Graduates & summer clerks

Get ready for a great experience

Applications for Graduate and Summer Clerk positions for 2024/2025 across all of our offices are now live! To apply please click here.

Graduates and summer clerks, get ready for a great experience in an enterprising law firm! You’ll be working alongside our lawyers and partners from day one — giving you the best insight into your future career in law.

You’ll be allocated a buddy from your first day who will be there to support you and help answer any questions; let’s not forget they’ll take you for coffee too!

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Diverse graduate programme

Every year we welcome graduates into our national programme which is designed to ensure you get maximum support and exposure to a wide variety of work.

  • You can expect to be involved in client work from day one, as a member of our specialised teams of solicitors, associates and partners all working together to achieve the best outcome for our clients. 
  • You’ll receive plenty of support and guidance from our senior staff.

Why did you join duncan Cotterill?

Training and development

We’re committed to providing a variety of education and training opportunities with topics relevant to starting out your legal career. For rotating summer clerks and graduates, you are supported to attend all internal training opportunities giving you exposure to a wide range of topics. With a firm focus on development and so many opportunities for training you’ll never go short of CPD hours to meet the NZLS requirements!

For summer clerks and graduates, training may look like:

  • Induction into the firm – a full programme to ensure you’re onboarded and familiar with the DC way. This will include in person, online and recorded training.
  • On the job learning – this could be your buddy, supervising partner / senior or colleagues guiding you through you work and tasks.
  • The national graduate programme – this is an in person programme where the national cohort of graduates meet together in one office for in person training across three days. A great way to build strong connections and learn more about the firm and different areas of work.
  • The solicitor development programme – this programme helps our solicitors continue their development in the firm through to the next stage in their career. The topics covered are wide ranging and support your continued progression through to senior solicitor.
  • Lunch and learns – these could be local ones in your office or national ones where our own specialists share updates and interesting developments in their area of work.
  • And many more!

Inclusive summer clerk programme

Our summer clerk programme is the best way to gain a true appreciation of what it’s really like to be part of a legal team at Duncan Cotterill.

  • You can expect to work hard, have fun and put some of that theory into practice as you contribute in client team discussions. 
  • You’ll also have plenty of opportunity to chat with our solicitors, associates, partners and business support team to explore your particular areas of interest.