legal assistant

law clerk

lawyer

paralegal

ip associate

Gowling WLG

I have been with the Firm for about a year now.  I could tell during my interview that my values aligned with the company and with my Supervisor.  Although the interview process was thorough I think it needed to be in order to find the right person for the role. 

What I like most about working here is that I work with people that are passionate about their area of law and support one another.  The Firm works very hard to provide the best service to our clients, and to support our Staff in the process.  There is always something to look forward to as Staff and I've never had so many paid days off around the holidays. I've always been able to suggest improvements and like how the OMP and GM are both approachable.

Also we get to wear jeans.  Which seems minor but it's nice to have a professional but laid back atmosphere - the lawyers go to events with the staff.  We all work together and can enjoy these activities together - no unnecessary hierarchy and divisions which hasn't always been my experience in other places.

Rated worklife balance a bit lower as it's been busy and I'm new so I'm still settling in and need more time.  The Firm lets us leave early the Friday before long weekends and I have fair hours of work.  Benefits I rated somewhat lower because I find the app that goes with my benefits a bit frustrating as I can't see what is left for coverage for things like massage and chiro.

Gowling WLG is a highly professional and well-structured organization that offers a supportive and collaborative work environment. The team is knowledgeable, approachable, and always willing to guide and share their expertise, which makes learning both practical and meaningful. I appreciated the firm’s strong emphasis on teamwork, clear communication, and maintaining high standards of quality in every task. The work culture encourages responsibility, efficiency, and continuous improvement, allowing individuals to grow both personally and professionally. Gowling WLG also values diversity and inclusion, creating a respectful and welcoming workplace for everyone. The exposure to real-world professional practices and the opportunity to work alongside experienced professionals helped me gain valuable insights and develop confidence in my role. Overall, my experience with Gowling WLG was positive and rewarding, and it is an excellent organization for anyone looking to build strong professional skills while working in a reputable and forward-thinking firm.

Let's face it, most workplaces are not 100% perfect, that is realistic. This firm shows great initiative in providing a forward moving environment, always trying to improve and get staff feedback. 
Day to day, in this role, is pretty manageable. WFH two days a week, but offer flexibility for life situations (IE illness, bad weather etc.)
There are often events in the office that are fun and offer food and drink, with a fun committee that schedules events throughout the year. Decent benefits and a small lifestyle expense account.
For the most part, the workplace culture is positive, with a few exceptions in my experience, but not to do with the management of the firm (BUT - let's also acknowledge that every office has office politics).
They encourage and reward referrals for all levels of new positions, which is great incentive to help find great colleagues to join the firm.
As for salary, and raises, there could be improvement given the way the cost of living is continuously going up, but other than that I would recommend this firm.

I’ve been with Gowling WLG’s Calgary office just under a year now and I can definitely say that it is a great place to work. Management, HR and the other staff are always nice, caring and helpful and the company always shows how much they appreciate their employees. Whether it’s a staff BBQ, a staff appreciation week with little gifts and activities, their great dental and health benefits, a great amount of available PTO or the available sick/mental health days, among other things. You can easily ask questions or find resources to help you with tasks and management is always there to help. They want to ensure that people get to know each other and that you have people to talk to so they do little monthly get togethers with drinks and snacks where you can chat and mingle with other staff.

This place really cares and I have nothing bad to say about it! 

Great group of co-workers and professionals. If you worked hard you were shown appreciation and were always acknowledged for work well done. Each day was different but ran smoothly the majority of the time and when the work day was over you went home to your family and left work at work. I am forever thankful to be given the chance to gain  experience and knowledge through Gowlings. Learning from scratch various programs, time management, client service and gaining responsibility along the way was beneficial for my career. There was always someone there to help you learn and understand whenever you needed it. I hope someone else gets the great experience I had and is appreciative of what it can do for you career.

I worked as an Office Services clerk in the Calgary firm for just over a year and a half. Although this may not be a very long time, I feel like I have known the people there for a decade. From coworkers to legal assistants and supervisors, there is collaboration and conversation that adds to the warmth of the work atmosphere. I can say that this job provided me with a multiplicity of work and life skills and the people were wonderful.

Prides itself on saying it's a great place to work and consistently ranks in the top 100 or 50 companies in the country.  The reality is, this applies more to the staff than to the lawyers.  For them, it's business as usual, Bay Street-style.

This means high targets (but average for Bay Street), an informal emphasis on exceeding targets in order to stay employed (average for Bay Street), poor communications between partners and associates (average for Bay Street), almost no management to speak of (average for Bay Street), minimal mentorship (average for Bay Street).

The people in my department were really great, and if I could say one thing about this firm that was different from my other BigLaw experiences, it would have to be them.

But, it's a Bay Street law firm.

Gowling WLG really is a great place to work.  The lawyers I worked for were wonderful, staff were great and management were fair, approachable and willing to accommodate when needed.  All of the people in the department I was in, lawyers and assistants, worked very well together.  

Advancement opportunity was available.

The firm provided lots of opportunities to socialize with co-workers

My days were busy, productive and I enjoyed the work.

Gowling has a hybrid work arrangement, so I was happy to be able to work part of the week at home.

I very much enjoyed working at Gowling WLG.  I left because I retired.  If not for retirement, I'd happily still be working there.

Gowlings WLG is always busy, typical day at work is busy all day, I learned office rules and regulations, I learned to work with all employees in each department.  Management was always helpful and respectful.  The hardest part of the job was having multiple deadlines due each day and always being successful in meeting all deadlines daily.
The most enjoyable part of the job was that everyone is treated with respect and teamwork was always part of our daily routine.

Because I am a floater a typical day at work depends on where I am placed. This was my first job in the legal field and I have learned a lot in terms of how to open a file, how to do an expense reimbursement. I enjoyed getting to know my co workers here and everyone is really friendly and approachable. The hardest part of the job is the different personalities you might come in contact with (mostly having to do with the lawyers). The most enjoyable part is learning new things.

Top Job Titles	Average salary
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