Becoming a lawyer in South Australia

If you have a passion for law and want to fulfil your potential as a legal practitioner, there are a number of requirements to meet because you can start practising.

  1. Complete a Law Degree (Bachelor of Laws, or Juris Doctor).
  2. Complete Practical Legal Training.
  3. Apply for admission to the Supreme Court.
  4. Apply for a Practising Certificate and Indemnity Insurance.

Step 1 - Complete a law degree

The first step in becoming a lawyer is to complete a law degree, which is called either a ‘Bachelor of Laws’ (LLB) and ‘Juris Doctor’ (JD). Both pathways will be prepare you for a career in the law. The difference is that a Bachelor of Laws is for students who are seeking to study law straight after completed their high school education, where as a Juris Doctor is for those who have already completed a different degree and want to shift into law.

There are three Law Schools at the South Australian Universities.

Through studying at any of these schools, you will complete eleven key subjects in order to meet the requirements of completing a law degree. These subjects are known as the ‘Priestley 11’.

  1. Administrative Law defines the extent of the powers and responsibilities of the administrative agencies of Australian governments (both federal and state).
  2. Civil Procedure sets out the rules and regulations, known as ‘Uniform Civil Procedure Rules’, that courts follow when ruling on civil lawsuits.
  3. Company Law, also known as Corporate Law, concerns the governing of rights and conducts of person, companies, organisations and businesses.
  4. Contract Law covers any laws or regulations directed toward enforcing promises between parties.
  5. Criminal Law prescribes conduct perceived as threatening, harmful or endangering to the welfare, safety, health and property of people (crime).
  6. Equity (including Trusts) is a body of principles developed to produce individual transactional fairness and just outcomes between the parties.
  7. Ethics & Professional Responsibility pertains to the duty all legal practitioners have to act ethically and in accordance with the principles of professional conduct.
  8. Laws of Evidence prescribe standards to which a fact must be proved on the balance of probabilities in civil proceedings and beyond reasonable doubt in criminal proceedings.
  9. Constitutional Law is derived from the Commonwealth Constitution, the Statute of Westminster 1931, the Australia Acts 1986 (Cth), the Constitutional Acts of the States, Commonwealth, and relevant State and Territory legislation.
  10. Property Law is the collection of laws relating to and prioritising the rights, interests and responsibilities of individuals in relation to possession or ownership of an object.
  11. Tort Law relates to the types of torts (civil wrongdoings which the injured party has the right to seek damages or other form of relief through legal action), the steps to establish liability and the calculations for awards of damages.

Step 2 - Complete Practical Legal Training

Practical Legal Training (PLT) is the necessary step between your law degree and your admission to practice in South Australia. PLT combines your newly gained theoretical knowledge of the law, with the practical and professional requirements of day-to-day legal practice.

The Law Society offers the Graduate Diploma in Legal Practice  (GDLP) in partnership with the Adelaide Law School, in which students participate in three distinct components:

  • Completion of six mandatory subjects and two electives of their choice.
  • 105 hours of placement in a legal office.
  • The accrual of five Continuing Professional Development (CPD) points.
  • The program has been designed, and is taught by, South Australian judges, barristers and solicitors to ensure you develop essential practical skills.

Step 3 - Apply for admission to the Supreme Court

Upon successful completion of your PLT, you are eligible to apply to the Supreme Court for admission to practise as a barrister and solicitor in South Australia. To apply for admission, you need to be able to complete the required documentation which confirms that:

  • you have completed a recognised law degree (LLB or JD) and PLT (such as the GDLP); and
  • you are ‘fit and proper’ to be admitted on the roll of the Supreme Court as a legal practitioner.

While the term ‘fit and proper’ can be a broad requirement, within the context of admission to practise law, it demonstrates that you have the “personal qualities of character which are necessary to discharge the important and grave responsibilities of being a barrister and solicitor.”

In demonstrating that you are a ‘fit and proper person’, you will need to disclose any criminal, academic or general conduct that may be relevant. For more information on the duty of disclosure, please see the Law Admissions Consultative Committee's Disclosure Guidelines for Applicants for Admission to the Legal Profession.

Once your application is reviewed by the Board of Examiners, if accepted, you will be admitted and your name will be added to the Roll of Practitioners - the official record maintained by the Supreme Court. For more information on the Admission process, please see Admission to Practice | Law Society.

Endnote
1 Frugtniet v Board of Examiners [2002] VSC 140 per Pagone, J

Step 4 - Apply for a Practising Certificate and Professional Indemnity Insurance

Once you have been admitted as a barrister and solicitor, there is still one more step that you need to take before you can practise law. It is unlawful for you to give legal advice as a lawyer, even if you have signed the Roll of Practitioners, without a Practising Certificate and Professional Indemnity Insurance.

As a newly admitted legal practitioner, you will likely discuss these requirements with your employer as you will be required to be employed in supervised practice under a suitably qualified legal practitioner for two years fulltime employment before you have the right to consider practising independently.

The Law Society of South Australia has delegated authority from the Supreme Court to issue practising certificates, and also ensures legal practitioners maintain insurance. Please see the Practising Certificates | Law Society for further information and instructions on how to apply.

Moving Forward

Now that you are a fully qualified legal practitioner, membership with the Society can offer you a range of services to help with career development. These include:

  • networking and training events targeted at newly admitted legal practitioners;
  • access to wellbeing and resilience resources and mentoring opportunities; and
  • the Career Centre to view recent employment opportunities.

Please see the Membership | Law Society for more information on how to join the Society as an admitted legal practitioner.