How to make the shift towards a career in law

Put popular perceptions of a law career aside – today’s lawyers aren’t just found in courtrooms and legal chambers.

Law graduates are snapping up roles in different workplace settings and it’s this variety that is attracting so many students to consider the RMIT Juris Doctor.

“Undertaking a Juris Doctor opens up a whole lot of different potential careers,” explained Dr Anne Kallies, senior law lecturer and lecturer for the first course in the Juris Doctor program, Introduction to the Australian Legal System and Legal Methods.

“There’s so much flexibility. After completing the JD, which is a general law degree, and your practical legal training, you can get admitted to legal practice. But then you might like to work for an NGO, or you may have always wanted to do something about climate change, or maybe you want to help people in the criminal justice system, or draft contracts relating to international transactions. 

“There are a whole range of different potential career paths you can follow with a JD.” 

Martha, an RMIT Law student sitting at a desk with a laptop and open books

Strong employment opportunities  

The legal industry is bouncing back well in the post-pandemic economy. A survey of 280 law firms for the 2022 Australasian Legal Practice Management Association HR Issues and Salary Survey found 41 per cent of companies reported employment growth in 2021 and 64 per cent expected to increase staff over the next 12 months1.

Wage growth is also positive – up 5.1 per cent in 2021, outstripping annualised national wage inflation of 2.3 per cent for the same year.   

Job-ready legal skills 

The RMIT Juris Doctor has a sharp focus on building real-world skills. Graduates master the finer points of legal research, advocacy, negotiation and how to work with clients before embarking on their law career.

“It’s an ideal course for anyone who wants to be involved in change,” said Dr Kallies.

“If you have a passion for justice and driving social change, [law is] a career where you can move a lot of things and that can be very rewarding,” she said.

Recent trends have seen a demand for lawyers with a knack for teamwork. The ability to collaborate with others, not only lawyers, but those outside of the legal profession, is now a must-have for interdisciplinary teamwork.  

Dr Kallies explained that contemporary legal practice is no longer about flying solo or being competitive.

“In the past you needed to be combative and adversarial,” she said.

“But this doesn’t hold true for the modern lawyer. Now it’s about working together in teams with mediation and other kinds of alternative dispute resolutions on the rise.”

Ideal for advancing or changing careers

Many students come to the Juris Doctor with careers already established in other industries and want to boost their skill sets with a law degree. Alternatively, they’re looking for a complete career change. 

The RMIT Juris Doctor is especially tailored to those working full- or part-time and those with family commitments. Lectures and tutorials are scheduled after 5.30pm and they are also recorded so students can access them online at home. 

“The Juris Doctor is really designed for people with other things in their lives,” Dr Kallies explained.

“Teaching takes place in the evenings and we have a lot of weekend intensives. We also schedule exams during evening periods so people can fit assessment around their lives. 

“We do expect students to attend the scheduled tutorials, but they are recorded as a back-up in case kids are sick or you have urgent work commitments.”

Career directions aplenty

With the RMIT Juris Doctor under their belt, graduates not only gain first-rate problem solving skills, but also practical skills such as interviewing clients, drafting memorandums of advice, negotiation skills, and effective research and professional writing techniques. These skills are highly sought-after in any law career.  

Graduates interested in community service and social justice can steer a law career into advocacy positions across aged care, mental health, disability, law, women’s rights, immigration and child protection services. 

There are a wealth of local, state and federal government roles for legal professionals. This includes in-house legal teams at councils, advisors at state ombudsman offices and lawyers for national regulatory authorities. 

For those interested in corporate law careers, beyond working for the big commercial law firms, the big four accounting firms (PwC, KPMG, EY and Deloitte) have in-house legal teams they need to call on for advice on regulations, audits, tax and international transactions. Likewise, top-tier management firms including Boston Consulting Group and McKinsey and Company need legal advisors to service clients across a range of industries. 

Law graduates are also in demand in small to medium enterprises, particularly growing businesses, to assist them with all things legal – from contracts to intellectual property.

More broadly, many law graduates turn to careers in media thanks to their precise communication skills and research know-how. Others wind up in politics – an area well-suited to those with advocacy and argumentation skills.

Traditional legal roles include judge’s associates, criminal and civil lawyers and barristers, and prosecutors.

Students can take the RMIT Juris Doctor in any direction they choose. The beauty of this course is that students may be transitioning from a different career altogether or connecting to what’s next in the law career they already have.  

Story: Kate Jones

 

1Australasian Legal Practice Management Association HR Issues and Salary Survey. "2022 AU ALPMA Legal Industry HR Issues & Salary Survey Report”, Australasian Legal Practice Management Association, April 2022, Accessed 11/5/2022, https://www.alpma.com.au/resources/2022-au-salary-survey-report

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aboriginal flag
torres strait flag

Acknowledgement of Country

RMIT University acknowledges the people of the Woi wurrung and Boon wurrung language groups of the eastern Kulin Nation on whose unceded lands we conduct the business of the University. RMIT University respectfully acknowledges their Ancestors and Elders, past and present. RMIT also acknowledges the Traditional Custodians and their Ancestors of the lands and waters across Australia where we conduct our business.