College of Law Students’ Small Urban and Rural Committee Annual Rural Firm Tour Held During Access to Justice Week

October 24, 2017

By the student leaders of the College of Law’s “Small Urban and Rural Committee”, Darcy Dumont, Liam Fitz-Gerald, Brady Knight, and Taylor Clark
(Written by Darcy; Edited by Brady, Liam, and Taylor)

On October 20, 2017, the Small Urban and Rural Committee held the annual Rural Firm Tour, travelling to the communities of Melfort, Nipawin, and Tisdale.

Our first stop was Melfort, where we received a tour of the firm Kapoor, Selnes & Klimm from the firm’s associates Brandi Rintoul and Sarah Gryba. Brandi and Sarah detailed their articling experiences in Melfort, the diverse areas of law they practice, answered questions we had and discussed the opportunities that exist for lawyers in their community. Brandi and Sarah also provided us with tours of Court of Queen’s Bench and the Provincial Court, where we had the opportunity to meet Judge Stang. While in Melfort we were also able to visit Eisner Mahon Forsyth, where Trent Forsyth spoke to us. We ended our time in Melfort by returning to Kapoor, Selnes, & Klimm, who provided us with a pizza lunch.

The next stop on our tour was Nipawin. We were greeted at TSN Law by Darcy Neufeld and then walked to the Provincial Court facilities, where we were met by Ronald Saretzky, also from TSN Law. Darcy and Ronald provided us with a tour of the Provincial Court facilities.  We then walked back to TSN Law and received a tour of their office. Ronald and Darcy spoke of the opportunities that exist within rural Saskatchewan and told us what practicing at their firm in Nipawin entails. They detailed their experiences with rural practice and answered all of the questions we had. We were provided with gift bags containing souvenirs from Nipawin as we boarded the bus to head to our final stop.

We then travelled to Burningham Eisner in Tisdale. Kirby Burningham took us on a walking tour of Tisdale and spoke about life in a rural community. Professors Sarah Burningham and Keir Vallance from the College of Law happened to be in Tisdale and joined us for our tour. He showed us the local recreational facilities, and other amenities within the community while speaking to us about what life as a lawyer is like in Tisdale and telling us about his firm. To end our tour, we were treated to supper at “The Sweet Cup” before boarding the bus to travel back to Saskatoon.

The Rural Firm Tour relates to Access to Justice because it promotes the providing of legal services within rural communities. If legal services were not available within these communities, it would be difficult for individuals who live in rural areas to have legal representation. Without the availability of legal representation in rural communities, individuals seeking representation would have to travel a great distance, often to a city such as Saskatoon.    It is important to realize that there is a need for legal services within these rural communities. It was encouraging to hear from all of the lawyers on the tour that practicing in a rural community is a rewarding experience and that rural communities provide valuable career prospects. It is important to realize that small urban centres and towns, such as Melfort, Nipawin, and Tisdale, are great places to establish a successful career and become a part of their community.

The Small Urban and Rural Committee would like to thank Brandi Rintoul, Sarah Gryba, Darcy Neufeld, and Kirby Burningham for organizing the Rural Firm Tour and providing our meals throughout the day. We would also like to thank Judge Stang and Trent Forsyth for taking time to meet with us, as well as Terri Karpish from the Career Office, the CBA Saskatchewan Branch for their support, and Howie who was our chauffeur for the day.