Law Clerk - Clerk Grade 1/2 - DCJ Legal

Law Clerkship Program

DCJ Legal

• Location: Parramatta
• Employment Type – Temporary – Full time or Part time (Up to 8 Months)
• Salary - Clerk Grade 1/2, Base Salary ($73,522 - $79,931), plus employer’s contribution to superannuation and annual leave loading 

About the Company

The Department of Communities and Justice (DCJ) enables services to better work together to support everyone’s right to access justice, support families and strengthen/bolster the promotion of early intervention and inclusion, with benefits for the whole community.

Applicants will be given the opportunity to express a preference as to rotation through the following teams:

• Advisings and Community Protection team which provides advice and manages litigation in areas including: review of convictions and sentences, exercise of Royal prerogative of mercy, high risk offenders, forensic patients, parole, management of adult inmates and youth detainees, constitutional matters, prosecution of indictable matters, criminal contempt, vexatious proceedings, judicial review and other public law matters. 

• Child Law team which provides advice and representation on behalf of the Secretary, in matters relating to the care and protection of children, including Children’s Court, early intervention, out-of-home care, policy input, Family Law, Supreme Court, Coronial proceedings and adoption proceedings. Child Law also has a specialist Aboriginal-led preservation and reunification team providing advice and representation to casework teams working with Aboriginal families.

• Civil Litigation and Dispute Resolution team which provides advice and manages claims and litigated proceedings relating to various criminal, tort and civil law matters.

• Inquests, Inquiries and Representation team which assists Coroners and judicial officers in significant and high-profile inquiries and inquests and represents DCJ in inquests and inquiries, including representing the Commissioner of Corrective Services in inquests into deaths in custody. The team also advises and represents the Attorney General in interstate prisoner transfers; represents witnesses called before investigatory bodies, such as the Independent Commission Against Corruption and the Law Enforcement Conduct Commission; and acts for DCJ in tenancy proceedings, housing fraud prosecutions, and Youth Justice parole proceedings.

• Open Government, Information and Privacy team which provides a variety of interesting and varied legal advice on information sharing and provides advocacy and representation in tribunal in contested determinations under the Government Information (Public Access) Act 2009 (GIPA Act) and Privacy and Personal Information Protection Act 1998 (PPIP Act). The team also makes determinations under the GIPA Act and conducts investigations and internal reviews under PPIP Act. The team also facilitates responses to subpoenas, summons, and statutory notices and provides representation in various courts and tribunals where such matters are contested.

Your role

You will have the opportunity to work on a diverse range of matters and gain practical skills.

Essential requirements of the role

Appointments are subject to reference checks. Some roles may also require the following checks/ clearances:

• National Criminal History Record Check in accordance with the Disability Inclusion Act 2014, and
• Working with Children Check clearance in accordance with the Child Protection (Working with Children) Act 2012

Click here for further information and frequently asked questions.

About you

You will be in your penultimate or final year of a law degree (whether an undergraduate Bachelor of Laws (LLB) or postgraduate Juris Doctor (JD).

In addition to meeting the essential requirements, the successful candidate must have:

• a strong academic record
• well-developed legal research and writing skills, and
• strong communication and interpersonal skills.

Download the role description.

If you are viewing this ad in Seek and wish to apply via their portal, you will be required to either set up a profile or login via your existing Seek account.

To apply directly via the DCJ Careers site click here. Search for the job and click the ‘Apply now’ button.

We focus on hiring people who share our commitment and goals of inclusion, collaboration, adaptability, courage and integrity. If you meet the essential requirements and the role resonates with you, please apply – you do not need to meet every desired requirement for us to want to talk to you.

What We Offer

We offer a variety of benefits, including:

• A challenging and rewarding career

• Flexible, autonomous work environment

• Competitive pay and conditions

• Training and development opportunities to build and maintain capabilities

• Health & Wellbeing and Employee Assistance Programs.

Want more information?  Visit our website to see more information on Working for us.

We do work that really matters

Working for the Department of Communities and Justice (DCJ) provides lots of opportunities to make a real difference. We collaborate with other agencies and community partners, to improve lives and realise the potential of children, adults, families and communities. We're focused on breaking, rather than managing, disadvantage. It’s work that really matters.

Apply now and join Australia’s top public sector employer where we will support you and provide an exciting and flexible working environment!

Are you ready to join us?

Click apply and attach the following:

• a covering letter (not exceeding two A4 pages) which includes a short statement as to why you would be an ideal candidate for the Law Clerkship Program and details of how you meet the four key focus capabilities of the role, as identified in the role description;
• a CV (not exceeding two A4 pages) which contains contact details for at least two referees; and
• your most recent academic transcript.

Applications close: Friday, 18 July 2025 at 11:59pm AEST.

Got a question?

Please review the website and FAQs.

For more information about the role or what it’s like to work for DCJ, please contact Katherine Chow at clerkship@justice.nsw.gov.au

If you’ve got a question about applying or would benefit from an adjustment in the recruitment process to help you perform at your best (including an alternate method submission of the application), please contact Lois Jebin at lois.jebin@dcj.nsw.gov.au

Visit Recruitment adjustments on the DCJ website to learn more.

Inclusion and Diversity lies at the heart of how we recruit

We continue to hire great people with a wide variety of skills, experience and backgrounds. This includes people with disability, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People, women, people identifying as LGBTIQ+, culturally and linguistically diverse people, carers and other diversity groups.

To find out what DCJ are doing to build an inclusive and diverse workforce, visit Inclusion and diversity on the DCJ website.

Other Information

A talent pool may be created for future ongoing and temporary roles and is valid for a period of up to 18 months.

For more information visit Applying for DCJ jobs on the DCJ website.

Thank you for your interest in this role. We look forward to receiving your application.

To keep up with recruitment opportunities at DCJ, follow us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/CareersatDCJ/

The Welcome Experience
 Thinking about moving to regional NSW? Get free, personalised support with housing, schools, jobs, and settling in. Learn more: www.nsw.gov.au/welcomeexperience

The careers site currently promotes this service on the ‘Discover roles with DCJ in regional NSW’ page.