State Solicitor’s Office

and the Royal Commission into Aged Care and the implementation of recommendations arising from the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse; • assisting in the preliminary stages of the planning and development of the new Women and Babies

Hospital; • advising on a range of legal issues pertaining to the 2021 State General

Election; and • representing the State of

Western Australia in the WA

Stolen Wages Class Action proceedings in the Federal

Court.

How does the organisation seek its employees?

Each year, our Vacation Clerkships and Graduate positions are advertised on the Western Australian Government jobs board (jobs. wa.gov.au). The office also informs universities when the programs are advertised.

What qualities does the organisation look for in future graduates/ employees?

While the State Solicitor’s Office looks for graduates with excellent results in their law degrees, we also want to employ people who have a commitment to public service, and understand that working in government can be different to working for private clients in a private practice.

Graduates should be able to work well with others, and at the same time work independently when required. We need graduates who are not afraid of public speaking, and who are prepared to take on the challenge of advocacy work at an early stage in their career. We want to employ those who are committed not only to legal excellence but also to contributing to the positive and supportive culture that all State Solicitor’s Office

Does the organisation offer any opportunities for graduates, and how can individuals apply?

The State Solicitor’s Office Law Graduate Programme is designed to provide an excellent foundation for a career in law with the State Solicitor’s Office. Law Graduates will gain practical experience in the full range of practice areas within the State Solicitor’s Office, by rotating through each of the Office’s sections in their graduate year. The State Solicitor’s Office will accept applications for employment as a Law Graduate from: • Law graduates who have not completed the coursework component of an approved practical legal training course. • Law graduates who have completed the coursework component of an approved practical legal training course (such as that provided by the College of Law) but have not been admitted to practice law. • Law graduates who have completed the requirements of an approved practical legal training course (such as that provided by the College of

Law) and have already been admitted to practice law but have not commenced practice as a lawyer.

Each year, our Graduate positions are advertised on the Western Australian Government jobs board (jobs. wa.gov.au) and the office also informs universities when the programs are advertised.

Does the organisation offer any opportunities to students who are still studying, and how can individuals apply?

The State Solicitor’s Office offers a number of paid summer and winter vacation clerkships for students in their penultimate or final year of study. Our structured programme ensures that all our vacation clerks are able to experience as broad a range of the work of the Office as possible, whilst being supported and mentored by both junior and senior lawyers in the Office.

In addition, the State Solicitor’s Office employs professional legal research assistants on a full-time basis for two years to undertake an interesting and diverse range of legal tasks including drafting research memoranda on discrete legal issues, assisting with litigation related tasks including the preparation of submissions and attending meetings with clients and other stakeholders. These positions are a unique opportunity for very capable law students to work closely with very senior members of the Office, including the State Solicitor, State Counsel and the Solicitor-General.

WA Ombudsman

Albert Facey House - Level 2 469 Wellington Street Perth WA 6000

www.ombudsman.wa.gov.au

mail@ombudsman.wa.gov.au | (08) 9220 7555

All aspects of Public Law

What is the main focus of the organisation?

The office of the Ombudsman provides access to justice, advances human rights for vulnerable and disadvantaged populations and promotes the rule of law. The Ombudsman is an independent and impartial officer of the Parliament who reports to the Parliament rather than the government of the day. The office of the Ombudsman utilizes all aspects of public law in undertaking their work.

What qualities does the organisation look for in future graduates/ employees?

Most positions at the office of the Ombudsman require excellent conceptual and analytical skills, a high level of written communication skills, strong interpersonal skills and an understanding of the principles of independence, reasonableness and procedural fairness. People from diverse backgrounds are encouraged to apply for vacancies at the office of the Ombudsman.

How does the organisation seek its employees?

The Office advertises positions in the Western Australian Government Jobs Board (jobs. wa.gov.au).

What kind of work do employees at the organisation do?

The office of the Ombudsman has four principal functions, which are: • Providing access to justice to Western

Australians regarding the administration of government; • Making recommendations about ways to prevent or reduce child deaths and family and domestic violence fatalities through the undertaking of reviews; • Undertaking major investigations with the powers of a standing Royal

Commission; and • Undertaking a range of inspection and monitoring functions of particular powers given to agencies of the State.

Does the organisation offer any opportunities to students who are still studying and how can individuals apply?

The office of the Ombudsman provides law students an opportunity to apply for the office’s Clerkship program during the university vacation. Each year, the clerkship is advertised on the Western Australian Government Jobs Board (jobs.wa.gov.au) and the office also informs universities when the program is advertised. Contact the person in the job advertisement to obtain an understanding of the advertised role and information about the job, and provide a comprehensive curriculum vitae that details your qualifications and your duties and achievements in your current and previous work. The CV needs to show that you have the skills, knowledge and capacity to do the work of the advertised position.

What is an interesting piece of work that the organisation has recently engaged in?

Western Australia is a vast state and it is vital that access to justice institutions ensure that they are accessible to Western Australians living and working in regional and remote Western Australia. Even more critically, justice must be accessible to Aboriginal Western Australian communities. For this reason, the Ombudsman regularly raises awareness of, access to, and use of, its services for regional and Aboriginal Western Australians. Regional visits are coordinated with the Western Australian Energy and Water Ombudsman, the Commonwealth Ombudsman, the Health and Disability