Seattle, hockey games, a ski-race in Whistler, client receptions, holiday receptions and golf tournaments
- A private office with a door. We will not make you work in a cubicle.
- Relative freedom to structure your day according to your work assignments. No one will question you if you need the occasional afternoon off for an appointment or take an extra-long lunch.
Q. How much time are students expected to spend in the office?
- Students spend as much time as time at the office as necessary to complete assignments. If they are involved in a trial or have a strict court-imposed deadline, this can include weekend and evening work.
- We encourage students to communicate what they need in terms of work-life balance. The articling year can be overwhelming - learning how to manage your workload to be productive in a team environment is essential for success. Demonstrating that you are proactive and conscious of doing the best job possible (not completing the most work possible) is part of what makes lawyers successful.
Q. Do you have a pro bono policy?
- We don't have a formal policy, but we do perform pro bono work on a case-by-case basis
- Students are encouraged to volunteer at pro bono clinics
- Many of our lawyers volunteer as supervising lawyers at pro bono clinics such as the Law Students Legal Advice Program
- We recognize that pro bono work is part of our professional responsibility to encourage access to the legal system for everyone
- The firm has a volunteer recognition program whereby we will donate money to organizations that staff and students spend more than 50 hours per year volunteering for
Q. Are you involved in the universities?
- Yes. The firm sponsors scholarships and bursaries in the faculties of law at the University of British Columbia and the University of Victoria
- Many of our lawyers are involved with the University of British Columbia
- Raj Samtani is an adjunct professor, teaching the Law in Medicine course
- Richard Bereti is an adjunct professor, teaching the third-year Environmental Law course
- Guy Brown, Cheryl Khanna and Terry Robertson have lectured at the third year appellate advocacy course
- Abigail Turner tutors students in the ethics at the Faculty of Medicine
- Kim Jakeman has lectured at the Faculty of Medicine Education Day
- Maureen Lundell has lectured as part of the Faculty of Arts Career Expo
- Bernie Buettner, Natasha Chetty and Lori Williams have presented a panel discussion "Law Firm 101: What to Expect When you Get to the Office" for the Faculty of Law
- Kat Kinch has coached the UBC Wilson Moot team, and is on the board of the UBC Law Alumni Association
- We also participate in the On Campus Interview (OCI) process, which precedes articling applications
Q. What are your hireback rates?
- Our hireback rates are comparable to most other downtown firms
- Offers depend on what the firm needs, and what our students want. For example, some of our students become interested in working on the other side of files, for the Crown or Department of Justice. Others decide to focus on an area of law that is not part of our primary service, or decide to work in-house at an organization such as the BC Securities Commission.
- In 2011 and 2010, we hired three out of five articling students. If a student decides not to stay with the firm, we will do everything in our power to connect him or her to a suitable employer before the end of the articling year.
Meet our Current Students
Articling Students, 2011-2012
Ms. Emi Tasaka
Law School: University of Calgary
Undergrad: Simon Fraser University. B.A., English
Claim to fame: Judo Champion. Emi represented Canada in judo competitions in Europe, Madagascar, Colombia, Japan and the US.
Email: etasaka@harpergrey.com
Mr. Lawrence Bau
Law School: University of British Columbia
Undergrad: University of British Columbia - B.A. (Hons.) in Psychology
Claim to fame: Brains and Brawn. Completed a triathlon, marathon and half-marathon, and represented BC in the National Chess Championships.
Email: lbau@harpergrey.com
Mr. Jeremy Shragge
Law School: University of British Columbia
Undergrad: University of Alberta, B.Sc in Nutrition and Metabolism
Grad School: University of Alberta, M.Sc in Nutrition and Metabolism
Claim to fame: Worked as an account manager providing advertising services to pharmaceutical companies in London, England.
Email: jshragge@harpergrey.com
Ms. Kimberly Fenwick
Law School: University of British Columbia
Undergrad: University of British Columbia, Political Science
Claim to fame: too many volunteer activities to list! On the UBC Wilson Moot team which won the "Top Factum" prize at the national competition in Toronto in 2010.
Email: kfenwick@harpergrey.com
Mr. Joel Morris
Law School: University of British Columbia
Undergrad: Queen's University.
Claim to fame: Won a CBA scholarship for achievement in 2009. Judicial Law Clerk at the Supreme Court of British Columbia 2010-2011.
Email: jmorris@harpergrey.com
Ms. Djuna Field
Law School: University of British Columbia
Undergrad: University of British Columbia - B.Sc., in Biological Psychology
Claim to fame: Completed an exchange with Hong Kong University during her last term of law school. Worked as an intern as part of a judicial monitoring program with a non-governmental organization in Cameroon.
Email: dfield@harpergrey.com
Summer Students, 2011
Ms. Carlee Campbell
Law School: University of British Columbia
Undergrad: University of Calgary, Faculty of Commerce
Hometown: Calgary, AB
Returning for articles? Indeed.
Email: ccampbell@harpergrey.com
Ms. Devon Peck
Law School: University of British Columbia
Undergrad: McGill University, English Literature and World Relations
Hometown: West Vancouver, BC
Returning for articles? Absolutely.
Email: dpeck@harpergrey.com
