How to Gain Legal Experience
Gaining legal work experience may seem daunting, but there are several ways you can gain legal experience as a law student. Getting your foot in the door doesn’t have to be stressful. It is also important not to discount your non-legal experience when applying for legal positions. Many law firms value the transferable skills that students gain in their roles in retail and hospitality.
Paralegal or Legal Assistant roles
As law students, paralegal and legal assistant roles are a stepping stone to beginning and developing your legal career. Many law firms advertise for such roles on Seek, Indeed or their own website. Such work is a great way to gain practical experience by conducting legal research and assisting lawyers with a wide range of work.
Volunteering
Volunteering at community legal centres or not for profit organisations is a great way to gain exposure to different areas of the law. This is also a good opportunity to engage in meaningful and rewarding work while you apply legal skills and knowledge that you learn at university. Volunteering allows you to develop technical legal skills as you learn how the law operates in practice. You can also gain valuable experience in dealing with clients from diverse backgrounds with varying circumstances. Most community legal centres look for student volunteers throughout the year, so keep an eye out on their websites or LinkedIn profiles to know when these positions are advertised. Some organisations you can look at include the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre and Eastern Community Legal Centre.
Another way to look for legal positions as a student is to keep an eye out on LinkedIn for job openings. Once you have established your personal LinkedIn profile and built a network by connecting with people and organisations that align with your interests, you can be notified of job opportunities based on your profile. Additionally, the more you engage with organisations and firms’ posts on LinkedIn, the greater insight you can gain as to whether they are hiring for any positions that may be relevant to you. This is also a great way to reach out to legal professionals and engage in consistent networking, as they may be able to provide you with guidance in securing a legal position. We recommend following the Lawtitude LinkedIn page to get frequent tips on how to navigate LinkedIn effectively and receive updates about our upcoming employability workshop.
Networking
If you have friends or family that already have jobs within the legal industry, we suggest reaching out to them. Those working in the legal industry may have connections that would be of value to you and is a good way to keep in touch with professionals in the industry. While it may not instantly land you a legal role, these connections will always be useful at any stage of your career. Networking events are also a great opportunity to meet other law students and professionals. Attending events run by LSS or external organisations can allow you to listen to like-minded people and gain insight into their career progressions. When attending such events, it is super beneficial to connect with people you meet on LinkedIn so you can regularly keep in touch.
Placement
Law students in their later years of university can also enrol in law electives that allow you to take on work involving practical legal experience?. This is the perfect opportunity to gain legal experience while also getting university credit. More specifically, Monash Law has a wide range of partner organisations that you can choose from, including opportunities at law firms, in-house legal, courts and community legal centres. This can allow you to explore different areas of the law that you might be interested in or curious about, while developing skills that will benefit your future career.
Clerkships
Students in their penultimate or final year can apply for clerkships at commercial law firms. The MonashLSS Clerkship Guide is a great resource to look at to identify which firms interest you, allowing you to gain a better understanding of each firms’ recruitment process. Clerkships can teach you what working at a commercial law firm is like,where you canlearn about the broad practice areas that such firms specialise in.
Competitions
Competitions such as mooting and negotiations are an excellent way to develop important legal skills such as research and communication skills. Signing up for such competitions is especially rewarding as it mirrors proceedings and transactions that you will likely experience in your future career. The Monash LSS runs competitions throughout the year and are open for all law students, so this is great for students across all years. We encourage you to keep an eye on the LSS’ socials for information and updates on these various competitions.