Vancouver

Fasken’s more than 800 lawyers, in ten offices across four continents, are always ready to navigate legal challenges and capitalize on business opportunities for our clients. As a leading international business law and litigation firm, we offer experience and expertise across a number of countries and across a wide range of industries and practice areas to suit the needs of organizations worldwide. Clients rely on us for practical, innovative and cost-effective legal services. We advise corporate clients, government agencies, regulatory authorities, non-profit bodies and individual clients. We solve the most complex business and litigation challenges, providing exceptional value and putting clients at the centre of all we do.

We pride ourselves on a collegial, respectful, team-oriented atmosphere, and recognize that who we work with is as important as what we do. The valued members of our firm share a commitment to serving clients, the profession, and the larger community.

Vancouver Student Program

At Fasken, we seek to attract and retain the best talent and legal minds. Our students and lawyers are supported by a team of equally talented and committed administrative staff who work in a high performing environment that emphasizes collaboration and an entrepreneurial spirit. Our firm culture supports and encourages diversity inclusion and equality, and a commitment to community. We invest in our people to provide a challenging and stimulating place to work and grow.

We are committed to our students and place considerable emphasis on our student program, recognizing that the best way to guarantee our continued success is to recruit, nurture, and provide opportunities for our young lawyers to learn and develop. Our student program provides a learning experience that will challenge you and help you develop skills to bridge the worlds of law school and legal practice. As part of our collaborative approach, we work with you to discuss your goals and objectives and offer the opportunity to gain experience in a variety of areas.

Mentorship is a pillar of our success. Each student is assigned a principal and a mentor to act as a support and resource for students as you become familiar with legal practice. Summer students are also provided with an articled student mentor “buddy” as an additional support to help you navigate the student experience. Our Student Committee, along with the Senior Director and Advisor of Professional Development, check in regularly to ensure that students are receiving interesting work, meaningful experience and valuable feedback.

Open House Firm Tour

Each summer, we host an Open House Firm Tour for all current law students, recent graduates or NCA candidates who are interested in learning more about the student program at Fasken in BC. This event is particularly targeted at students who were not able to attend firm tours organized by their law school. For 2022, the Open House will be virtual. Please click here for more details.

Summer Program

Following second year of law school, our summer program will offer you a learning experience that adds context and practical experience to what you learned in law school. The absence of formal rotations during the summer allows our students to gain experience in a variety of areas, with flexibility to focus on work in a particular area of interest. Summer students are assigned one or two major projects during the summer. You will also have the option to participate in a 3-4 week secondment with a client or at one of our other Fasken offices. Our summer student cohort typically includes 8-10 students.

Our Summer Students

Articling Program

Our goal is to ensure that your articles provide you with the requisite experience and training to ensure your future success as a lawyer. During your articling term, you will become an integral part of our legal team and work on major projects in various areas of law. We meet regularly with individual students to ensure you obtain an experience that matches your career objectives. Our articling program includes four rotations: business; litigation; labour, employment & human rights; and junioring. These rotations are designed to provide you with an opportunity to build core legal skills and gain experience in a variety of areas as you assess your areas of focus for your future career in law.

As a articled student at Fasken, you can expect to:

receive comprehensive training and support towards your professional development and success;
work directly with clients;
gain hands on experience by running small claims files;
draft court documents, including pleadings, motion materials and factums;
attend motions, examinations for discovery and mediations; and
be integrated into files as a valued member of the Fasken legal team.

Our articled student cohort usually includes 8-12 students. Articled student positions are typically filled by returning summer students; however, from time to time, the firm hires additional articled students.

Our Articled Students.

Salary & Benefits

Our students are remunerated at a competitive level in the downtown Vancouver legal market (currently, $80,000 per annum). We pay for your Law Society of British Columbia enrolment fees (including the Professional Legal Training Course (“PLTC”) fees), as well as your salary while attending PLTC. Our articled students receive extended health benefits, and our summer students who return to article with us receive a third year tuition bonus of up to $7,000.

Evaluation & Feedback

Performance evaluations are an important part of ensuring that our students become excellent lawyers. Formal evaluations are completed once during the summer and twice during articles and are designed to give you feedback to help you learn where you are excelling and what areas of your work need improvement. We also help you create a plan for developing your skills in any area that needs additional resources and learning.

