There has been a renewed push for national guidelines to regulate the recruitment of graduate students since the collapse of Western Australia’s voluntary scheme after Deacons, DLA Piper and Jackson McDonald pulled out earlier this year. However, law firms warn there are still many hurdles to overcome.
“The idea of a national scheme is a good one, but as the states operate on very different timings it would take some negotiation,” Gareth Bennett, Freehills’ director, People & Development told ALB. “We have discussed the concept with other leading law firms and would all want a joint initiative to explore possibilities, involving all interested parties including the law firms, law schools and regulatory bodies.”
Jo Livanos, Mallesons' People & Development manager in Perth, said she was surprised by the collapse in the recruitment model set in place by the WA law society adding that it was doubtful whether there were any benefits for either the students or the firms. However, Livanos said that her firm’s hand was forced once other firms had decided to abandon the gentleman’s agreement.
“It wasn't a decision we wanted to take, as our graduate recruitment strategy had been based on adhering to the guidelines,” she said. “We would ultimately favour moving to a nationally consistent process, but would do this in consultation with the other major firms who run clerkship and graduate recruitment programs. It's our understanding that a number of the major firms hold a similar view."
The landscape for recruitment of law graduates in WA has changed fundamentally as a result of recent events and is in a state of flux, according to Livanos. Later this month, Perth’s top law firms will meet and this item is expected to be top of the agenda.
However, it is understood that most firms agree in principle with a nationally consistent recruitment process but it is unlikely to happen overnight due to the differing timelines and clerkship experiences between states. The hurdles are evident as a source close to the negotiations told ALB that the major firms have been working with the Australian Law Students Association since early this year.