Innovation in the Law

Alongside this training to develop technical ability among KWM graduates, is a cultural shift that ensures KWM graduates and junior lawyers feel comfortable to suggest new ways of utilising technology and promoting changes that make positive impacts. Coupled with the removal of billable hour targets for graduates, KWM graduates are encouraged to pursue their curiosity and develop their confidence to explore different ways of utilising technology to deliver changes that have a positive impact, for themselves, the firm and our clients.

Life as a Graduate in a National Firm

Felicia Chan

Lawyer, Corrs Chambers Westgarth

My journey at Corrs started in 2018 with a summer clerkship, and I officially joined the firm in 2020 as a law graduate. Like many of you, I went through the lengthy clerkship process hoping to come out of university employed. After 20+ applications and five clerkships at various boutique, national, and international firms, I ultimately decided on Corrs for the high profile clients, great training and, of course, the people (as cliché as that sounds). The people at Corrs are so easy-going yet immensely motivated and passionate and I felt I could truly be myself.

As a law graduate at Corrs, your career starts with Graduate Academy, a three-day training program that is attended by all national graduates. This is followed by local office orientation, PLT workshops, and regular training sessions for each of your practice group rotations during the Graduate Development Program. Fortunately for me, my graduate cohort was able to attend Graduate Academy just before the COVID-19 pandemic hit and we all had to work remotely. Graduate Academy was a great experience as I met graduates from all the other Corrs offices and have since worked alongside them on various interstate matters during my rotations in Projects, Property and Real Estate, and Corporate/M&A. It was nice being able to put a face to a name thanks to our time at Graduate Academy.

Corrs is Australia’s leading independent national law firm. Despite being a national firm, we still have an international presence via strategic alliances throughout the Asia-Pacific region and worldwide. Through these relationships, Corrs provides many international secondment opportunities, as well as an international study scholarship at Oxford or Cambridge – although these opportunities have, of course, been impacted by COVID-19 travel restrictions. The importance of our strategic alliances has become clearer than ever in the past year. Despite the unfortunate circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic and the multiple lockdowns, Corrs has continued to thrive. This is due to our great leadership and having a national structure – the fact that Corrs is an independent firm meant that we could be flexible, agile, and respond quickly to changing market circumstances in Australia.

One of my first encounters with Corrs was when I volunteered as a law student one day a week at the Street Law Centre as part of the McCusker Citizenship Internship. I met a Corrs graduate secondee at the Street Law Centre and was impressed at the firm’s genuine commitment to pro bono work and the community. As part of the Graduate Development Program, law graduates get the opportunity to be seconded one day a week to a community legal centre. Corrs currently partners with the Street Law Centre, Circle Green Community Legal (in the employment law team), and the Aboriginal Legal Service of WA. I am currently on secondment to Circle Green Community Legal every Monday, providing free employment advice to vulnerable, non-unionised employees in WA. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the experience to date and have had a high level of client contact, giving advice on various issues such as unfair dismissal, equal opportunity, workplace sexual harassment, and underpayment of entitlements.

In addition to this, I have worked on pro bono matters during my Graduate Development Program. These have been invaluable learning opportunities as you are essentially running the matter with a senior associate overseeing your work. That’s another bonus of working at Corrs – whether you are doing pro bono or client work, you are given plenty of opportunities to take on additional responsibility and be hands on. Our teams are the perfect size, so you are exposed to working alongside partners and senior lawyers from day one and there is plenty of work for everyone. So if this sounds like a place you’d like to work, I encourage you to apply for a clerkship opportunity with Corrs!