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CCCA_V4No1_Secondments-FIN.qxd:CCCA_V1No1_DriversSeat-FIN.qxd 2/3/10 11:59 AM Page 20 Cover Lisa Brost Associate, McMillan LLP [left] Carla Swansburg Senior Counsel, Royal Bank of Canada [right] long and chock full of legalese, they have to distill it and trans- variety of files and to solicit feedback to ensure the secondment late it… What they really want is a synopsis.” is meeting its goals. Furthermore,going in-house gaveWells an appreciation of the The benefits for General Motors Canada are twofold,Campin pressures in-house counsel must face.“I worked on one file that adds.“We get assistance from bright law students fresh out of law had a vast number of undertakings. Trying to convince plant school,who are full of ideas… when they go back to their firms, managers and engineers that the information was required we know someone who we can immediately call for assistance.” urgently wasn’t easy… I learned that I had to build in time for employees to fulfil requests and I couldn’t expect the informa- Lisa Brost, Associate, McMillan tion to be at their fingertips.” Carla Swansburg, Senior Counsel, Royal Bank of Canada In addition,Wells’s billing practices have changed because of Carla Swansburg, senior counsel at the Royal Bank of Canada the time he spent at General Motors.“I didn’t realize how much has used secondments to fill personnel gaps and parental leaves. scrutiny was given to legal bills.They go through bills line-by- When she needed a lawyer to cover a maternity leave, she asked line.You can’t be vague.You must set out all work done on a file Lisa Brost an associate in McMillan’s litigation group, whether in detail and be efficient.” she would be interested in participating in a secondment. Brost, Campin says the articling year is an ideal chance for students- who had worked with RBC’s legal team for years, didn’t hesi- at-law to try out a wide range of practice areas and go on sec- tate. “It was an amazing opportunity to deepen relationships and ondments.The key to running a successful secondment program develop new relationships,” she says. MARK STEGEL for articling students, he says, is to provide interesting work on a Brost says she gained a better appreciation of the breadth of 20 CCCA Canadian Corporate Counsel Association SPRING 2010