Walking Along the Career Path

            The December break has come and gone as another semester of UBC law is beginning to roll along. The holidays were a welcome break from the grind of law school and have hopefully proved rejuvenating for all. In this week’s blog posting, I’d like to discuss some advice I’ve received recently from a number of practitioners in the field of mediation. This post will briefly explore their advice and my reflection on how to turn it into an actionable plan.

            What area of law are you thinking of practicing? Throughout my experience in law school this question has been consistently asked by everyone; friends, family, classmates, legal professionals, professors and of course career counsellors. When addressing this question before I began law school, I would hesitantly reply that the field of mediation held a lot of interest. As my legal education continues to unfold I have become more and more convinced that this is the right field for me.

            Before beginning school, I’d done some research on my own but had very little practical exposure to the field. I decided to conduct some informational interviews with mediators on the front lines. Consistently, each person I spoke strongly highly of the experiential learning they acquired as they progressed in their legal careers. Many of the mediators that I spoke with stated that the most valuable experiences that contributed to building successful mediation practices, was their time spent litigating or practicing the law outside of mediation. The foundations of a successful mediation practice, according to these individuals, are built through an intimate knowledge of the law and its principles.

            In addition to enhancing their legal knowledge, their day-to-day activities included negotiating settlements and learning to read people’s emotion. Both have proved to be essential as they transitioned towards full-time mediation work. Therefore, it is important to realize that as a new graduate or student, it may be slightly unrealistic to expect to start out in mediation.

            There are however, a number of opportunities to gain exposure to mediation, while still simultaneously pursuing a legal education. UBC is offering a mediation clinic in which students are given an opportunity to co-mediate four disputes in small claims court. The clinic is spread out across two semesters, one of which provides the theoretical background for mediation and the other involves a practicum providing a more hands on experience. This fusion of the practical and theoretical provides exactly the kind of experience that practitioners were advocating for.

            Another common piece of advice that I received was that there are inherent traits that make a successful mediator. An ability to facilitate discussion, relate with people, and an ability to understand complex human emotion were all mentioned as valuable traits for any mediator. It is important for somebody contemplating mediation to undergo serious reflection and to decide whether your inherent qualities suit the profession. In drawing from my own personal experiences, even as the youngest of four siblings I was often the one to resolve matters and to help restore harmony in my family. I acted as a bridge between some of the more polarized figures within the familial unit. In order to maintain credibility and to avoid a pummeling at the hands of my larger siblings, I tried to maintain an impression of impartiality. I would consistently try to frame issues and dilemmas in a different manner so as to bring about a sense of resolution to them.

            If you’re struggling to map out your career path or are simply seeking guidance, I highly recommended talking with practitioners. If you are able to network and find mediators who are willing to sit down and speak with you they are an invaluable source of information. The CORE speaker series events provide excellent opportunities to mix and mingle with exactly these types of people. For more information on these events you can visit http://tiny.cc/ifwhv or contact us directly at 604-827-5024 or coreclinic@hotmail.com.