Articling Student 2024 - Civil Law - National Capital Region & Quebec Regional Office

Important messages

We are committed to providing an inclusive and barrier-free work environment, starting with the hiring process. If you need to be accommodated during any phase of the evaluation process, please use the Contact information below to request specialized accommodation. All information received in relation to accommodation will be kept confidential.

Assessment accommodation

WHAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR:

We are seeking high-quality candidates who are excited about the practice of law in the government sector and who are committed to public service, including respect for public service values and ethics.

In order to qualify in this process, candidates must meet the essential qualifications.

PROCESS STEPS

Step 1: TELL US ABOUT YOU!

For the PRESELECTION, you MUST apply online via GC Jobs (www.canada.ca/government-jobs). Answer the screening questions and save your answers by no later than February 8, 2021, 11:59 PM, Pacific Time.

Your application must include: your cover letter, your résumé and your latest Law School transcript.

In order to identify candidates who will be invited to participate in the next assessment steps, we will first be looking for combination of factors. Write your cover letter explaining why you would be an ideal candidate for this articling position within the Department of Justice taking into account the factors below:

• Social implication
• Demonstrated interest in the public law and public service
• Excellent oral and written communication skills
• Combination of relevant education, work, training or other experience (e.g. volunteer, etc)
• Academic results, with a particular attention to results in law school

Your cover letter will need to be detailed and written using a 12-point font. The maximum length of this letter should not exceed 2 pages or 650 words in total (with standard spacing and headings).

Note that the cover letter will serve as a tool to assess the ability to communicate effectively in writing.

DOCUMENTS TO SUBMIT BY EMAIL (with your full name in the subject line) at the following email address: :

1. Cover letter (to be addressed to Annie Chrétien, Senior HR Advisor and National Coordinator, Legal Excellence Program (NCR))
2. Résumé
3. Copy of your most recent official Law school transcript

All of which must be submitted at the latest February 8, 2022, 11:59PM, Pacific Time.
Applications that do not contain ALL of the above-mentioned documents will be considered incomplete. Incomplete or late applications will not be considered.

Step 2: WRITTEN ASSESSMENT

For those who are successful at the pre-screening stage, a written communication assessment will be administered via the Simple Survey platform. If you are selected, you will receive an email with all the details. You will be able to complete the assessment between February 21 and February 25, 2022.

Step 3: MEET WITH US!

INTERVIEWS will take place by videoconference via MS TEAMS from March 9 to 24, 2022. At this meeting, you must bring:

1. Original proof of Canadian Citizenship (passeport or original birth certificate) or an original proof of permanent residence

Due to the number of applicants and the strict deadlines, it may be necessary to impose a limit on the number of applicants to be interviewed and proceed to the next step in the selection process (with a top down selection).

On October 6, 2021, the Government of Canada announced details of its plans to require vaccination across the federal public service. 

As per the new Policy on COVID-19 Vaccination for the Core Public Administration Including the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, federal public servants in the Core Public Administration and members of the RCMP must attest to their vaccination status. The requirement for employees to be fully vaccinated applies whether they are teleworking, working remotely or working on-site.  This is a condition of employment and it applies to indeterminate (permanent), determinate (term), casual, and student hiring. Should you reach the point in the selection process where it is necessary to verify terms and conditions of employment then the hiring manager or a human resources representative will contact you in order to complete an attestation. 

Work environment

The Department of Justice has approximately 4,800 employees working from coast to coast. While roughly one half of the departmental staff are lawyers, there are a number of other professionals committed to ensuring a fair, relevant and accessible justice system that reflects Canadian values.

ARTICLING AT THE NATIONAL CAPITAL REGION (OTTAWA/GATINEAU):
***************************
Articling opportunities in 60 + sections and legal services units within which to practice law including:
- Constitutional law
- Criminal Law
- Human Rights Law
- Litigation
- Legislative Services
- International Law
- Legal Services Units such as Transport Canada, Treasury Board Secretariat, Health Canada, RCMP, etc.

