Evaluation For Law Students And Summer Associates: Authentic Feedback In Real Time

This is the last, my retirement swan song actually, of what has developed over time into a three-part series on basic experiential summer associate and articling student programming. [See "Business Development for Law Students and Summer Associates: A Free Market ≠ Free-for-All" (April 2011, NALP Bulletin) and "Docketing for Law Students and Summer Associates: The Bucks Starts Here" (April 2012, NALP Bulletin) for the earlier two parts.]

I had planned to write this final article on practical time management techniques that students need to incorporate into their daily routine if they want to have a life, as well as a legal practice, as they go forward. Then I recently heard Kaitlin, one of our 2012 summer students (called summer associates in the U.S.), say something that really grabbed my attention to a group of touring law school students clustered around her: "The best thing about my Gowlings summer was that I could know how I was doing...anytime...all the time."