imotay

Hi James

Sorry for not responding to you before. I moved house mid -nov and I have only just managed to sort out the internet (BT and AOL are trying to give me a nervous breakdown). We have firewalls at work that stop you accessing anything as exciting as blogs or personal emails so I couldn't get back on this site till now.

Thanks for your ever helpful response. That's interesting that they just accepted a practising certicate rather than an admission certificate.....think I'll try that too.

Thanks for your advice about signing up to the courses before getting my exemption back. I'm going to do that. I thought the 2 definate subjects you had to do were:
Ethics and professional responsilbilty
Trust and Office Accounting

It doesn't mention Oz Constitional Law on form 17 or in the Practical Legal Training Competency Standards. Is it an academic exemption (form 16) rather than a practical one? I haven't found any info on what academic courses I should have taken.

Unfortunately, the College of Law courses aren't accepted anymore (since the uniform principles were adopted) so I'll have to find another provider.

Thanks again for the advice. I'm so excited to be so close to being able to go to Oz, yet feel like I have an enormous wall to get over first.....oh well.

Don't suppose you know anything about partners joining you on a professional skills visa do you? From what I have read it seems like I would have to sponser my boyfriend to join me, but I was sure that spouses/parters could just get in on your visa provided they passed the medicals and police checks.

thanks
Imo

jimbo3030

...thought better quote otherwise I would forget the stuff in your post...

Funny you posted today actually - it's my last day at work! Not entirely sure how I feel about unemployment in, ummm, 35 minutes. Quite good I think.

You're right re the 2 practical subjects. Both reasonably straightforward I found. I studied them both over a 10/11 week period. Bit hectic near the end to get swot notes sorted and you have to go at a furious pace in the exams themselves, but not too tricky.

Yeah, Oz Constitutional Law was the only exam I had to do after lodging my app for academic exemptions. Dont think the uniform principles have changed the need to do that, but havent looked at them in detail.

Spouses/De Facto spouses? You dont sponsor, they just go on as your spouse or de facto spouse (if you're not married) so no seperate application required for them. If you get the 120 points on your own (i.e. just your skills, IELTS, age etc) then all your partner needs to do is have a medical/PCC and do IELTS if they're not a UK/US etc passport holder.

Mine was straighforward, but I broke up with my girlfriend over Xmas so now I'm going solo. Arse.

imotay

Wow........unemployment. I'm exceedingly jealous.......that must be mean that you are about to head off to the sun.

Thanks for all your advice, you have certainly made this whole process a lot clearer. I might well track you down for more advice when I start to do the actual courses (argghhh, when will I reach a point in my life where there are no more exams). I'm sending off the application forms this month, it's taken me ages and then next month I'm going to sign up for the courses I need to take. I thought I might phone up about Oz Constitional Law to check I still def need to do that too. That'll be a fun few months to look forward to! Then hopefully when they write back to say what courses I need to do, I will already have done them.

Hoping to get it all done and dusted quickly so I can go out & enrol at the court in August. I expect to have no life at weekends till then, but it will be worth it. I'm not going to wait until the visa comes through though, I'm going to head off as soon as I send the visa application off (they can't refuse me if I have 120 points right?) I think I only have to be working as a solicitor up until the day I apply for the visa, rather than the day it's granted. I just can't keep working in an office.....it's killing me. Going to head off travelling till the visa comes through.

Sorry you broke up with your girlfriend (that sucks). Maybe you'll find yourself an ozzie sheila when you get out there!

Goodluck with the move James.

Sarah1980

Hi Imotay and Jimbo

I am also about to start the same process and read through your emails with each other - they were far more helpful than anything else I have read!

I was wondering if you might be able to answer a few questions for me?

I am currently working in London in employment and am 3 years pqe. I had initially hoped to go travelling then head to Australia on a 12 month working Visa and get sponsored there and do re-qualification etc - I now realise a little over-optimistic!

I thought I would be ok in the current climate as I do employment which is still busy in London and quite a few jobs around. However, the agent I had contacted in Sydney said that although there are jobs the firms are far less liekly to give them to oversees lawyers because of all the additional costs. She said that if I started my re-qualification process I would be a more attractive prospect. Have you guys been told the same thing? Do you know what the job market is like in Sydney at the minute?

