Seven Sisters

London has its “magic circle” and new york has its “white-shoe” firms. Here, we have the “seven sisters” — a term popularized by Lexpert Magazine founder John black a decade ago, where he anointed Blakes, Davies, Goodmans, McCarthys, Osler, Stikemans and Torys as the big players. you should know who they are, but also know who else may be a candidate for a little sibling rivalry.

Slavies

One of our lovely sisters found herself in hot water earlier this year when students expressed their outrage over a Davies ad that ran in student newspapers where the “d” was crossed out and replaced with an “sl” — slavies being the hard- driving firm’s infamous nickname. Was the ad self- deprecating and funny? or did it trivialize forced labour? decide for yourself: we’re just here to keep you informed.

Burtynsky

Edward Burtynsky’s gigantic, crystal-clear photographs of industry can be found on the client floors of many firms. Osler was among the first firms in Canada to start collecting contemporary Canadian art — ditching the maps, portraits and ships — and most of the other major firms have followed along. Burtynsky is a favourite. Keep an eye out for his work at Bennett Jones, McCarthys, McMillan, Torys and others.

PLTC

In response to the much-hyped articling crisis, Ontario is taking a cue from B.C., where you have to take one of these hands-on, practice-driven courses to become a qualified lawyer. it’s being proposed that students who can’t find an articling position will be required to take a professional legal training course (PLTC), plus complete a volunteer stint at a firm, before they can be called to the bar.