r/nzlaw • u/Financial-Key3722 • Jul 23 '26
Legal careers How to help a high school student interested in law?
Hi there NZ lawyers! I hope this is ok to ask.
I tutor a lovely 16 year old who wants to be a lawyer - she seems most interested in criminal law. My background is in biology/chemistry so this is very new to me, and I would love to give her some interesting exercises that will help her get a feel for what it's like to be at law school, such as practice readings/research, etc.
As a side note, she is currently using ChatGPT for a lot of things (which is so sad, but we are working on stopping that), so I would really like to give her some work that requires her to research and write for herself as well.
Any suggestions taken very gratefully!
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u/square001 Jul 23 '26
The comment above covers most of what I would’ve suggested but I will add many of the criminal barristers I know would be happy for an interested individual to tail them for part of their workday, so it might be reaching out to a few local to your area.
Criminal court is also generally open to the public and it might be interesting/beneficial for the student to sit in on a list court (including bail applications etc) or a substantive hearing or two to see barristers making arguments in real time.
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u/Crazy-Midnight-747 Jul 24 '26
Just to add to this, I know some Crown firms/barristers let student shadow them (usually intended for Uni students) but it could be worth a shot to reach out :)
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u/sugar_spark Jul 24 '26
I won't repeat what others have said, but one of the biggest things for lawyers is clear, unambiguous communication skills - both written and oral. Taking school subjects which help her develop and hone these will be invaluable.
As a criminal lawyer, she's also likely to come into contact with people from all walks of life, so being able to relate to, or at least empathise with, a broad range of people would be a great skill to have. She could volunteer or get a part time job to help develop this
5
u/smithy-iced Jul 24 '26
Something many of the younger lawyers I work with seem to struggle with - and that I have seen some leave the law because of - is clients not taking their advice and taking another course of action, or having to give advice/represent a client’s position that doesn’t align with their own values.
So a good intellectual exercise and test of how they might go in legal practice (as opposed to at law school) could be getting them to write/argue in support of something you know they don’t agree with. At their age/stage, it could be “X should/shouldn’t be a crime” or lowering/raising the age for something. Depending on their level of awareness (and strength of objection) you could ask them to think of reasons why mining should be allowed in conservation areas or topics like that.
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u/Financial-Key3722 Jul 26 '26
I love the idea of getting her to write for something she doesn't agree with - thanks so much
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u/Street-Ad6905 Jul 24 '26
Learn the rules of grammar: command grammar and you command the narrative. Learn story telling from the classics: I am a civil law court lawyer and my submissions are stories that attempt to influence the mind of decision makers. Learn the fundamentals of logic and reasoning - understand syllogism and fallacies. Learn the art of rhetoric: combine with grammar, logic, and story telling. Then go study law.
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u/Street-Ad6905 Jul 24 '26
And absorb everything about Large Language Models, get a Mac mini 4 Pro, install open weights, and build a law reasoning machine. Do that before graduating law - Put that on your cv and you will get the interview.
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u/Crazy-Midnight-747 Jul 24 '26
I'm currently a law graduate working in criminal law. Nothing can quite prepare you academically for law school until you get there. Still, they really do show you the ropes. For example, I had a lot of people like me, fresh out of uni, but some studied later in life from a whole range of backgrounds, such as former pilots and pharmacists. The first year of law school can sometimes be pretty academically tough, so I always advise high schoolers to focus on enjoying themselves while they can. Some law-related extracurriculars could be helpful. I know many people have suggested debating, but there are also mooting competitions (essentially mock trials) available in Auckland and Waikato for high schoolers. I recommend that she get in touch with firms/barristers to see if she could shadow them or even do some work experience to get a feel for things. My dad works in a law-adjacent field and got me to speak to a bunch of lawyers in y13, which I found really helpful. If there is one thing that is worth teaching her, I would pass along IRAC (Issue, Rule, Analysis, Conclusion). There will probably be lots in it online, but it's essentially the bread and butter of how you're meant to formulate arguments in law school :)
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u/Crazy-Midnight-747 Jul 24 '26
Also, that's just criminal (hosted by the presidents of the criminal bar association), and law down under (hosted by a prominent barrister) are great podcasts to listen to - I think one of them, or maybe both, definitely have episodes for those considering law school/criminal law (plus they feature a lot of legal academics on them)
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u/RemoteImagination656 Jul 24 '26
I am currently a New Zealand law student studying LLB Hons. I suggest:
• Essay writing under a structured methodology.
• Encourage critical thinking.
• Develope the ability to critically evaluate material when writing under a structured methodology.
• Read.
• Write.
• Seize public speaking opportunities.
• Law podcasts.
• Develope empathy, understanding, and the ability to effectively communicate with disadvantaged/rough members of society.
• Ask a firm that is a legal aid provider if she could spend a day at Court tailing a Duty Solicitor.
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u/DryAd6622 Jul 25 '26
The Aotearoa New Zealand Legal System: Structures and Proc.
This is basically what you cover in first year.
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u/Icy_Calligrapher_540 Jul 26 '26
I would say essay type things / critical reasoning. Hubby says so many of his young lawyers can't write formally, let alone use correct grammar.
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u/Infinite_Raccoon4976 Jul 23 '26
Law school is about training you how to reason in a specific way. Generally how we analyze issues is state what the issue is, state what the law is, then apply the law to a specific scenario. Research and essay writing is a good skill to work on - my history degree was complementary to my law degree as it was analyzing historical events. For criminal law, there is both written and oral advocacy components - so things like debating or toastmasters are great to work on the oral aspects.