Emma Davis, right, and her principal, Sharon Clark. Emma  began articling at Herman Kloot and Company in December.
inSide photo by Patrick Kolafa
    
    There is a new face at Herman Kloot and Company as Emma Davis has begun her articling at the firm.
    It has been a long and winding road bringing Emma to the valley. She began with the firm as a student at law on December 29.
    “We are very happy to have her,” said Sharon Clark, who is her principal.
    Davis finished her high school in Okotoks, and her post secondary studies took her to St. Francis of Xavier in Nova Scotia for her undergraduate work. She then went to law school at Bond University in Australia where she graduated in October 2013. Despite her globetrotting route to the valley, it is a good fit.
    “The city is good, but not the atmosphere I’m used to,” she said.
    Davis explains that articling is similar to completing a practicum. Over the next year, she will be immersed in the day to day of the firm and have to work in five different areas of law. She will also be completing her Canadian Centre For Professional Legal Education (CPLED) program.
    Herman Kloot and Company is a general practice firm and this fits Davis’ aspirations.
    “You have the opportunity to help more people and small towns are in need of general practitioners,” she said, adding that she is looking forward to learning family law, as her principal specializes in this field.
    Clark says the practical experience Davis will be gaining will go a long way towards learning to think as a lawyer, and encourages her to observe court as much as she can. She says the key attributes to being a strong lawyer is learning how to understand the issues and know where to go to find the answers.
    Clark says that attraction and retention of lawyers is an issue faced by many communities and firms. This, like many other industries, is facing an aging workforce, and it is encouraging to find a new lawyer interested in this type of law.