The SULS Social Justice Portfolio recently hosted the event ‘Working in Criminal Law’, discussing a variety of issues with professionals from the field of criminal law. The panel consisted of Ruth Heazlewood (RH) and Madeleine Avenell (MA) from the Public Defenders Office, Adrienne Ey (AE) and James Ly (JL) from the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions NSW and Justin Wong (JW) from Streeton Lawyers. These were the highlights of the discussion:
Why did you choose in the organisation you currently work with? What attracted you to criminal law in particular?
JL: When I was at University, I worked at a small general firm and the exposure I had to criminal law was the most interesting part of the job. When I graduated, I applied for ODPP’s graduate program, the Legal Development Program and I've been here ever since then. The main thing that attracted me to criminal law is that it’s really interesting and different every day.
AE: I got a position in the LDP when I first finished university. By that time, I already knew I was really interested in criminal law with how it sits alongside social justice issues. Part of the reason I was attracted to working at the ODPP, in particular, was that I wanted to work somewhere where I had access to a mentor and colleagues while getting good legal experience.
JW: I was a volunteer at the Aboriginal Legal Service in my final two years of university and I tried to do as much criminal law electives as I could. I think what attracted me initially was probably a combination of wanting to help people, finding the stories really interesting and trying to make a difference. Most people I know in criminal law really enjoy what they do, as difficult as it can be sometimes.
MA: I have to admit when I got to the end of University, I didn't know what I was going to do. I got a job as a tipstaff in the Supreme Court and the judge I worked for only did criminal work. I thoroughly enjoyed it and it completely changed my attitude to law, particularly crime.
RH: I’d always been attracted to criminal law, even as a student. In all my many years of practice, I still find criminal law the most interesting. If you find criminal law or criminal law finds you, then you’ve definitely got a strong sense of purpose.
What are the most rewarding and challenging parts of working in criminal law and, in particular, your organisation?
JW: I think the most rewarding thing is seeing the effect you could have on someone's lives when they're coming to you at, probably, the worst point in their life. The flip side of that is that there is so much responsibility on you. Litigation is always very uncertain and can be incredibly stressful and emotionally taxing at times. But overall, it's much more rewarding and it's a real privilege to be able to act for people.
RH: I think the challenges for any criminal lawyer is to behave ethically. Not in my case, but I have heard that sometimes students are put in ethical situations that are a bit dicey.
A lot is said about being a certain kind of person to work in criminal law. What traits or personalities do you think it takes to work and thrive in criminal law?
JL: I would say, passion and interest in criminal law.
JW: I’d agree with that. There are so many different personalities in our area, so you don't have to be a ‘particular type’ of person.
Some of you mentioned the Legal Development Programme (LDP) along with volunteering and criminal law electives. What do you guys think is the way into criminal law?
AE: There are a number of different ways to find the right role for you in criminal law. Justin mentioned he volunteered at the Aboriginal Legal Service which is one of the big criminal organisations in New South Wales that does take volunteers and PLT students. The same goes for Legal Aid. If you've done extracurricular activities or competitions at uni, I would recommend highlighting things like that. You really just need to be proactive and be willing to do a few different things.
MA: My suggestion is doing anything that allows you to get to know a few people in criminal law. There are barristers who employ students as researchers or admin assistants and it’s a path to just get to know people.
RH: Public Defenders has so many students come through in various pathways: sometimes through the more structured internship programs but also through PLT while others come as volunteers. My main requirement is that they be in their fourth or fifth years because the work we do can be quite challenging. We also have an Aboriginal and Torres-Strait Islander graduate program, where we take on Aboriginal graduates to do their PLT. It's one way we can assist disadvantaged students in getting the support and mentorship that they need.
With the current social restriction laws, courts and tribunal have had to change the way they operate across Australia. How have your operations been affected by the recent pandemic and will there be any long-lasting impacts in the future?
JW: Like every aspect of society, the impact is huge. I haven't done a huge amount of online court appearances myself, but it really does affect your ability to be able to stand and advocate in court. We’re used to having the ability to be able to pick up on small verbal cues and I found it very hard to get my point across in the same way through a screen.
JL: In terms of practice moving forward, I think the pandemic has caused the court to look at how they do administrative things, forcing it to become more efficient.
Our final question is how students can bridge the skill set gap. Are there any particular skills or aspects that you would encourage someone to have?
JL: Just speaking from the graduate program at the ODPP, we don’t expect you to be an excellent advocate when you come in. That's the whole purpose of the graduate program. I wouldn't be too concerned about bridging that gap now.
JW: There’s a huge difference between learning law and then applying it to a client. I think as a paralegal, observing how lawyers operate is a really great experience. The last three graduate solicitors we've had have all been paralegals while in university, so they're able to learn the skills early and hit the ground running.