Social Events

At Fasken, we have a number of opportunities for students to get to know each other and socialize with other members of the firm in a more casual setting. Our social activities are intended to assist students with their integration into the firm and to foster our open and supportive environment.

In the past years, our students have gone kayaking together, held a lawyer/student soccer game, shared laughs over burgers and beers at our annual Student Committee Summer BBQ, gone to a Canadians "nooner" game at Nat Bailey Stadium, participated in the annual Hoop Law Charity basketball tournament, gone skiing with the VBA ski race in Whistler and participated in in-firm team trivia tournaments and various other events.

Diversity & Inclusion

Fasken is committed to diversity and inclusion in all that we do. A diverse workplace is comprised of individuals with unique backgrounds and identities. At Fasken, we continuously strive to create an equitable environment where individuals are respected and welcomed for who they are. Click here to find out how Fasken Vancouver is working to achieve these goals.

Members of Fasken’s Student Committee go through unconscious bias training with external consultants regularly and take the goal of attracting the most talented, diverse individuals very seriously. As part of this process, interviewers ask standardized questions of all candidates and other measures to ensure a fair and effective process for hiring diverse student candidates. We look for ways to connect with diverse students throughout the year and are always happy to connect with students that have an interest in our programs.

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How to Apply & What to Expect

Fasken adheres to the recruitment guidelines put in place by the Vancouver Bar Association (“VBA”). We are committed to helping students choose whether articling with us is a good fit, without applying undue pressure on students during the student recruitment process. Our aim is to be as transparent as we can and provide students with ample opportunities to connect with members of our firm.

Please refer to the VBA website for application deadlines. For summer student positions, please note your law school will set additional internal deadlines for on-campus interviews.

We request that all applications be submitted through the viRecruit Portal. Applications should include a cover letter, resume, copies of official undergraduate and law school transcripts, as well as a GPA calculation. Upper year course lists and reference letters are optional. We do not require a writing sample.

Applications should be addressed to:

Fasken
Amber Walker, Professional Development Advisor
2900 - 550 Burrard Street
Vancouver, BC V6C 0A3

Please review our resume and interview tips guide here(PDF).

Fasken’s Approach to Student Recruitment

At Fasken, we want you to feel comfortable in your decision to choose us. When we say we follow the VBA guidelines, we mean it. We will not pressure you and we will respect your time. This means, once we know we are not going to move forward with a candidate, we let them know as soon as possible. We believe all students deserve to have a positive recruitment experience and choose the best law firm for them.

We are committed to continually enhancing our recruitment process. The guidelines below give a general overview of the typical student recruitment process; however, the experience can vary from year to year.

Fasken accepts student applications exclusively through the viLaw portal. We aim to have all applications acknowledged within two business days of receipt. If you need to amend your application after it has been submitted, or have questions regarding your application, please email our Professional Development Advisor, Amber Walker.
Fasken sends Intention to Call Emails.
Our interviews are held every hour, on the half hour (i.e., the first interview begins at 8:30am, and the last interview begins at 3:30pm). We are mindful of the pace of interview week, and commit to having your interview wrapped up within 60 minutes.
Our interview format consists of approximately 30 minutes with two lawyers, followed by a meeting with one of our articled students or junior associates, and a tour of our office. For scheduling purposes, please plan to spend just under an hour with us. Follow up meetings are arranged, both as requested by candidates and by our interview teams. Students requesting follow up meetings should do so by contacting our Senior Director and/or Advisor of Professional Development, or any of the lawyers you’ve met during the process.
Our meals include two lawyers and a student candidate. Lunches are at noon, and dinners are at 6:30pm. All restaurants are within a reasonable walking distance of our office. Our goal is for our lunches and dinners to be comfortable and engaging. This includes being mindful in our pairings, which takes time – we will confirm who you will be dining with the day of your meal. If you take a taxi home afterward, we hope you'll send us a receipt so we can reimburse you.
Throughout interview week, we are committed to being as transparent as the VBA guidelines allow. Prior to the designated offer call time set by the Law Society of British Columbia, we will not make advance offers or provide an indication that an offer will be made; however, we are committed to letting students know once they are no longer being considered for an offer.

Student Committee

Our Student Committee is comprised of lawyers across various practice groups. The student recruitment process is managed by our Professional Development team, who are happy to discuss the student program with prospective applicants. Students can also reach out to any member of the Student Committee directly.

