The Law Society of Saskatchewan, in conjunction with the law societies of British Columbia, Manitoba and Alberta and the Nova Scotia Barristers’ Society, is seeking feedback on the types of training and mentoring articling students are receiving, issues related to discrimination or harassment and how prepared articling students feel to practice law in the 21st century.
In 2019, the Law Society of Saskatchewan conducted a similar survey with Alberta and Manitoba and have now developed a revised version to capture additional information that may be relevant in 2024. Given the scope and impact of the information gathered in 2019, it is important to follow up and do a comparative analysis to understand if progress has been made on any key issues and what challenges still need to be addressed. Through two distinct surveys — one targeting articling students and new lawyers, and the other tailored for principals, recruiters and mentors — we aim to identify parallel issues within the articling system from their unique perspectives.
Take the surveys at the links below:
The surveys take approximately 15 – 20 minutes to complete and your survey responses are anonymous and confidential. Please encourage as many articling students, lawyers, principals, mentors and recruiters to complete the survey as possible. The surveys will remain open until Thursday, June 20, 2024.
At the end of the survey, you can enter for a chance to win free registration for a Law Society of Saskatchewan CPD program (excluding multi-day programs).
A third-party consultant will analyze the data for trends and improvements, ensuring findings are not linked to personal identities when presented publicly. A summary of the findings will be shared once finalized.
For more information on the articling survey, read our FAQs below or contact jennifer.houser@lawsociety.sk.ca.
The law societies of Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, Nova Scotia and Saskatchewan are seeking to deepen their understanding of articling experiences in the provinces. Through two distinct surveys — one targeting articling students and new lawyers, and the other tailored for principals, recruiters and mentors — we aim to identify parallel issues from unique perspectives.
The results of this survey will provide insight into the provincial articling systems, highlighting areas that need improvement or change. The survey will assist law societies in making informed decisions about programs and resources, particularly in relation to articling, lawyer competence, and equity, diversity, and inclusion. Ultimately, we hope this will help us to enrich the articling experience and better prepare articling students for the practice of law in the future.
Furthermore, this survey is part of a broader collaboration among the law societies of Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, Nova Scotia and Saskatchewan. The findings will facilitate cross-provincial comparisons, offering valuable insights into how we can collectively enhance the articling experience to meet our shared objectives.
This survey uses largely multiple-choice questions, with no right or wrong answers. It should take approximately 15 – 20 minutes to complete. Topics covered include training adequacy, mentor relationships, preparedness for early practice, positive aspects, challenges and experiences of harassment and discrimination, as defined by the respondent. We also ask for basic demographic and legal training details.
You will have a choice on whether to share details of any experiences. You also have the choice to interrupt or withdraw from the survey at any time. If you choose to withdraw, any data contributed will be promptly discarded and excluded from the survey’s analysis.
After completing the survey, you will be directed to a ‘thank you’ page where respondents from Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba and Saskatchewan have the option to enter their information for a chance to win a free course from the education society/continuing professional development program in their jurisdiction (some exclusions may apply). Please note that this incentive is not available for respondents from Nova Scotia.
It is important to know that if you choose to enter the contest, your information will remain unlinked from your survey responses, ensuring the anonymity and confidentiality of your articling survey answers.
Your survey responses are anonymous and confidential. We analyze data for trends and improvements, ensuring findings are not linked to personal identities when presented publicly. Following the data analysis, we are committed to sharing anonymized summary findings in a report to the profession from each Law Society.
This survey is administered through the Law Society of Alberta’s SurveyMonkey account. All collection, use and disclosure of information by the Law Society will be carried out in accordance with its Privacy Policy. Your use of the SurveyMonkey platform is subject to its Terms of Use and Privacy Notice. We will download all responses collected in connection with our surveys from SurveyMonkey and request the deletion of responses by SurveyMonkey as soon as is reasonably practicable.
The results of this online engagement will help the collaborating law societies to make more informed decisions around programs and resources, especially as they relate to articling, lawyer competence, and equity, diversity and inclusion.
The 2024 survey is also part of a broader collaboration among the five law societies. The findings will facilitate cross-provincial comparisons, offering valuable insights into how we can collectively enhance the articling experience across our jurisdictions. Ultimately, we hope this will help us to enrich the articling experience and better prepare articling students for the practice of law in the future.
For more information on the articling survey, please contact jennifer.houser@lawsociety.sk.ca.