Overview

A one-off, year-long professional development program offers recent law graduates an immersive experience designed to build practical skills, enhance professional knowledge, and expand their networks within the legal assistance sector.

This program provides a comprehensive introduction to various aspects of legal practice, community legal education, and law and policy reform.

It will equip you as a junior lawyer with the experience, skills, and connections necessary to thrive in your chosen career, bridging the gap between academic learning and professional success.

Program Structure

• Practical Experience: Gain hands-on experience in a professional setting, providing advice, conducting casework, and engaging in community legal education and law and policy reform.
• Skill Development: Enhance key professional skills, including professional responsibilities in a legal practice, taking instructions and giving practical and strategic advice, and working effectively with interpreters and allied professionals.
• Knowledge Enhancement: Deepen understanding of legal principles, case law, and current issues in the legal assistance sector. Engage with ongoing law and policy reform projects to stay up to date with legislative changes and advocacy strategies.

• Professional Development: Participate in training sessions and workshops (both internal and external) covering a range of topics such as legal research, client advocacy, negotiation, and courtroom procedures to broaden your legal expertise.
• Mentorship: Benefit from personalised guidance and support from your colleagues who are experienced legal professionals.

• Networking Opportunities: Attend networking events, legal conferences, and community outreach programs to build a robust professional network within the legal assistance sector.
• Trauma-Informed Practice: Develop skills in trauma-informed practice, ensuring sensitivity and appropriate responses when working with clients who have experienced trauma. Attend professional debriefing sessions.

Eligibility

• Women who are recent graduates with a law degree, have completed their PLT and have been, or are about to be admitted as a solicitor.
• Meet the selection criteria (attached).

WLS NSW considers being a woman is a genuine occupational qualification for this position under s. 31 of the Anti-Discrimination Act 1977 (NSW).

Selection criteria

1. Eligible to hold a current NSW Practicing Certificate.
2. Understanding of and commitment to social justice issues for women, particularly Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women, and those experiencing economic, social and cultural disadvantage and lack of access to legal services
3. Understanding of cross-cultural issues for women, particularly Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women, experiencing domestic violence, sexual assault or family break down
4. Knowledge of domestic and family violence and sexual violence issues with the commitment to provide sound legal advice in areas of law relevant to the work of Women’s Legal Service NSW, including domestic violence, sexual assault, family law and discrimination.
5. Ability to design and deliver community legal education and engage in law reform and policy development.
6. Demonstrated high level oral and written communication skills.
7. Excellent teamwork and problem solving skills.
8. Demonstrated ability to work in an electronic environment including the use of word processing, email and web browsing tools and the capacity to acquire a working knowledge of the WLS client database system.
9. Ability to travel to rural, regional and remote areas in NSW.

About us

Women’s Legal Service NSW (WLS NSW) advocates for an end to gender-based violence and for gender equality in Australia. As a state-wide specialist women’s legal service, we assist women across NSW to obtain legal advice and representation from our trauma informed, holistic legal practice.

We use our experience gained from working with over one hundred thousand women and our expertise in a feminist analysis of social issues and the law to determine where we can make the most meaningful and impactful interventions that make positive change structurally and systemically. We have invested in the development of our specialist expertise to advocate for structural changes in legislation and policy through law reform and through the provision of education and training to our colleagues in the legal profession, the community services sector and the community.

We advise and represent women in a range of practice areas including discrimination, employment, family law, domestic/family and sexual violence, and victims’ compensation.

The positions are based in our office at Lidcombe and requires attendance across greater Sydney at outreach locations, courts and prisons as well as the ability to travel across NSW.

A position description is attached.