The cost of becoming a lawyer

In his address at the 2025 Opening of Law Term Dinner, Chief Justice Andrew Bell highlighted the cost of practical legal training (PLT) in this state. The Chief Justice noted that the fees involved in obtaining practical legal training ranged from between $11,000 and $12,000 for a graduate diploma. He expressed concern over the fees, particularly, whether cost was a barrier for students and if it is deterring early career lawyers from pursuing careers in the public sector.

Reasons people choose to study law

Maxine Evers, Associate Professor and Program Head for the Practical Legal Training program at the University of Technology, Sydney (UTS) says students remain strongly motivated to forge a meaningful career. “I think there’s still [a] strong commitment to change the world and we have seen this in several pieces of research,” she says.

In NSW, students can choose to study a single undergraduate law degree or a combined degree in law and another discipline.

The cost of obtaining a law degree is certainly high and it can vary depending on a number of factors. These include which university you attend, whether it’s a single or double degree, whether you are a domestic or international student and whether you qualify for government assistance.

For example, depending on which university you go to, a single undergraduate degree in law can cost up to $168,960 for a domestic student and $203,520 for an international student.

To obtain a combined degree in law and another discipline, the cost can be even higher. Depending on the university, it can be up to $268,800 for a combined Bachelor of Commerce/Bachelor of Law degree.

This does not include the cost of practical legal training, which all law students will need to undergo if they wish to qualify and practise as a solicitor in NSW.

Oliver Williams, paralegal at the Justice and Equity Centre, is among those whose employers covered the cost of PLT at the College of Law. Williams, who is due to be admitted as a solicitor later this month, says that he does not know anyone who did not complete their PLT due to the cost. However, he can imagine the cost of PLT being a “big barrier for many, especially [given] the extra $950 for admission, and $1000 for a practising certificate,” he says.

Cost of practical legal training

The biggest provider of practical legal training in NSW is the College of Law. Since the Chief Justice personally raised his concern over the “level of charging” with the Chairman and Chief Executive of the College of Law, the College has adjusted its tuition fee.

The cost of completing the practical legal training program at the College of Law now ranges from $9,200 for a domestic student to $13,270 for an international student.

In the College of Law’s Financial Report for the year ending 30 June 2024, the College disclosed a net surplus of $18.8 million, up from $16 million in 2023. The College of Law is regulated by the Australian Charities and Not-For-Profits Commission, and it generates most of its revenue from the provision of “goods or services.”

There are only a handful of accredited PLT providers in NSW and only a couple of universities offer PLT as part of the law degree. UTS is one of the institutions that offer PLT as part of its Bachelor of Laws degree.

Evers says the UTS course is well suited to students who are certain about wanting to become a lawyer. “We have a strong contingent of Bachelor of Law students … their fees are the same. Instead of doing electives, they do their PLT, so it makes no difference to them in terms of fees.”

Evers explains that students who choose to study a combined bachelor’s degree then do a graduate certificate in professional legal practice to qualify for admission. However, that is a postgraduate degree and the fees are calculated based on the postgraduate scale of fees. “Our fees haven’t gone up dramatically over the years … our fees are recommended by the university. It’s not a faculty decision…,” she says.

In terms of the cost of PLT, Evers says that given it’s completed in one semester, it can seem like a lot of money, but an important consideration is what is being done with the money generated from fees.

“We are a public university so our income from education and … research, is then put back to the university to fund research and training and development to fund education programs such as Equity Access Programs for undergraduate students,” she says.

Evers draws a distinction between private providers and academic institutions.

“The fees that we generate from PLT, as well as from our other courses, are returned primarily to the university as a public institution that’s accountable to the community for other projects that increase, we hope, access to education,” she says.

This sentiment echoes what the Chief Justice said about ways of fees being “returned to the profession”.

In terms of how to alleviate some of the costs involved in obtaining legal qualifications, Evers suggests another area worth investigating is the need to pay students on placement. She has noticed a trend where some students are not being paid for practical experience or placements, especially for those who need to complete 65 days of practical experience. “Now that’s fine if they’re working at a Community Legal Centre or … Legal Aid … etc. But we do know that some of them are working in the private profession and are not being paid,” she says.