Supervised by experienced lawyers, you will gain legal knowledge and develop legal and professional skills. Client work will involve meeting with and preparing advice for clients who would not otherwise be able to afford legal assistance. In this way, you will improve access to justice for vulnerable and disadvantaged members of the local WA community who are not otherwise eligible to receive legal assistance.
There will be potential opportunities to develop your advocacy training and experience by representing clients at the mediation/conciliation of their matter, as well as working with barristers on pro-bono and public interest matters.
You will also contribute to access to justice and develop your knowledge of non-litigious strategies for change by completing a project designed to assist a community legal centre or charitable organisation.
The benefits of being a postgraduate clinic student include:
- Experience: you will have primary, supervised responsibility for meeting with clients and taking instructions; drafting legal advice and documents; and carrying out legal research.
- Developing expertise: you will start to develop expertise in one or more discrete areas of the law, focusing on the areas of most interest to you.
- Contact with the legal profession: – you will be based in the CBD, learning by working with experienced lawyers within the Curtin Law School and in the wider legal profession, thereby developing meaningful contacts in the profession.
