1. What drew you to this firm?

I had heard that Russell Kennedy had a great culture and a good variety of clients in terms of the types of industries covered and the size of the enterprises involved in those industries.

I was fortunate enough to undertake a summer clerkship in the Workplace Relations, Employment and Safety Team at Russell Kennedy and was very impressed with the friendly team culture and the level of respect given to all team members, regardless of their level of experience. Various practice groups within the firm all interact with each other and provide great access to a range of client contacts and different types of matters.

On a social level the firm was very welcoming, with a range of different activities over lunch and after work for all staff to take part in, including sports (Ride Around the Bay, BRW Triathlon, LIV fun run) and networking functions both within and outside the firm.

2. What areas have you worked in?

During the graduate year, the graduates do four rotations across the following practice groups:

• Property & Development / Corporate & Commercial
• Government, Planning & Environment / Victorian WorkCover Authority
• Public Law, Litigation & Aged Care / Workplace Relations, Employment & Safety
• Dispute Resolution

The focus in each of the rotations is to give the law graduate an idea of the types of work that the particular group specialises in, so that the law graduate gets a range of experiences for different areas of practice. This system of rotation gives you a great taste of the nature of the work within different areas of the firm.

3. What type of work have you done in each of these areas?

I have assisted with briefs, prepared documents for various Tribunals and Courts, instructed in Court and at Tribunals, provided advice to clients, accepted pro bono referrals under supervision from senior practitioners, researched emerging areas of law, prepared newsletter alerts to clients and assisted in the preparation of training materials for client seminars.

4. What clients have you done work for?

A combination of national manufacturing clients, construction clients, aged care facilities, local governments, statutory authorities, SMEs, individuals and not for profit organisations.

5. Have you had much client contact?

There is a large degree of client contact, sometimes under the supervision of a senior practitioner, and other times independent of senior practitioners, depending of course on the type of matter and the particular contact involved.

Junior lawyers are given a great degree of responsibility for their own files, and are responsible in many practice areas for meeting potential clients (such as through the LIV referral scheme) and forging client relationships from the earliest point.

6. Have you been given much responsibility?

Along with the level of client contact comes responsibility, so law graduates are responsible for carrying out certain tasks and responding to the senior practitioners, just as junior lawyers are often responsible for running their own files, with supervision as required from senior practitioners.

There is a strong belief in the ability of junior practitioners to cope with responsibility, and it gives you a great sense of satisfaction to know that you have had a large degree of carriage over a file, whilst still being a relatively junior lawyer.

7. What type of training have you undertaken at the firm?

There is in-house training provided on a range of topics, and across a range of practices. For example, changes to civil procedure rules may trigger a seminar conducted by a litigation practitioner, or changes to equal opportunity legislation may result in a seminar conducted by an employment law practitioner.

In addition to internally provided training, there is also external training provided to law graduates in accordance with the SWT, including Leo Cussen training and LIV training.

Through the Edge Learning and Developlement program, lawyers are encouraged to undertake training relevant to their area of expertise, including public speaking training for use in presentations, and advocacy training. The firm assists all practitioners to meet their CPD requirements by ensuring an appropriate number and spread of seminars are provided throughout the year.

8. What hours do you generally work? What is expected?

Contracted hours are 8.45 am to 5.00 pm. Hours vary throughout the year, and throughout different practices.

As a law graduate, I generally worked 8.15 am to 5.00 pm, although if there was more work on I may work later, and if there was less work on I might come in at 8.45 am.

It is expected that you will work the hours required to get the work out in a timely fashion, however you are not expected to work late simply for the sake of it, the firm is committed to ensuring work/life balance amongst all its staff, including lawyers. It is the nature of some practice groups that advice is required to be provided very quickly, however there are also practice groups with a larger lead time. It really depends on the practitioners you are working for, and the nature of your practice.

9. How have you received feedback about your performance?

As a law graduate you receive formal feedback at the end of each rotation, however you will often receive informal feedback during the course of each rotation from practitioners as you complete tasks for them.

As a junior lawyer, you have annual performance reviews, but there is still a strong process of informal review from other practitioners in your team as you complete work for them.

10. How would you describe the culture and working environment within the firm?

There is a truly open door policy with junior lawyers being encouraged to seek assistance from senior practitioners and their peers. Questions and innovation are encouraged and junior practitioners are welcome to join many of the different groups within the firm, including the pro bono committee, the social club and a variety of special interest working groups.

11. What do you like most about working for the firm?

There is a large degree of variety in the, both in terms of the nature of the work and the types of clients.

In my practice, I may spend my day drafting contracts, preparing advice on legislative changes, considering the merits of a claim from a LIV referral, or appearing in a Court, Tribunal or Commission on behalf of a client.

12. What tips would you give to someone applying to your firm?

Be honest about your strengths and weaknesses and explain what interests you about working in a mid-tier firm and whether there are any specific practice groups that you are interested in.