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    Lateral Law Report

    Insights and data · Updated October 13, 2026

    The numbers behind Canadian legal careers.

    Pay scales, hireback, and recruit dates, gathered from the original sources and dated so you know how current they are.

    This page collects the figures we track across Lateral Law Report's guides for lawyers in private practice. Every number links to where it came from, and each section links to the full guide. To see how we choose and check sources, read our methodology.

    01Pay benchmarks

    What large firms pay associates.

    First-year base, large Toronto firms
    $135k
    First-year base, large Toronto firms
    Seventh-year base, large Toronto firms
    $275k
    Seventh-year base, large Toronto firms
    Partner, counsel, and team moves tracked since September
    32
    Partner, counsel, and team moves tracked since September
    Weekly median for Toronto summer and articling students
    $1,900
    Weekly median for Toronto summer and articling students
    Base salary by year of call. Toronto from the Globe and Mail and firm reports. Student median from NALP.
    Year of callToronto (CAD)
    1st year$135,000
    2nd year$155,000
    3rd year$180,000
    4th year$210,000
    5th year$232,500
    6th year$252,500
    7th year$275,000
    1. 01Bay Street salary scaleFirst-year to senior associate pay at large Toronto firms.
    2. 02Articling and summer student salariesWhat Ontario articling and summer students are paid.
    3. 03Lawyer salaries in CanadaLawyer pay by province, practice setting, and experience.
    4. 04Law clerk and paralegal salariesOntario law clerk and paralegal pay from Job Bank data.
    5. 05Legal assistant salariesLegal assistant pay across Canada by province.
    02Firm benchmark

    Seven Sisters hireback, 2026.

    How many articling students each firm kept as associates, after opt-outs are removed.
    From Precedent's 2026 Bay Street hireback ranking. The rate excludes students who opted out.
    FirmHired backRate
    Torys20 of 20
    100%
    Goodmans12 of 12
    100%
    McCarthy Tétrault17 of 19
    100%
    Stikeman Elliott19 of 21
    100%
    Blakes24 of 28
    96%
    Osler23 of 29
    92%
    Davies17 of 20
    85%

    Compare the seven programs side by side

    03Recruit calendar

    The 2026–27 Toronto recruit dates.

    Toronto 2L call day
    Friday, October 23, 2026, from 8:00 a.m.
    2L in-firm interviews
    Monday, November 2 to Wednesday, November 4, 2026
    2L offer day
    Wednesday, November 4, 2026, from 5:00 p.m.
    1L application deadline
    Wednesday, January 20, 2027
    1L call day
    Tuesday, February 2, 2027
    1L offer day
    Thursday, February 18, 2027, from 5:00 p.m.

    Toronto time, from the Law Society of Ontario's recruitment procedures.

    Add all dates to your calendar
    04Moving markets

    Toronto, Vancouver, and Calgary.

    1. 01Partner moves trackerPartner, counsel, and team moves between Canadian law firms, from public announcements, updated weekly.
    2. 02Toronto legal marketBay Street pay, Job Bank wages, Ontario's large firms, and the 2026 recruit.
    3. 03Vancouver legal marketBC lawyer wages, reported large-firm pay, Vancouver firms, and the 2026 recruit.
    4. 04Calgary legal marketAlberta lawyer wages, reported large-firm pay, Calgary firms, and the 2026 recruit.