After completing a Bachelor of Laws and a Bachelor of Criminology at La Trobe University in December 2022, I headed north toward the sunshine state for a sea change and relocated to Brisbane in February 2023 to commence my graduate year at Hall & Wilcox.
Small, but propelled by a strong sense of collegiality, the Brisbane graduate cohort of five flew down to the Melbourne office in the program’s first week to meet our national cohort. Those three days were jam-packed with informative and thoughtful learning and development sessions, giving us a real taste of the firm’s strong culture, which our colleagues embody every day - genuine, forward-thinking and approachable. And it wasn’t all work; plenty of social activities were woven into our schedule so we could bond. Building these authentic and robust relationships with each other truly reflects the firm’s core values, known as Hallmarks, ‘stay true’, ‘be remarkable’, ‘respect respect’, ‘evolve always’ and ‘better together’.
Week two saw us offsite at College of the Law to complete the Practical Legal Training (PLT) ‘intensive week’. You’re fully supported by partners, mentors and the firm as you juggle competing deadlines between client work and PLT assessments.
Bright eyed and bushy tailed, by week three, we were introduced to, and warmly welcomed by, the team of our first rotation. Starting off in Commercial Dispute Resolution (CDR), I predominantly worked on insolvency and restructuring matters and assisted in multiple public interest litigation files. As a snapshot, I drafted various correspondence, prepared written advice to clients and memorandums of advice for counsel and prepared court books ahead of trials. My time in CDR became even more memorable when I found myself flanked by King’s Counsel and Junior Counsel walking into the Federal Court of Australia in Melbourne as an instructing solicitor!
Time flies when you’re having fun, and in the blink of an eye, it was July, marking my second rotation in Property & Projects. What stood out to me was the team’s knack for exceeding client expectations. The team acts for a range of clients whose operations range from local to international across the government, large-scale development and mining and resources sectors. Hall & Wilcox prides itself on offering cross-practice and cross-office service, providing graduates like me with opportunities to collaborate with partners nationwide, gaining valuable insights into niche areas of the law. My tasks included attending property settlements, preparing transactional documents for retail and commercial leasing, as well as drafting deeds for land acquisitions and easement lodgements over parcels of land in Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria.
November rolled around in no time, signalling the start of my last rotation—a unique split between Corporate & Commercial and Pro Bono & Community. While I continued to work on pro bono matters throughout the graduate program, rotating through Pro Bono & Community saw me spend two days per week as a secondee at the LGBTI Legal Service and Caxton Legal Service. Alongside gaining legal experience on pro bono matters, I had the opportunity to make a material difference in the lives of society’s most vulnerable individuals through these community legal centres. In my remaining time, I assisted the Corporate & Commercial team in drafting various transactional, ASX and ASIC documents, as well as advices for companies before their initial public offering.
I had an exceptional graduate experience at Hall & Wilcox; the firm’s point of difference truly is the flexible working nature that’s been embedded into its culture. So much so, after an amazing opportunity presented itself, I recently settled in Melbourne’s CDR team. Living closer to family and friends and being back in this beautiful, lively city — oh, and having access to some of the best drops of coffee one ever did taste — are just a few of the ancillary perks.
Much like my experience as a student at La Trobe’s Law School, Hall & Wilcox supports its lawyers and ensures everyone is set on the path for success. I strongly encourage all La Trobe penultimate law students to consider applying for a clerkship position at Hall & Wilcox.