Ever wondered what it'd be like to try on the wig and cape for a day? nzgirl Alana walks us through the perks of life as a lawyer...

Name: Alana Keane
Age: 26
Employer/company: Buddle Findlay
Position: Solicitor

Can you give us a brief job description? I work in the Intellectual Property/Information Technology team at Buddle Findlay. My job basically involves assisting corporate clients with various IP/IT issues, including providing them with advice and drafting legal documents.

How did you get this job? I studied law and management at the University of Waikato. It took me a total of five and a half years and I finally graduated in May 2007. I was successful in obtaining an internship with Buddle Findlay in the summer of 2005/2006. After my summer internship, I was offered a full-time job beginning in 2007 (once I finished my studies).  More than two years on and I’m still here! 

What inspired you to get into this field? I was not actually interested in studying law at University and just wanted to do the Management degree. But on advice from my Dad I decided to give law a go seeing I had the marks to get in. I found the first year really tough and didn’t enjoy it that much, but (once again on advice from my Dad), I decided to continue into second year. It was in my second year that I began to find law extremely interesting and challenging. I think I enjoyed it more as the years went on and the topics you studied became more focused. 

What is a typical week at work like for you? I would say my work week is fairly typical of a corporate lawyer.  I start work at around 8.30am and usually work till about 6-6.30. However, on some occasions I get to go home just after 5pm, and other times I might have to stay a bit later. My week is mainly spent at my office on my computer sending emails to clients, drafting letters of advice to clients, and reviewing and drafting legal documents.

It’s great having an office in the city though as it means you can get out and about at lunchtime (although it can be hard to restrain yourself from shopping too much!). In winter I play indoor netball for my work during the week, and in summer I play touch rugby. It’s always a good way to break up the week. Then most Fridays I usually go to our work Friday night drink to catch-up with other people in the firm.  

What do you enjoy about your job most of all? I get to work with some really intelligent, lovely people and I get a lot of interesting, challenging and varied work. It is also pretty neat to sometimes see a job you have been working on being reported in the paper or on television. 

Best perks of the job? Meeting some really lovely people and making some great friends. Oh and also probably the client boat trips!

What things do you think make your job different or fun? I think working with some quite high profile clients makes my job quite exciting. Also, working in such a big firm, you get to meet some lovely people and they really are what make work fun. We also have a lot of social activities such as quiz night, annual ball and Christmas party. These usually involve some form of dressing up and are extremely fun!

What personality traits/skills/attributes help a person get a job like yours? I think you need to be a really hard worker. Intelligence will take you so far but you need to be prepared to put in the hard yards when required.  I think you also need to be good at interacting with people as being a lawyer is all about providing a service to the client. Like any organisation, you also need to be good at working with your colleagues and the many different personalities. It also pays to be very practical as clients want workable solutions.

Most memorable moment of your job so far? Watching hours and hours of sports footage for a matter we were working on!!!

Any advice for nzgirls wanting to get into this field? Work really hard at University to get goods marks as this opens up a world of job opportunities for you. The students with the best grades are in high demand and basically get the pick of the jobs. However, this means you also need to work hard at high school to get good marks because it can be quite hard to get accepted into law at some Universities.

If you are thinking about studying law, it is also a good idea to spend some time with a lawyer to make sure this is really what you want to do. Television programmes such as Boston Legal are not quite an accurate reflection of what a legal career in New Zealand is like! When it comes to job interviews, make sure you come prepared and know a bit about the firm. However, I think it is most important to be simply be yourself at interviews. There are many different law firms out there so it pays to look around and find one that suits your personality and style.

Where would you like to go from here? Who knows! There are so many options for going forward including working my way up to a senior level in a firm or moving to an in-house position in a company. Only time will tell where I will end up!