Salary And Benefits
Cassels pays a market-competitive salary in each of our Toronto, Vancouver and Calgary offices. In addition, our articling students also receive:
licensing and training costs
dental and prescription coverage
extended health and life insurance
two weeks’ paid vacation
wellness allowance
Professional Development
Law students, like lawyers, encounter challenges throughout their careers. We are committed to making our students’ experiences at Cassels as rewarding as possible. Students from all three of our offices come together in Toronto for the first week of both the summer and articling program. During this week, we review everything they need to know to be successful at Cassels. This includes all of the resources available to them, how to use our systems, and an introduction to the Senior Leadership Team.
Throughout the summer and articling terms, students participate in weekly “lunch and learn” sessions. These sessions range in terms of coverage; some of them cover substantive areas of law, while others focus on practice management, “soft” skills or wellness. Students are also encouraged to request customized, one-on-one professional educational assistance to meet their needs. Our real-time responsive system recognizes that individuals have different professional development requirements and aspirations. We are committed to helping our students address those needs every step of the way.
We recognize that professional development does not stop once a law student becomes a lawyer. Our Professional Resources team offers a comprehensive Continuing Professional Developing curriculum, and students are encouraged to attend any programs they are interested in.
Student Wellness Program
Cassels has a comprehensive Wellness Program that addresses the mental and physical well-being of law students and lawyers by providing resources, services, training and support on an ongoing basis. We recognize that a positive and healthy work environment fosters positive, healthy law students and lawyers. To complement our firm-wide initiative, Cassels has a custom-designed wellness program that addresses the unique challenges of being a law student.
These initiatives include:
- Building resiliency and skills for long-term career success
- Mindfulness and meditation programming
- Outdoor, physical activities including: cycling/spinning, mountain climbing, dodge ball and beach volleyball
Students are encouraged to let their mentors (both formal and informal) and our Student Committee members know about the types of activities and sessions they would be most interested in and that they would find most useful. We know that one size definitely does not fit all, and we are committed to fostering a safe and supportive environment in which all of our students may thrive.
FAQ
Kim Bonnar, Chief Professional Resources Officer, answers your frequently asked questions on the Cassels student programs:
What kind of salary and benefits does Cassels offer its summer and articling students?
Cassels pays a market-competitive salary in each of our Toronto, Vancouver and Calgary offices. In addition, our articling students receive: licensing costs for the LSO (Toronto), PLTC (Vancouver), CPLED (Calgary), depending on which office they are in; dental and prescription coverage; extended health and life insurance; two weeks’ paid vacation; and a fitness allowance.
Do students receive ongoing training?
Yes, in addition to our initial intensive orientation week for both summer and articling students, we have weekly “lunch and learn” sessions throughout the summer and articling terms. These sessions range in terms of coverage; some of them are substantive, while others focus on practice management, “soft” skills or wellness. Students are also encouraged to attend any of the Continuing Professional Developing programming that we offer our lawyers and that they are interested in.