The articling term consists of two rotations in various sections (one rotation in a litigation section and one rotation in a non-litigation section).

For additional information regarding Articling within the National Capital Region (Ottawa/Gatineau), please visit the following website: http://www.justice.gc.ca/fra/apd-abt/recru/pea-lep/rcn-ncr.html.

ARTICLING AT THE QUEBEC REGIONAL OFFICE (MONTREAL OFFICE OR OTTAWA SATELLITE OFFICE):
***************************
Articling students from the Barreau du Québec in the Quebec Regional Office will be assigned to either the Civil Litigation Directorate (in Montreal or Ottawa) or the Tax Litigation Directorate.

Varied and challenging articling opportunities in the following areas:

- Litigation in Immigration Law
- Litigation in Commercial Law
- Litigation in Regulatory Law
- Litigation in Tax Law
- Litigation in Aboriginal Law

For additional information regarding Articling within the Quebec Regional Office (Montreal or the satellite office in Ottawa), please visit the following website: http://www.justice.gc.ca/eng/abt-apd/recru/lep-pea/quebec.html.

GENERAL INFORMATION

GREAT NEWS! The Department of Justice is now reimbursing all articling students hired into the Legal Excellence Program for Articling Students, the following fees:

- Application/enrollment fees
- Fees for exams and study materials
- Licensing fees to be an articling student

IN ADDITION! The Department of Justice will also reimburse the Call to the Bar fee to those who will be offered a term or indeterminate position as Counsel immediately following their Call to the Bar ceremony.

Intent of the process

A pool of partially/fully assessed candidates will be created to staff articling positions primarily at the Department of Justice Canada, either in the National Capital Region (Ottawa/Gatineau) and/or within the Quebec regional office (Montreal or the satellite office in Ottawa).

Once initial appointments are made, the pool of qualified candidates could be made available for articling positions within other Federal government organizations (departments, agencies, crown corporations, various tribunals under the umbrella of the Administrative Tribunals Support Service of Canada, etc.).

Appointments resulting from this process will be made under the Justice Canada LP-01 Training and Development Program. This program provides for the progression of participants from LP-00 (articling student) to LP-02 (counsel) over approximately 5 years. As such, it is expected that an initial appointment to this program would ultimately result in an indeterminate non-advertised LP-02 appointment (subject to meeting all program requirements).

Positions to be filled:
Between three (3) and five (5) positions in the Quebec Regional Office (Montreal and Ottawa offices) and six (6) positions in the National Capital Region.

Positions to be filled: Number to be determined

In order to be considered, your application must clearly explain how you meet the following (essential qualifications)

ESSENTIAL QUALIFICATION (Mandatory) - Education

OCCUPATIONAL CERTIFICATION AND EDUCATION
A bachelor of civil law degree

NOTES:
Candidates must be eligibility to article** in accordance with the École du Barreau du Québec at the latest on December 31, 2024. (The articles targeted by this recruitment process will take place in 2024. However, it is possible that they may start earlier, due to operational needs, and students availability).

** Please note that in order to be eligible to article, a candidate would have typically obtained approximately 36 credits recognized in their law degree program, which usually corresponds with a student on their way to complete their second year in the program.

Degree equivalency

If you possess any of the following, your application must also clearly explain how you meet it (other qualifications)

ASSET QUALIFICATION (Optional) -
Education
Bachelor degree (B.A.) or post-graduate studies in a specialized discipline or within an area of law relevant for the position being staffed (for example, relating to tax, business administration, public administration, policy, etc.)

The following will be applied / assessed at a later date (essential for the job)

Various language requirements
ESSENTIAL QUALIFICATIONS (Mandatory) - Linguistic requirements

English or French Essential, or various Bilingual Imperative profiles (for example: BBB/BBB, CCC/CCC, CBB/CBB) depending on the position being staffed:

- Positions in the National Capital Region are English or French essential, or Bilingual Imperative BBB/BBB.

