When I was a young lad, I remember that Mom used to subscribe to The Lawyers Weekly. There would be old issues lying around here and there, and every so often I would pick it up to read. They had this interesting section called “Lawditties” (actually they must have changed the name, as I remember it used to be “Oddities” or something like that) that had these interesting, odd, cases and how their legal take on things. It was often quite amusing. They also had a comic strip that was mildly amusing as well.
Anyhow, this week’s issue has an interesting article in the “Business & Careers” section, on the future of Canadian law schools. It’s an interesting read (though I confess that I didn’t read the full thing). Here is an excerpt from a section entitled, “Like Mother, Like Daughter”:
Like mother, like daughter
Growing up in Toronto, Crystal Chung thought she’d become a surgeon one day.
She was on the path toward medicine while pursuing — and obtaining — an honours undergraduate degree in health sciences from McMaster University in Hamilton in 2009.
Shortly afterward, Chung landed a job as a legal assistant at the Toronto litigation firm, Marvin A. Gorodensky Professional Corp., which is when she reexamined her career choice in medicine once she started seriously thinking about the pressures she would face in constantly dealing with the sick and dying, and of “literally saving lives” — a concern made even more acute in light of a battle her mother waged against non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma and ultimately lost in 2006 at the age of 56.
Her mom, Zenny Chung, was also a lawyer, who ran her own mainly corporate-commercial practice in Toronto.
“Unfortunately, she didn’t even know I was interested in going into law,” says her daughter, now a first-year student at Osgoode Hall Law School.
But Crystal Chung would have made her mother proud.
She sent applications to every Ontario law school except for one, as well as to the Schulich School of Law at Dalhousie University in Halifax. All accepted her. Chung chose to attend Osgoode Hall at York University in her hometown.
“Osgoode has a prestigious reputation, is very interdisciplinary and has a very good curriculum. In addition to teaching fundamental law, it also provides a great clinical education within a legal setting.
“And, they were generous in offering me some financial support.”
Chung received The Honourable William G.C. Howland Award of Excellence Entrance Scholarship worth $10,000 given to students with an A- average or better. It will cover more than half of the $17,631 in basic tuition during her first year — and, if she maintains an academic standing in the top 20 per cent of the class, Chung will continue to receive the scholarship and the $10,000 annually for her remaining two years of law school.
Certainly, the pressure is on to get good grades beyond just the money.
By next year, she will begin applying for articling positions following her graduation a year later, and law firms will look at how she performed in school this year. Furthermore, 23-year-old Chung will be competing for an articling spot with many colleagues from her class of about 290 students, some of whom have Ph.D.s and others who are in their 40s.
At this point, Chung is considering different areas of law — from medical malpractice to family law, and perhaps intellectual property — when she eventually embarks on her career.
“Over time, I’m hoping to weed out fields that I don’t like and then find some different areas I’m interested in and never considered.”
She’s not sure how her mother would have reacted to her current academic pursuit — although it’s clear the apple hasn’t fallen far from the tree.
“Like me, she was very inquisitive, liked to resolve conflicts, and enjoyed debating and thinking about issues,” says Chung.
“Obviously, it would be a huge help if she were to guide me and to hold my hand along the way — but I like to think I make my own decisions.
“But the way I saw her as a lawyer is inspiring to me.”
Wow, she’s famous! Awesome article. Congrats, sis!
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