WA Supreme Court

give you a good idea of what area the Judge has worked in and their interests outside the law. It is important to include information in your application that shows who you are as a person – the Associates work closely together with the Judge in a small team so everyone working well together is an important part of the role.

WA Supreme Court of Appeals

TAYU WILKER

Associate to President Buss

What does your work involve?

I am the current associate to President Buss in the Supreme Court, Court of Appeal division. In the Court of Appeal we usually deal with complex legal issues, after the evidence has been presented and findings of fact have been made.

As an associate your role varies a lot depending on your judge, but typically it includes legal research, proofreading, administrative tasks, and sitting in on hearings. So, for example, over the lifespan of a matter your tasks will include the following. Getting paperwork ready for your judge prior to a hearing. This may involve finding some cases, putting a memo together, or literally just printing and filing the work. Then, you’ll sit in and watch the hearing you helped prepare for, which usually involves the appellant and respondent making legal submissions via their counsel. Your judge will provide you with a draft judgment and you’ll proof read it and make suggestions. Eventually you’ll publish the judgment, which may involve joint or separate reasons. There will be a fair bit of administrative work along the way e.g. contacting parties, finding files, amending warrants etc.

This role is particularly great for those of you who, like me, love oral advocacy and/or complex legal questions. It’s only been 3 months and I’ve already seen some of the top legal counsel presenting arguments, and I’ve read many judgments where new points of law have been raised. Though, be warned, like any introductory role, you’ll also do a lot of unglamorous work, like photocopying (which, call me crazy, but I don’t actually mind). Also, the judges who deal with criminal matters can deal with some really confronting content. But all in all, I absolutely love my job and I will be very sad to leave next year.

You also get quite close with your co-associate and judge in the Court of Appeal. The Buss Chambers (and many others) like to go on outings. For example, in the below picture we were out to breakfast with President Buss. We like to have a chat with the judge about our lives, but we also take the opportunity to pick his brain about the legal profession and legal issues, which is pretty great. Most associates develop quite a close relationship with their judge.

How and when can interested students apply for a position?

Applications to be a judge’s associate typically open earlier than graduate positions (usually applications are due early March) so look out for these. However, a small number of positions do open over the course of the year. The application process is generally pretty standard and requires an academic transcript, cover letter and resume, followed by an interview for shortlisted candidates.

Do you have any tips for potential candidates?

• Make sure you know what area of law the judge works in (criminal, civil or both). • Don’t just detail your law related achievements. Let the judges know what you are doing outside of law and/or what you have previously done outside of law, including retail/hospitality work. This helps to show that you are a well-rounded person. • Make sure you get friends to proofread for your cover letter! Preferably multiple. • Note why you want to work at the courts/for a particular judge. • Apply to as many judges as possible, because once you get to the interview stage, the selection is based on who the judge ‘vibes’ with. I did this by having one paragraph that

I changed based on the judge who I was applying for, but I kept the rest of my cover letter the same. • The application process is quite competitive.

Many judges will narrow applications by reference to grades to some extent. If you have less time to dedicate to study than the average student and this has impacted your grades, you may want to mention this in your cover letter. • You call all the judges including the

President ‘judge’ except for the Chief Justice,