- Positions in the Québec Regional Office in Montréal and Ottawa have Bilingual Imperative CCC/CCC and CBB/CBB profiles.

Information on language requirements

ESSENTIAL QUALIFICATIONS (Mandatory) - Competencies and Abilities

COMPETENCIES:
Demonstrating integrity and respect
Thinking things through
Working effectively with others
Showing initiative and being action-oriented

ABILITIES:
Ability to analyze legal principles
Ability to communicate effectively orally
Ability to communicate effectively in writing

The following may be applied / assessed at a later date (may be needed for the job)

Experience
Experience working in a legal environment at Justice Canada or in a departmental legal services unit.

IMPORTANT: These qualifications are assets and are not required to apply, this is considered additional qualifications which could be beneficial to have.

ASSET QUALIFICATION (Optional)
Knowledge
Knowledge of the Department of Justice Canada and its mandate.

ORGANIZATIONAL NEEDS:
The Department of Justice believes that to be able to effectively serve the public, its workforce needs to reflect the diversity of the Canadian population. Diversity is a great source of strength in driving Canada’s Legal Team in ensuring that Canada’s justice system is as fair, accessible and efficient as possible. The Department is committed to a representative workforce that represents the Canadian public we serve. If you are an Indigenous person, a person with a disability, a member of a racialized group* and/or a woman and are interested in bringing in different perspectives and insights we encourage you to self-declare in this staffing process. This self-declaration information can be factored into departmental strategies and selection decisions to address our commitment to eliminate gaps for these groups.

* Please note that this group is currently designated as members of visible minorities in the Employment Equity Act and the self-declaration form

OPERATIONAL REQUIREMENT:
Candidates may be required to travel occasionally depending on the position being staffed.

Conditions of employment

Secret security clearance - At the time of appointment, candidates must meet the above condition of employment and maintain this condition throughout their employment.

The candidate must be registered to article in accordance with the École du Barreau du Québec at the latest on December 31st, 2024 and must remain so during the articling appointment.

All employees of the core public administration are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and attest to their vaccination status unless accommodated based on a medical contraindication, religion, or another prohibited ground for discrimination as defined under the Canadian Human Rights Act.

Other information

The Public Service of Canada is committed to building a skilled and diverse workforce that reflects the Canadians we serve. We promote employment equity and encourage you to indicate if you belong to one of the designated groups when you apply.

Information on employment equity

EMAIL – IMPORTANT NOTE:

For this selection process, email is the most effective way to communicate with you and for you to be invited for evaluations. It is the responsibility of the candidate to ensure accurate contact information is provided and updated as required. Candidates who apply to selection processes should include an email address that accepts email from unknown users (some email systems block these types of email). Therefore, it is your responsibility to verify your email and/or Public Service Resourcing System (PSRS) account on a regular basis for new communication regarding this selection process.

Acknowledgment of receipt of applications will not be sent; we will contact the selected candidates once the preselection is completed.

ASSESSMENT INFORMATION:

An interview will be part of the assessment process. Furthermore, Second Language Evaluation done through the Public Service Commission could be required depending on the position being staffed: https://www.canada.ca/en/public-service-commission/services/second-language-testing-public-service.html

Any information obtained throughout the selection process, from the time of application to close of process, may be used to evaluate the candidates.

Due to the number of applicants and the strict deadlines, it may be necessary to impose a limit on the number of applicants to be interviewed and proceed to the next step in the selection process (top down selection).

Candidates may be required to meet the asset qualifications or the organizational needs, depending on the requirements of the specific position being staffed.

Other qualifications may be used at the selection decision stage.

Persons are entitled to participate in the appointment process in the official language of their choice.

The Department of Justice encourages persons with priority entitlements to self-refer to our selection process in circumstances where they believe to meet the essential qualifications of the advertised position.

Preference

Preference will be given to veterans first and then to Canadian citizens and permanent residents, with the exception of a job located in Nunavut, where Nunavut Inuit will be appointed first.

Information on the preference to veterans

We thank all those who apply. Only those selected for further consideration will be contacted.