This is a tiny wee update episode to let you know about the changes that are a-coming, and where to find other New Lawyer-related work that you mind enjoy.

Grad solicitor Alice talks finding a job, the transition from law school to practice, and the value of cultural know-how.

Read this episode's blog post here, sign up for a monthly digest of columns and podcasts here, or submit a question for LexisNexis' Dear Katie over here.

In this episode Auckland-based family lawyer Sharon Chandra talks family law, the role of happiness in productivity, and the legal culture utopia we might face towards.

In this episode I talked to Duncan Webb, MP for Christchurch Central and co-author of your ethics textbook, about his career as a litigation lawyer, academic and now Parliamentarian.  We talked about how you can make a difference in non-traditional routes, what he wish he'd known from the beginning (nothing more than he did), his work for Christchurch homeowners in earthquake cases, how he once took down a gaming trust, and much more.

This episode was so full of joy, and has filled my mind with all kinds of sparks and excitement since we recorded it a few weeks ago.  Lisa is the Director of Defence Legal Services and Military Prosecutions and boy does she have an interesting career to talk about.  We talked how law is used in the army, military codes, international law, Lisa's experience as a woman of colour in the army, and how studying things you love can bring unexpected joy later down the line.  It was wonderful, and I am so grateful to Lisa for sharing her insights into this very different way of using one's law degree.

Zylpha is a second career lawyer who now works for the Law Society in its Canterbury-Westland branch office.  She is also one of five people manning NZLS' new Law Care phoneline (0800 0800 28).  We talked a lot about bullying and harassment and the complex ways of responding to a complex systemic problem, and it was STILL really fun. 

Zylpha is a second career lawyer who now works for the Law Society in its Canterbury-Westland branch office.  She is also one of five people manning NZLS' new Law Care phoneline (0800 0800 28).  We talked a lot about bullying and harassment and the complex ways of responding to a complex systemic problem, and it was STILL really fun. 

In this episode I speak with Justice Kós, sitting President of the Court of Appeal, and at different times a litigator, an academic, and a teacher.  We talked about his reasons for becoming a lawyer (another count for "good at English"), and his reasons for staying one (law as vocation); his perspective on the bench, both from appearing in front of it and sitting behind it; reforms to the civil system that promise increased access to justice and reforms to the criminal system that promise greater justice full stop; how his upbringing as the child of a refugee helped form his view of New Zealand and the importance of its democratic norms and institutions; and what he has learned as a student of those who came before and a teacher of those who are coming up the ranks now.  

You can read more at the blog post for this episode over here, and sign up for monthly digest emails for the podcast and New Lawyer columns here. 

Episode 21 - Shaun talks big workplaces, second careers, and how to handle mistakes - The New Lawyer Podcast