Being introduced to Baker McKenzie
My career with Baker McKenzie began as a seasonal clerk. Even during my early days of applying to the Firm, I was taken with its down to earth culture, friendly people and great opportunities.
The recruitment process was very welcoming. I completed an online application form which required me to copy across my cover letter and key elements of my CV, and answer some short questions so the Firm could get to know more about me. We did not need to undertake any psychometric testing or other online assessments, which was great! The Firm's personalied approach continued during the rest of the recruitment process. Upon being notified I was successful for the interview (our Melbourne office has just one interview), I was also invited to attend the Firm's 'information and networking event'. This was the best clerkship event I attended, the highlight of this event being a panel discussion with people from across the Firm sharing stories about their work at Bakers. I then had an engaging interview with a partner and senior lawyer where we discussed everything from growing up in New Zealand, my interest in renewable energy, and the Firm's international focus. It was clear to me that Bakers was my top firm throughout the process and I was really happy to receive a clerkship offer on offer day.
My clerkship experience
In Melbourne, you complete a four-week clerkship. I was placed in the Dispute Resolution team and was given a supervising partner and junior lawyer buddy.
From my first day, Baker McKenzie definitely delivered on the 'real work' and genuine experience that it prides itself on. I was involved in many varied and complex disputes and was given tasks that were both interesting and meaningful. I was also able to attend Court on several occasions, including for a white-collar crime matter and for an environmental dispute.
More specifically, the work I undertook was varied and engaging. I wrote research memoranda on topics like a wind farm operator's potential liability under environmental and tort law and the rule in Henderson v Henderson. Each task required thorough research and deep thinking. It was really fulfilling to see that my memoranda were sent to clients and the Firm's barrister teams too, and to see how my work fit in to the wider case strategy. In addition, I was able to contribute to meetings with barristers and clients, and was fortunate to attend a mediation!
Throughout the clerkship, I received great mentorship from my supervising partner, who provided me with valuable feedback throughout the clerkship, continuously took me to client meetings and got me involved in a range of interesting matters. I also felt very supported by my buddy, who regularly checked in on me and made me feel part of the team. The associates and graduates at the Firm were real stand-outs to me too—fun, down-to-earth people, passionate about their work, and genuinely interested in working through the legal and factual problems that were presented to the Disputes team on a daily basis. Socially, the highlight was definitely the Disputes and Employment team end-of-year dinner at Builders Arms Hotel!
My paralegal experience
I was shocked when Baker McKenzie invited me to return as a paralegal after the clerkship. The Firm has a real focus on developing its lawyers of all levels. So, the paralegal experience really enabled me to learn, develop and expand my knowledge.
I worked on several different matters in different areas of law during my time as a paralegal. A highlight was working with the team on a matter that went to trial—about whether or not a wind farm could be built. The best cases, such as this, have great characters, interesting lawsand wild facts. During the trial, I was urgently sent to the Victorian Archives to recover old wills and probate documents from the 1990s to show the Court the history of the relevant title. It was an exhilarating time!
Later that month, after we won the case, I was tasked with driving out to Western Victoria with one of the winter clerks to serve the Court orders on the defendant. An eight-hour road trip out to the wops (NZ term for woop woop/the sticks) wasn't what I had in mind when I signed up, but it certainly was a fun experience!
The Disputes team at Bakers has a very varied practice. As a paralegal, I was exposed to different areas of law and litigious practice, which was so valuable early in my career. I was also given meaningful work and trusted with quite a bit of responsibility.
For example, part of my time as a paralegal involved working to identify potential class actions. This involved doing deep research on various topics. I analysed the public disclosures of various companies to see whether there was potential to launch several securities class actions for breach of continuous disclosure obligations. I then got to discuss this work with potential litigation funders. And I did the same for consumer class actions, where I worked to identify a potential consumer class action, assisted in finding someone to be our lead plaintiff, and supported the team to secure litigation funding. Working on the genesis of new cases, finding patterns in the facts, and looking for people both to represent and to fund our work was really interesting.
Every week presented new novel legal problems or factual scenarios. There was rarely a dull moment. For me, this was what I found most attractive about Baker McKenzie. And to do this work with good people, who were genuinely interested in their work and who invested in my development, was a truly rewarding and fulfilling experience.