What's your job about?
I am a non-rotating graduate in the Property and Projects team in Newcastle where our team works on commercial and residential property transactions, government tenders, planning and environmental cases and more.
As a graduate, I am fortunate enough to work with multiple partners specialising in different areas of the law. I regularly assist with preparing and negotiating commercial leases, licenses, and contracts for sale and purchase.
I also have had the privilege of assisting with a government tender for a large development project since my first week. This project has enabled me to create meaningful client relationships, which I honestly wasn’t expecting as a graduate. There are aspects of this project that I am responsible for such as the management and maintenance of a data room where the bidders and client interact and negotiate transaction documents prepared by Hall & Wilcox. From this project alone I have been able to develop my skills immensely due to the range of work required.
As a change of pace, I also get to work on Land and Environment Court matters, providing me with e the opportunity to be involved in litigious work, an area of the law I previously would not have expected to enjoy as much as I do.
What's your background?
I grew up in Brisbane and recently moved to Newcastle at the end of 2021 as my partner was posted to Williamtown Air Force base.
I went to an all-girls high school in Brisbane on a music scholarship and was only interested in maths and science. My school didn’t offer legal studies but it has always been something I was interested in, which was the polar opposite of what I had been studying so far. I went with my gut and studied for a 4-year Bachelor of Law (Honours) degree at the Queensland University of Technology.
From the age of 14, I worked in retail until I landed my first position in a plaintiff insurance law firm as a business services assistant in the second year of my degree. I remember being so excited to finally be working in a law firm and received the national “Covid Champion” award as I was a part of a team that came into the office every day during the pandemic to make sure everyone got their mail and court documents were run over to the court every day.
I then went on to work full-time in my final year of study at a conveyancing firm and had carriage of up to 80 sales and purchases at a time. I learnt the importance of time management while juggling full-time study, full-time work, weekly sports, and spending time with friends and family, all while still trying to find some downtime.
I applied for the graduate position in July of 2021 and received an offer as a non-rotating graduate in the Property and Projects team in Newcastle which I started in February 2022.
If my partner had not been posted to Newcastle for work, who knows where I would have ended up? I doubt it would have turned out as perfect as it has so far, being able to move from a city to a relaxed coastal town where I can go for a swim at the beach after work.
Could someone with a different background do your job?
Absolutely! As long as you are ambitious, eager to learn, and have all your basic skills covered such as oral and written communication and time management, you’re good to go. The graduate program is there for you to learn and everyone in your team is there to support you on your journey as a junior lawyer.
What's the coolest thing about your job?
The coolest thing about my job is being able to work on large projects drafting documents and agreements which will then be turned into physical developments. It’s cool knowing there will be a physical reminder of the work I did as a graduate lawyer every time I drive past it.
What are the limitations of your job?
In the Property and Projects team, there is the possibility as a rotating graduate that you won’t have the opportunity to try the different “sub-areas” of the team such as construction, planning and environment, residential conveyancing, commercial property matters and projects. Rotating graduates are typically in the team for 4 months and I have only been able to try different sub-areas recently after being in the team for 10 months. If I had been a rotating graduate, I would have been limited to only the commercial property aspect of the team and wouldn’t have had the opportunity to try planning and environment which I now love.
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