NSBS Skills Course And Beyond - A

Through November I was at the NSBS (NS Barristers' Society) office as part of a class taking the practical Skills Course (why this wasn't included in law school is beyond me, although it might have something to do with students of any Canadian law school being able to practise in Nova Scotia, and the skill set needing to be standardised somehow).  Three weeks of lectures, videos, and interactive exercises passed very slowly, but it was a nice change of pace.  We were given shared and private fact scenarios and told to negotiate or interview each other, depending on the day, and were evaluated by watching a videotaped session with a course instructor, on a pass/fail basis.  It's no fun watching yourself do something that dry, and I found myself to be so boring I started losing focus as a spectator.  The instructor however found I engaged the client competently and so I passed that component.

We had to do a couple negotiation exercises, one on one and in a group setting.  There was one guy, a Brit who moved to PEI (PEIslanders take the NS course because there's too few of them to make it worth doing at home) who I worked with a couple times.  He was funny and pleasant to interact with, but very hard-nosed at the bargaining table.  Why can't disputes be settled with a good, clean poker game?  At least there I'd have a fighting chance!

The weather was largely sunny and cool, so I'd be able to walk the 2.1km past the Citadel and Town Clock to the office (15 minutes, despite Google recommending 27).  Even better, with the exception of a few days requiring I wear a suit, the dress code was back to dress like a student - comfortable and relaxed!  A national heritage site overlooking the city and harbour as part of my daily commute?  No traffic jams, bridge bottlenecks, or delays?  No need for a jacket and tie to add heat while walking?  Sign me up!  Not only did I have a pleasant commute, I sometimes got to walk part of the way with classmates I hadn't seen in a while and catch up with them.  It seems there was a rash of babies arriving after grad - our little JKLM was the only one to show up between exams and grad, though!

After the slow and occasionally boring pace of the Skills Course I go back to the DOJ, working in Solicitor Services for another month (likely to be very slow with people leaving for vacations), then I transfer to Civil Litigation (CivLit) in January where everything's always busy and happening, preparing court cases and reading files, making sure everything's ready to go.  CivLit involves lawsuits against or by the government, and for example can cover slip and fall injuries or property damage from flooding or disputes regarding property sales.  A specialised department of CivLit is Child Protection, where I'll be for my final month of articling.  I'm told that Child Protection is like crim law - either you love it or hate it.  I'm also told that in Child Protection you don't break up families (they're broken already) or take kids away, rather, you take them into care when there's no better option.  We'll see how that goes.  First I've got to get through the more mundane lawsuits and related workload.  Whoever planned this articling assignment had it backwards - I'd much rather have 6 months of PPS and 9 weeks of CivLit, instead of vice versa.  It would seem I'm one of the few articling clerks they've had who feels that way.  However it goes, CivLit will be much more busy than Solicitor Services - I'd better rest up while I can!

Until next time,
A.