Law Society President welcomes the state’s newest lawyers

Law Society of New South Wales President Brett McGrath and the President of the Newcastle Law Society, Gary Fox, hosted the almost 70 new law graduates at a New Admittees Dinner on Friday 9 February.

“The paths available to these early-career lawyers are diverse and challenging”, McGrath said in his speech to an audience comprising the new admittees and fellow practitioners in the region.

“As they take the first steps in their professional lives, they do so knowing that the law is a calling which requires adherence to the highest ethical standards”.

With their admissions to the Supreme Court’s role of practitioners, these early graduates can apply to the Law Society for a Practising Certificate, thus entitling them to practice law in New South Wales.

“The early career lawyers admitted today hold the future of the profession in their hands”, continued McGrath. “They can be drivers of change in a profession that’s constantly evolving and agents of social good as they find ways to avail the broader community of their talents as their careers progress.

The dinner, which included a speech from the Chief Justice of NSW, the Honourable Andrew Bell, is not just an opportunity to celebrate and recognise the work of those being admitted but also a chance for them to engage with fellow practitioners in the region and mark the 200th anniversary of the Supreme Court of NSW.

It was also a chance for McGrath to reinforce the importance of lawyers as cornerstones in their communities.

“The legal profession’s long-held tradition of service to the community is manifested in many ways, whether through leadership roles in charities, representing the profession in bodies like the Law Society, or the thousands of hours of pro-bon work that goes unrecognised each year,” McGrath said.

“For my term as President of the Law Society this year, I have committed to elevating awareness of the service lawyers give to their communities”.