Despite that I have decided to sod it and just go.... I am now planning on starting this process here during my notice and continue it while I am in Argentina and then do all the stuff that I can only do in Oz when I arrive. I take it that's possible? Or do you need to pass certain hurdles before you can get any further with the process?

Also is it just the exams and attending court that needs to be done in Oz?

Sorry one last question before you stop reading if you haven't already!

From all the threads I have read, not many people seem to turn up on a working Visa with a hope to get sponsored - my agent seemed to think that was possible?

Thanks in advance for any help you can give me. I am just about to start on all these forms - arrghhh

Sarah

auds

hi Sarah

Am not going to be of much help to you but I can empathise! I have 3 yrs pqe (in Ireland) and am going to Melbourne in April. I have been in contact with the Victoria Law council and know the info I need to get together to apply to be admitted in Victoria, I just need to get it all together now.

Having researched the market and read posts on this website, I am not too confident of getting a job when I arrive. I think I will need to do at least 2 subjects (ethics and accounts) before I can be admitted. I reckon it will be a case of hoping to get any kind of job while doing these exams and fingars crossed once admitted in Victoria that might get job in law then. Am going to be on a spouse visa so no work restrictions but not sure this will help given the current economic situation.

would also like to hear from anyone in oz at moment and if I hear of anything helpful in the meantime, I'll let you know.

A

Sarah1980

Hi Auds

Thanks for the sympathy! This process is just a nightmare - I must of been slightly stupid to think it would be easy!

As we are completing the forms at the same time it would be nice to keep in touch in case each of us has any tips for the other as we are doing them.

I was hoping that in Oz even if I couldn't get a permenent job I could at least temp doing paralegal work or something - fingers crossed!

Sarah

mt_123

Hi all,

I've just been reading through this thread which is rather more useful than what I've come across so far on any of the state law society websites.

I'm currently in the second year of a four year training contract (because I'm doing it at half time alongside the CPE and LPC). From what I can gather, I would need to sit at least three more exams after I qualify in England in order to requalify. However, I may be taking a year out from my training contract from this September and possibly spending some time in Australia. Does anyone have any idea if I could take the three additional exams then rather than waiting until I qualify here? I haven't come across anything to suggest that I can't, but maybe I'm missing something. I'm not sure how long you need to be qualified in England before you can practice in Australia, but I would be planning on staying in England for some time after I do qualify.

I realise that you've all qualified already but if you can point me towards something I've missed, it would be much appreciated.

I should also add that I have dual citizenship so luckily I don't have to worry about any restrictions with regard to visas etc.

Many thanks

jimbo3030

Hi Sarah

My agent in Oz says there are very few jobs around there at the moment. She hopes that it will pick up later this year, but even without sponsorship there isnt much going on. That is Melbourne but got the impression that there is a bit of a recruitment freeze generally.

The only thing i had to do in Oz was attendance at court. I did my exams in the UK, though I've got to admit I dont know whether the 'uniform principles' have changed this. You could get your applications for exemptions in now because yo9u're gonna have to do that anyway. You need a ref from your boss for the practical exemptions, so get that before you leave!

WHV - dont see why not. If you're out there then it would prob make it easier to do the exams and stuff. I've already had my WHV a few years ago so it wasnt an option for me.

Anything else, just give us a shout.

James

jimbo3030

MT

You might need to do more than that. On the LPAB website (the NSW site re admission as a sol), it sets out the requirements for overseas applicants. The requirements vary depending on the stage of admission you are at in the UK.

So if you're admitted, then you generally only have to do the 3 exams (oz constitutional law, ethics, accounts). As you've not been admitted, I reckon you might need to do more than that. I was able to do my constitutional law exam before i had the confirmation of the requirement from LPAB, but i couldnt sit the ethics and accounts exams until the LPAB exemption letter had come through.

So even though you are going to qualify, i'm not sure you would be able to sit the exams now because LPAB would prescribe different requirements as you're not yet qualified.

