ARTICLING STUDENTS
You will benefit from their experience, mentors, weekly meetings, open door policy, and exposure to all areas of intellectual property law including prosecution and litigation – and still have a life outside of work.
As their focus is exclusively intellectual property law, you will be immersed in this specialized and highly exciting field.
Each year, they offer an articling position for one, and sometimes for two students. Generally, one student performs a rotation with respect to patent work while the other student will do trademark work. Half way through the articling term, the students switch rotations.
Patent and Trade-mark Prosecution / Litigation
Macera & Jarzyna, LLP believes in learning from the ground up. You need to know the basics. As their student, you may be asked to serve and file documents in the Federal Court, the Ontario Court and at the Supreme Court of Canada. You will also receive their famous “Can you find it by yourself?” tour of the Patent and Trade-marks Office. You will learn how to search and prepare a patentability or registrability opinion based on your search.
You will get to draft and prepare applications, affidavits, pleadings, assignments and transfers, all in relation to patents, trademarks, and copyright. Their students have access to numerous precedents and all their professionals are eager to answer your questions. In addition, they also pair you up with a lawyer who is your principal mentor throughout the year.
You also have the opportunity to develop skills in gathering facts for use as evidence in Court, perform legal research for litigation purposes, and write legal memoranda to be incorporated in opinions and factums. You will be encouraged and invited to observe examinations, discoveries, court motions and Trade-mark Opposition Board hearings, especially when you are involved in preparing for the case.
In-House Education
Their students attend weekly Practice Meetings where their professionals present the latest cases from the Courts and any new developments in intellectual property law, both in Canada and abroad. They also have weekly litigation meetings to keep the litigation team informed of new rules, procedures and the progress of their own litigation cases.
Resources and Benefits
You will receive access to Quick Law, trade-mark search databases, reporting services and high speed internet access. Each of their students is provided with a computer running the latest software.
Their articling student salary is comparable to those of major firms in Ottawa. Benefits include a comprehensive medical / dental plan and Phase I Bar Admission fees.
For more information about this program, or to apply, please send your resume, or contact Gary Arkin.
Please note that preference in their selection process is given to students with technical backgrounds such as engineering and/or science.