Herbert Smith Freehills
2022 Legal Operations Graduate Programme (Jan 2022)
Sydney, Melbourne, Melbourne or Sydney
Opportunity expired
Opportunity details
- Graduate Job or Program
- AUD 60,000 - 70,000 / Year
- 2 vacancies
- Apply by 30 Sep 2021
- Start date 15 Jan 2022
Our Legal Operations team works with our clients to help them find smarter ways to deliver legal services and supports our own lawyers to achieve the same goals. Join one of the fastest-growing areas in the legal services sector. Our focus is on the future and we want you to be part of it
We have developed a bespoke training course that is specifically for Legal Operations professionals and will equip you to assimilate basic concepts and learn the practical application and skills needed across all the different elements of our work. Additionally, the course will prepare you for the nature of the legal practice the firm conducts and the markets in which we and our clients operate, so you understand the Legal Operations context.
Over the course of the eighteen-month graduate training programme you will gain experience in each of three different core areas within Legal Operations. You will spend between four and five months in each area receiving more hands-on, practical training and completing in-team assignments. You will work with experienced professionals in the different teams on client and internal matters, developing skills and contributing your ideas. You will be assigned a mentor to support your development and you will have continuous development and training opportunities throughout the programme. In the end, you will have the opportunity for a number of weeks to work in another team outside Legal Operations in the firm, whether in the practice or the wider business or on secondment with a client in a Legal Operations role.
Applications are open from graduates in any discipline. Please follow the link below for information on how to apply and what you can expect in our selection process. The deadline for submissions this year is 30 September 2021. You'll begin with us in January 2022.
Hiring criteria
- No experience required
- Australian Work Visa (All Other) +more
- Business & Management +more
- Bachelor or higher
Reviews
My role has, essentially, been to act as a sponge. Take in as much about the culture of the team and the firm as I do about the law and the work. My day to day responsibilities would include managing email correspondence and document management systems, doing drafting or proofing work, and helping out other Brisbane and interstate teams that are stretched with time intensive work in things like document review.
I am responsible as the junior lawyer on a range of matters that I have worked on since I started the graduate program. This allows me to develop client relationships and familiarity with the subject matter. My tasks include emailing clients updates, responding to client queries, amending contracts based on client or partner feedback and attending client meetings. As I have progressed in the graduate program, my responsibilities have increased at a rate that challenges me and allows me to grow.
Graduate role - tasks range from having a first go at reviewing and drafting documents, preparing pitch proposals to potential clients and assisting the team with document management when closing a deal.
About the employer
Herbert Smith Freehills
4.5
1,000 - 50,000 employees
Law
A leading global law firm delivering high-profile work that matters to our clients. We have the ambition to do things differently.
Pros and cons of working at Herbert Smith Freehills
Pros
Learning from the best. Everyone is super smart and invested in my career development. I have felt incredibly supported from day 1.
HSF has great people, great work, and great experience for anyone who comes here, especially for a graduate like myself.
The firm is really flexible with its work-from-home policy and benefits for employees who are required to work late.
The firm's culture is top-notch across the board, everyone from senior lawyers and partners to support staff are so willing to help each other.
The training and development at HSF is unmatched. Hands-on in a challenging environment where you have every opportunity to learn and grow.
Cons
Same as every top-tier firm, if there is a big deal you can be working longer hours. But the sense of achievement provides a lot of satisfaction.
There isn't anything that I can think of - it would be better if the firm invested more in graduate bonding/social events.
Long hours are a common experience in the industry and largely unavoidable given the client-centric nature of the work.
The fast-paced nature of the work means you don't always get to spend as much time as you would like on tasks.
As with all big commercial firms, work hours and pipeline can be unpredictable but that is the nature of working with big clients and transactions.