Law Graduate Program (Mar 2025)

We have new opportunities to join our Brisbane graduate program.

Our graduate program gives you the chance to start shaping your future and hone your skills in a range of practice areas, providing you with broad-based training and ensuring that you are ready to become a qualified solicitor.

You’ll rotate through three distinct practice areas for six months each and will be assigned a partner and buddy for support.

You’ll get the opportunity to submit practice area preferences before every rotation, enabling you to tailor your graduate program to your specific interests. You can also discuss your preferences with our dedicated Graduate Recruitment team. If you are interested in broadening your skills further, you can also apply to complete an international rotation or a rotation through our Digital Law Group or our Legal Operations team. 

Just tell us what you need - Support and Training

We know that life in a commercial law firm can seem daunting, and we’re here to provide you with all the support you need. Once you join, you’ll benefit from a two-week induction, ongoing practice group training throughout each rotation, a solicitor assigned as your dedicated “buddy”, regular feedback, plus extensive on-the-job support from solicitors, senior associates and partners.

We support graduates on their pathway to becoming solicitors by providing Practical Legal Training (PLT) and support through the admission process.

Once admitted, our Graduates will begin the second stage of their formal learning program – Advance. This program focused on the client, financial and people skills needed to take you to the next step of your career.

At different times throughout your career, you may feel like you need a new challenge or a change. This could mean developing new skills, setting a new direction or focus, starting a new role within the firm, or taking a short break. Pursuing a new path doesn’t mean you have to close off others.

That is why we are committed to redefining how we invest in our people as they pursue diverse personal and professional pathways, both at Herbert Smith Freehills and beyond. Through our Career Pathways program, we will show you the countless personal and professional pathways that are available to you, both inside and outside the firm; demonstrate how you may be supported and rewarded as you develop a wide range of skills and pursue varied opportunities; and empower you to follow your pathway, whatever that may be, with the firm’s complete support.

We recruit people with the desire and ability to be exceptional, commercial lawyers. This means that we look for more than just a great academic record and strong technical aptitude. We seek people who are curious, empathetic and understand the importance of building relationships with clients and colleagues. We also look for an international mindset and a desire to work within our global network, not just in one office.

To be eligible to apply, candidates need to:

• Have recently completed an Australian Bachelor's degree in law or Juris Doctorate, or be in their final semester
• Have working rights for Australia (eg a valid Graduate visa)
• Be able to commence full-time employment 

At Herbert Smith Freehills you will be part of a diverse, innovative culture where high performance, client focus and highly engaged people are our differentiators. People at our firm come from a range of backgrounds and bring a wide variety of experiences and perspectives to their work with us. We strive to ensure that our inclusive environment means you feel valued and able to perform at your best by being your authentic self at work. We know that our future success not only depends on being innovative and progressive in the changing legal market but, most importantly, on our people feeling highly engaged in meaningful work.  

We understand that you have commitments and personal interests outside of work and we strive to create a working environment based on mutual trust and respect, in which you can perform at your best whilst maintaining sustainable balance across your life.

Herbert Smith Freehills is committed to the inclusion of all individuals participating in the application and interview process, and while performing job functions. This includes providing reasonable accommodations to those who require them. Please note that you will have the opportunity to request accommodations at each stage of the assessment process. To request accommodations before scheduling an interview, please reach out to the Graduate Recruiter for this office and we will follow up shortly. You can find their details at the bottom of our website page.