Later to Law Professionals Starting their Legal Careers

24/07/2025

The College of Law is the largest provider of practice focused legal education in Australasia and the number 1 provider of Practical Legal Training (PLT) in Australia. To practice law in Australia and be admitted as a legal practitioner, students need to complete PLT (ie Graduate Diploma of Legal Practice).

Ruth Beran and Susan Pincus, National Career Strategists at the College of Law, provide career support to College of Law students and graduates. With over 50% of their clients being career changers, they conducted research in 2023 to see what happens to these individuals after they complete their PLT. Ruth and Susan wrote this article.

The research conducted at the College of Law looked at how later to law professionals deal with an ever-changing and highly competitive legal landscape; how they meet the expectations of employers demanding higher order skills; and whether they have considered the practical implications of starting a new career. The research was presented at the APCDA Conference and the CDANZ Conference in 2023 and has formed the basis of recommending the implementation of an Accelerator program.

The research was based on two groups of participants – those aged over the age of 30 (or self-identified as a mature student) or under the age of 30. All participants had at least one career consultation at the College of Law in the past year.

Some interesting findings from the study were that:

Across all groups, almost half were working towards their practicing certificate and planned to work as a lawyer.
With law related work experience being a potential indicator of employability in the field, it was notable that only 30% of the people aged over 30s were currently working in law, and for those over 45 only 10% were currently working in law. By contrast, over 70% of the under 30s group were currently working in law
Of concern was that for those over 30, only 40% viewed work experience outside of law as a lot, or a great deal, beneficial. For those over 45 this was even more pronounced with only 25% viewing work experience outside of law as a lot, or a great deal, beneficial. Clearly this is an area where the College of Law needs to focus on in our careers work to provide mature students with assistance in positioning their transferrable skills outside of law in the context of a legal environment.
For those aged over 30, 70% think that age and experience impacts career prospects and job opportunities a great deal and a lot. For those aged over 45, it was even greater at 80%.

When asked what challenges the participants faced as a student/graduate seeking legal work the over 30 age group nominated:

Lack of legal experience: respondents mentioned that their lack of legal experience was a major barrier to finding a job in the legal field.
Age: Being over 30 and/or having prior work experience in a different field was considered a disadvantage by some respondents, who felt that the legal profession favors younger candidates.
Competition: The legal job market was seen as highly competitive, with many graduates competing for a limited number of positions.
Work/life balance: Some respondents expressed concern about the long hours and demanding nature of legal work, which can make it difficult to balance work and personal life.

The over-30 age group expressed more concern about:

balancing work and personal life
having to adapt to changes in the legal profession over a longer period of time and expressed concern about keeping up with technology
the potential disadvantages of being older
yet at the same time, they recognise they have accumulated more life experience and skills, giving them an advantage.

Interestingly both the under 30 and over 30 age groups acknowledged that age can be a factor in the job market, either as an advantage or disadvantage.

Some comments made by participants were:

“My lack of experience in a legal role has inhibited my ability to gain a legal role. In the few interviews I had, my age has been a barrier as, the recruiter would always comment about being “mature age”, “late to law” and had questions about “responsibilities at work that I have”
“In legal career, age is plus.”
“Age = experience however also means I am not willing to be completely exploited like some young lawyers may be.”
“I am a mature age student. I was a more desirable hire as I had good customer service and admin based skills.”

In summary, the research showed that there is:

High competition for legal roles: Graduates face a highly competitive job market with many applicants for a limited number of roles. This affects both age groups and is seen as a major challenge in gaining legal employment.

Need for practical legal experience: Graduates in both groups identified the need for practical legal experience in order to be competitive in the job market. This includes opportunities to gain experience in legal practice, through internships, clerkships or other forms of work experience.

Age as a barrier: Age has been identified as a barrier for both groups, with older graduates (over 30) facing particular challenges in finding work due to a perceived lack of flexibility and experience. Mature individuals faced ageism and a lack of legal experience.

Overall, the findings suggest that the legal profession can be a challenging field to enter and succeed in, regardless of age or experience level. The legal industry may still have work to do in addressing ageism and creating more inclusive employment practices.

To address these challenges for later to law professionals, we see an opportunity to introduce an Accelerator Program which would consist of a series of practical modules. These would include: how to showcase your transferrable skills and experience to the legal profession; how to present yourself as a valuable and relevant candidate to recruiters; later lawyers sharing their insights on how they managed the transition and potentially looking at targeted work experience placements.