Keeping-Tabs-Fall-2023

eturn to the office that offers fewer distractions, more social connections and a sense of community,
and ease of collaboration and mentoring.
For this issue of Keeping Tabs, we juxtapose both sides of this debate, championed by two of
TAS’s very own young advocates.
Karlson Leung James Hardy Celina Stoan
VIRTUAL VS. REALITY: THE FUTURE OF WORK
Back to the future? The in-person v.
remote work debate revisited
Karlson Leung (he/him), Ontario Ministry of the Attorney General – Crown Law Office Civil
James Hardy (he/him), Thornton Grout Finnigan LLP
Celina Stoan (she/her), Rogers Partners LLP
Work From Home Optimizes Productivity and Quality of Life
Celina Stoan – Insurance Defence Litigator
When the pandemic hit in March 2020, most
firms sent their staff home to limit the spread
of the virus. Eventually, most of us have begun
to come back to the office. I have been fortunate
enough to be allowed some flexibility in
my “in-office” schedule. I say fortunate, because
I am on the pro “work-from-home” side
of this debate.
Some people have told me they find themselves
to be less productive when working from home. I,
on the other hand, find that I am more productive.
Like many lawyers, I am a social person, so when
I am in the office, I often find myself popping into
a colleague’s office to ask a question and suddenly
it’s half an hour later and we’re discussing the
best places to get Bahn Mi. On the flip side, when
working from home, I often find myself working
through lunch and well past any imaginary 5:00
p.m. end time when I’m wrapped up in something.
I also find that when I work from home, I’ll often
log in on a Sunday to manage emails and get a
head start on the week.
For me, working from home offers many advantages
which an office environment does not. I
don’t have to prepare my lunch in the morning or
purchase lunch out, I save half an hour a day by
not commuting to work which generally results in
an earlier start time and later end time, I am able
to use my daily breaks to walk my dog, and I’m also
able to work (most days) in comfortable clothes
like jogging pants and a sweatshirt. I also find that
working from home enables me to have more regular
contact with my family – not distractions, but
just a shoulder squeeze from my husband as he
passes behind me to go to the kitchen or a nuzzle
from my dog to show me his toy.
That being said, I have maintained that in my
practice, litigation events such as examinations,
mediations, and court appearances should be
done from the office to take advantage of ready
access to colleagues to collaborate with and discuss
thorny issues.
Introduction by Karlson Leung, Crown Counsel
With fall season back in full swing, this time of year brings many familiar perennial themes:
pumpkin spice everything, back to school, and back to work after a restful summer vacation.
Recent months have also seen many firms and employers either roll out new return-to-the-office
policies or remote work arrangements. For many in the legal profession, this fall also brings
back the debate between in-person and hybrid/work-from-home (WFH) arrangements.
Last year, the Young Advocates’ Standing Committee (YASC) heard from a diverse range of
perspectives and lived experiences on the benefits of different work environment arrangements
and what the delivery of legal services should look like in the future. During the 2021-2022 term,
YASC interviewed or surveyed more than 220 young advocates across Canada (those with 10
years of call or less). A link to the full Report can be found here.
With 2024 around the corner and members of the bar having experienced three years of pandemic-induced
remote work, many young advocates have celebrated the new possibilities that
remote work brings – more time with loved ones and pets, less commute time, more productivity,
and more accommodations for personal circumstances – while others have been eager to
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