Studying Law in Australia

Entry

You can study law in Australia at any of its 29 law schools. You can study it as a high school graduate (in which case, you'll usually have to do a combined degree with something else like Arts or Commerce which takes 5-6 yrs) or you can study it as a university graduate & do a straight degree in law which would take three years.

Entry for local students is highly competitive, especially at popular metropolitan unversities (eg. University of Melbourne, University of Sydney, University of New South Wales) where UAI cut-offs are over 99 (or around 94-96 for full fee paying places). Otherwise, marks are usually between 90-99 for the slightly less competitive universities.

Areas of Legal Knowledge

In order to practice as a lawyer in Australia, graduates from Australian law schools must show that they have studied at least 11 areas of the core subjects (AKA "Priestley 11"):

* criminal law
* procedure
* torts
* contracts
* property
* equity
* company law
* administrative law
* federal and state constitutional law
* civil procedure
* evidence.

All law school offers the above mentioned areas of legal study.

Practical Training Course

In Australia, you cannot be admitted and practice as a lawyer unless you have a law degree and have undertaken legal training. This takes the form of a practical training course of up to about six months, during which time you undergo a form of work experience called articles of clerkship.

You will need to find out about this further phase of legal training if your plan is to be admitted as an Australian lawyer. If your interest is in undertaking postgraduate studies at an Australian law school, you can find out more about the wide-ranging programs of postgraduate studies in Studying Law in Australia. You can undertake a certificate, diploma, masters or doctorate, depending on the law school you choose and your area of interest.

Law Council Constituent Bodies

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Studying Law in Australia