Amber Walker, Advisor, Professional Development

awalker@fasken.com

604-631-4886

Alison Cowan, Senior Director, Professional Development

alicowan@fasken.com

604-631-4784

Tariq Ahmed, Chair, Student Committee

tahmed@fasken.com

604-631-4983

Testimonials - Hear from our Current and Former Students

"Fasken has made me feel comfortable and welcome since my first interaction with the firm as a law student. Not having to worry about whether or not I can be myself at work allows me to give my full attention to the interesting and complex legal issues I am tasked with. The practice of law is challenging and demanding, so I feel very fortunate to work at a firm that fosters a collegial and supportive culture." ~Nicole Lacis, 2020/2021 Articled Student

“During my summer articles at Fasken, one theme that I noticed is the Firm’s commitment to supporting students. The Firm consistently sought feedback from the students about our experiences throughout the summer, and actively supported each student to make sure that we were all getting the most out of our summer. Mentoring is also a huge deal at Fasken. Whether it is through the official mentoring program or receiving guidance from the many lawyers who will happily spend time with students, it is very apparent that Fasken is truly committed to mentorship. I am fortunate to have had the opportunity to learn from great mentors and fellow students and I have no doubt that my summer experience provided a solid foundation for the start of my legal career.” ~Peter Cheng, 2020 Summer Student

“In my summer at Fasken, I was given the opportunity to do all sorts of fascinating work. This includes doing research to support high profile cases, working with the legal innovation team, and drafting submissions to an administrative tribunal on behalf of a client. Overall, the experience was as varied as it was stimulating.” ~Nicolas Kasting, 2020 Summer Student

“Shifting from law school to private practice comes with many challenges but the lawyers at Fasken are incredible at providing guidance and support. Fasken’s strong mentorship program is one of the reasons I chose the firm, and even throughout a semi-remote summer the firm has exceeded my expectations! At Fasken, I truly feel like I’m part of a family!” ~Irina Costei, 2020 Summer Student

“Fasken has provided me with invaluable work opportunities. The firm’s approach to training students is hands-on and accommodating to suit students’ interests. During my summer experience, I was able to work on a variety of files and give meaningful input. On my second week of summer articles, I was encouraged to represent an uncontested matter in Chambers at the Supreme Court of British Columbia. A senior partner who was unrelated to the file volunteered to coach, mentor and attend Chambers with me to ensure I felt supported during my first experience in Court. These seemingly small acts of mentoring and caring can make a long-lasting impact on a student’s confidence to embark in a legal career.

The relationships I fostered at Fasken did not come to an end after summering. The Student Committee at Fasken provided me with unwavering support to enhance my professional competencies outside the firm environment. After my summer articles, I continued to receive mentorship to enhance my advocacy skills, attend conferences, and participate in firm events. I was encouraged to pursue a clerkship out-of-province and transition back into the firm. My experience in a big firm has been challenging at times, but also incredibly rewarding thanks to the genuine interest that lawyers and staff take on students.” ~Zaira Petruf, 2018 Summer Student and 2020/2021 Articled Student

“Having a summer experience that started remote due to the COVID-19 pandemic allowed me to see how friendly and supportive everyone at Fasken is. Many lawyers went out of their way to connect with students and provide informal mentorship. The Student Committee worked tirelessly to give us the best remote experience possible and even got us back into the office faster than expected. Over the summer, I was able to work on a wide range of files and tasks. I drafted my first legal brief, did due diligence for corporate/commercial files and wrote numerous research memos. I also had the opportunity to sit in on discoveries and client calls. The lawyers at Fasken are happy to share their practice with students and answer any questions. I look forward to returning next year.” ~Rebecca Barclay Nguinambaye, 2020 Summer Student

“Given the current global context, I knew that my time at Fasken would be different from what I had pictured in my mind. What I didn't know was the extent to which the firm members would make efforts to ensure that students had opportunities to truly engage with the team. I spent my entire summer working remotely but through the efforts of the Student Committee and the lawyers at Fasken I feel as though I was able to connect with my colleagues and feel truly welcome. A global pandemic is not something that any of us expected but I can honestly say that Fasken navigated it in a way that made me feel empowered as a student to make decisions that made sense for me while adapting to wherever this new reality found me.” ~Samuel Geisterfer, 2020 Summer Student

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