Karen Bustos Ulaje shared this story on LinkedIn and gave CBABC permission to share it here.
Photos by Devera Media
I am very happy to share that on October 20th, 2023, I was officially called to the bar in British Columbia. I was lucky to have my family by my side on that special day.
It has certainly been a long way since I arrived in Canada in the middle of the pandemic to start my LLM at the Peter A. Allard School of Law.
I do not usually share a lot through LinkedIn but I do want to make note of the following:
I almost dropped out of law school because my mental health was in shambles during 2L. My aunt, one of my closest and dearest family members, passed away. It really took a toll on me, so I had to take time off from my law studies (but I still wanted to keep on learning, therefore I signed up for French and German lessons). Once I was back in law school I was very determined to get top grades and make the most of it.
If you are struggling in law school, you are not the only one! It will get better. If needed, take a break. Your well-being is what matters the most.
Being an internationally trained lawyer in Canada comes with many challenges and getting your first legal job can be very difficult, especially if your first language is not English and you come from a civil law jurisdiction. Nevertheless, I would encourage you to take advantage of your differences to stand out in the crowd. I am and always will be proud to have Spanish as my first language, which has proved to be a valuable asset.
I was not hired back after articling. While I know this is not uncommon, as someone on a Post-Graduation Work Permit (PGWP), it was a very stressful situation. However, I decided to take some time off to relax and reflect on where I wanted my career to go. I knew I wanted to focus on privacy law, so I set as my next objective to pass the Certified Information Privacy Professional / Canada exam (which I did in August 2023, yay).
Not getting hired back is hard, but it certainly is not the end of the world (even on a PWGP). You will get a new job, do not despair!
Volunteering is very rewarding! Many people in Canada are not able to access legal services but still have legal issues in their lives. Pro Bono services are extremely important. Recently, I had the opportunity to provide legal information to a Mexican newcomer who did not know what her rights were nor whom to reach out to for help. It felt really good to use my legal training to help someone in need and to provide solace in their first language.
I want to thank the Canadian Bar Association, BC Branch for letting me borrow the beautiful robes I wore on my call ceremony. As a new lawyer working in the non-profit sector, buying a new robe only for my call ceremony would have been a significant cost.
Si son abogados hispanoablantes y están interesados en saber más acerca del proceso de acreditación del NCA, cursar un LLM en Canadá, articling y/o ser llamado a la barra en British Columbia, no duden en contactarme!
Explore RobeBank