Graduate Opportunities

The law and protection services industry work in New Zealand includes the courts, police and other agencies involved in enforcing and administering laws or protecting people, property or resources. Major employers in the sector include: New Zealand Police, Department of Corrections, Ministry of Justice, and other government agencies involved with immigration, customs and quarantine work.

Law graduates have many career options, both within the legal profession and outside it. The New Zealand court structure includes the Supreme Court, Court of Appeal, High Court, 63 district courts and a number of courts with specialist functions, such as environment, Maori Land and employment. There are also more than 100 tribunals, authorities and related boards.

Many graduates start their career working for an established firm or legal practice. Barristers work mainly in courts or tribunals, presenting evidence, making submissions on behalf of their clients and representing their interests in court proceedings. Solicitors provide general legal advice over a range of specialised areas, including the buying and selling of property, drafting wills, arranging finance, tax and company legalities, and property matters.

The New Zealand Parliament and many government agencies, including the Crown Law Office, the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, recruit law graduates for their specific expertise and general analytical skills.

Private sector companies and individuals offer a range of security, protection or investigation services and products. They work within professional guidelines and legal constraints, and are often used in preventative roles.

To practice as a lawyer you need to:

• complete a Bachelor of Laws degree
• complete a practical professional legal studies course
• be admitted to the High Court of New Zealand as a barrister and solicitor
• apply for and hold a current practising certificate issue by a district law society (renewed annually).

Ongoing training is also vital in legal occupations because of the evolving nature of the law. Lawyers, judges and other legal workers such as legal executives are expected to continue learning throughout their careers.

Due to the increase in computer-based crime and the integration of technology into many aspects of legal and protection processes, there are also opportunities for IT and computing graduates in this sector.

There are a range of roles which draw on a legal background and training, such as legal researcher, law librarian, legal secretary, case manager and legal editor. Further specialist training may be desirable for some of these roles.

Outlook

There are also more diverse career opportunities for lawyers due to the growing complexity of the legal system and the need for specialists. Opportunities for New Zealand lawyers to work overseas are often profiled in legal publications such as NZ Lawyer.

Industry at a glance:

• 10,300 lawyers nationally
• 60% male lawyers.

*Except where indicated, information and statistics for this profile drawn from the following sources: from www.careers.govt.nz; “Career View: Law”, published by Career Development and Employment, Victoria University of Wellington; 2006 New Zealand Census; New Zealand Yearbook 2006; Statistics New Zealand; Department of Corrections website; and JETI -- the Department of Labour’s Job and Tertiary Education Tool.