Background checks after a law firm offer

After you accept a summer or articling offer, the firm will usually ask you to complete a background check before you start. For almost everyone, this is a formality. This guide explains what is typically checked, how police record checks work in Ontario, and how it all relates to the Law Society's good character requirement.

What firms commonly check

Practices vary by firm, and many use an outside screening company. Students commonly report some combination of the following (Canadian Law Forum):

• A criminal record check, the most common item.
• Education verification, confirming your degrees and, sometimes, the grades on your transcript.
• Employment verification, confirming the dates and titles on your resume.
• Identity and work eligibility, confirming you can legally work in Canada.
• Credit or public record checks, mainly for roles with financial responsibility. Ask the firm if you are unsure.

Some students also report that screening companies may look at public social media. Assume anything public can be seen.

How police record checks work in Ontario

Ontario's Police Record Checks Reform Act, 2015, in force since November 1, 2018, sets the rules for police record checks across the province (BLG). The key points:

• There are three levels of check: a criminal record check, a criminal record and judicial matters check, and a vulnerable sector check.
• A check cannot be run without your written consent to that specific type of check.
• Results go to you first. They are released to the firm only if you consent after seeing them.
• Non-conviction information is generally not disclosed, except in limited circumstances in a vulnerable sector check.

Law firm student positions typically use the basic criminal record check. Vulnerable sector checks are mainly for roles working with children or vulnerable people.

The most common problem: your own resume

Background checks rarely surface a criminal record. What they do catch is a mismatch between what you wrote and what is verified: a job title stated more grandly than the employer would confirm, dates that are off by several months, or a grade that does not match your transcript.

• Use the job titles your employers actually gave you.
• Check every date range against your records.
• Report grades exactly as they appear on your transcript.
• Make sure the resume you sent each firm matches the one you would send today.

Our Canadian legal resume format guide covers how to present titles and dates clearly and accurately.

How it connects to the good character requirement

Separately from any firm check, the Law Society of Ontario requires every lawyer licensing applicant to be of good character. Your licensing application includes a Good Character Questionnaire where you must self-report conduct or circumstances that may raise an issue.

• Answering "yes" to a question does not automatically mean you will be refused a licence.
• Failing to disclose something that the Law Society later discovers may itself be treated as a false or misleading representation.
• If your circumstances change after you apply, you must update your answers.

If you have something in your history that might come up, be honest with the firm and the Law Society early, and consider getting advice. Candour usually matters more than the underlying issue.

If you have a record or a concern

• Read the Law Society's guidance on the good character requirement before you apply.
• Talk to your career office confidentially. They have seen these situations before.
• Consider a lawyer who advises licensing applicants on good character issues.
• Raise it with the firm before the check comes back, rather than after.