“Over the years I’ve had the pleasure of supervising several Queen’s Law interns and I am always so impressed with the quality of their legal work and the ease with which they integrate into our legal services team.” Those are the words of Shelley Cruise, Law’99, legal counsel with the Global Affairs Canada Legal Services Unit of the Department of Justice Canada. “In my experience, the interns add a lot of value to our office not only through their legal contributions but also through their enthusiasm and dedication.”

Each year, about 15 Queen’s Law students are selected to participate in the school’s Federal Government Internship program, working one day a week for a 12-week term in Ottawa at a Government of Canada office that provides legal services. They develop legal research and communication skills through preparing and presenting legal opinions, briefing notes, policy memoranda and/or litigation reports. Upon completion – and a passing grade from the supervising lawyer – the interns receive academic credit towards their JD degrees. 

Tristan Mcleod, Law’19, who worked with the Trade Law Bureau in the fall 2018 term, says such legal internships are invaluable to the professional development of law students. “These practical experiences better prepare students for life in the legal profession by allowing us to develop and apply important legal skills to real-world issues,” he says. “I strongly encourage students to take advantage of the variety of experiential opportunities offered at Queen’s Law!”

For Jing Bo Yu, Law’19, interning with the Department of Finance Canada’s Tax Counsel Division, was “a profoundly enriching experience” and he highly recommends the program. “I found a passion for working in the public sector and talked about some of my experiences in articling interviews,” he says. “I believe this demonstrated interest along with the legal skills that I gained during the internship set me apart from other candidates and led to me securing an articling position in the public sector.”
 
The files he worked on often involved policy issues distinctive to government. “This gave me a better idea of the kind of legal work the public sector engages in and their unique approach and perspective on legal work.”

For Shannon Sturgeon, Law’20, the best part of interning with the Public Service Commission of Canada’s Central Agencies Portfolio was applying the skills she learned in school to actual client matters. “My supervisor involved me in as many matters as possible, giving me the opportunity to see a broad range of what the department does, from contract law research to employment law appeals at the Federal Court of Canada.”

Russell Durward, Law’19, says he had “an amazing experience” working with Global Affairs Canada Legal Services. “I learnt effective research techniques for varying legal issues, ranging from simply doing case law research on Westlaw, to using LegisInfo and looking through proposed bills and committee discussions. These are practical skills that will help me once I become a lawyer.”

Sierra MacDonald, Law’19, says she was surprised by the variety of work she was able to do as an intern with the Centre for Information and Privacy. Her research for six assignments ranged from international, foreign and comparative law, to legislative interpretation and immigration law. “Overall, I became very interested in learning the intricacies of information and privacy law across a variety of issues and subject areas,” she says. “This internship was an excellent opportunity to learn new areas of law and to build and develop my research skills in a real environment.”

Josef Gallant, Law’19, spent about 100 hours in the fall interning with the DOJ’s Family, Children and Youth Section. During that time, he conducted policy-based research into federal, territorial, provincial and foreign laws. He also researched academic commentary, media reports and case law as he compared laws from different provinces and examined foreign legal systems. “My internship provided the opportunity to sharpen skills I learned in school as well as develop new ones performing obscure research tasks,” he says. “I found policy-oriented research tasks to be intrinsically rewarding and meaningful because they often centre around reform to accommodate changing social values and concerns. 

“I would recommend the Federal Government Internship program to any student interested in working in public service,” Gallant continues. “It provides valuable insight into performing legal policy work, as well as a window into the dynamics of working in a federal government office.” 

Placement supervisor Shelley Cruise would certainly recommend Queen’s Law students. “If the Queen’s Law interns we’ve hosted are any indication, the future of law is in great hands and I hope that at least some of them consider a career with Canada’s legal team at the Department of Justice.”