Anyway, the LPAB website is pretty useful, then I would drop college of law an email/call to speak to them about it. They were all generally pretty helpfull. i had a quick look on LPAB and it looks like you wouldnt be eligible for the practical exemption yet:
http://www.lawlink.nsw.gov.au/lawlink/lpab/ll_lpab.nsf/vwFiles/Exemption_Eligibility_5_Nov_08.pdf/$file/Exemption_Eligibility_5_Nov_08.pdf

james

Sarah1980

Thanks James.

Fingers crossed it picks up - this "credit crunch" is getting rather inconvenient!
You're right re College of law. I am still trying to find out where I can take the exams. But figure I will worry about that once I get my forms lodged.

Good luck on the job front.

imotay

Hi all

It looks like James has beaten me to it on answering your queries. He is the font of all knowledge.

James - I've just learnt something new from you.......that I can't do accounts and ethics till I receive the application letter. That's so annoying as I wanted to start all the courses before I heard back. At least I can start the Oz constitional law course now.

Sarah - I also had my working visa already, but one thing I would say is, I don't know what your migration plans are.....but for me I needed to have 3 years pqe to get the skilled visa and had to be working in that profession up until I applied. I'm not sure if working as a paralegal in Oz would count (I think that is what you would be until you were requalified), but if you are planning on getting sponsored this might not be such a problem for you.

I wish I could just jump on that plane now!!!!

welshtony

Just to add to this topic, those Qualified solicitors who have 12 months experience as a solicitor AND have a relative who can sponsor them to Australia, it is open to you to apply for a general VETASSESS 50 point occupation, as long as you can score the required 100 points. You should score 100 with just 1 years recent experience if you are aged under 35, or under 40 with 3 years experience in the last 4 years.

This then allows you to sort the "conversion" inside Australia as a permanent resident.

Regards


Tony Coates
MARN 0635896

Sarah1980

Thanks Imotay

I have only had my holiday VISA so think I still qualify for a 457. Have you completed all your forms yet? I assum you have by now.

Was wondering if you could help me out as I started mine at the weekend and some parts were a bit confusing.

How did you manage to show academic exemption from Torrens land system? Did you just state thgat it is similar to the systems we studies in the UK?

Also I did not study Company law, evidence and ethics at University but can show I did these later on LPC and other exams as part of training. Is this what you did or did you actually study tehse as part of your law course?

In the eligibility section is states that you must have been in active practice since you were admitted. How did you show this as I don't have my practising cert's for each year. Will they just take your word for it?

In 4.6 (c) the guidelines state that evidence for exemptions must be verified by employer or someone you have worked with. I recall you saying to James that you had not told your employer yet - neitehr have I. How did you satisfy this? I could ask one of my friends here but obviously they are not a partner.

Sorry for all the questions - just when I think I have got my head round this stuff i get even more confused!

Thanks again

S

auds

Hi Sarah

I have read through the forms and booklet I got from the Victorian Law Council and I don't think it said that you have to have the letter from your employer until you are applying to be admitted. I havent told my employer yet either.

As for showing the subjects I studyed, I have got copy of the course booklet from my uni showing the subjects studied and details on each and a list of books we were supposed to study for each subject. The uni also gave me a letter stating that I was awared an LLB and stating how many hours a week we did etc. I also have transcripts from Uni.

I have applied for transcripts from the Irish law society and for details of the subjects on the course.

I dont' think you need to worry about the ethics part as we will be made to that again. Not sure what to do about the Torrens property law but will defo apply for the exemption.

I do have copies of my practising certs. I am sure you could ask your law soceity to give you a letter saying when you were admitted and taht you have been practising ever since.

good luck

Sarah1980

Hi Thanks for the advice.

I have doen the same re course info and the LPC provider gave me something similar. I will ask the law society if they can provide me with a letter - thanks.

Even if you are applying for Victoria dod the Uniform guidelines apply - I think t5hey apply regardless of state. In there it definitely states aT 4.6 in the showing equivalence section that you have to corrobate the evidence by your employer or perosn you worked with. Have a look and see if you agree?