Legal Workplace Experience (LAWS5007)
Reflection Journal Assessment
There are 6 questions below. Each question has two options. Write a reflection in response to one of the
options provided for each question, based on your experiences during your legal workplace experience.
Reflections are expected to be between 500 and 1000 words for each of the questions. Students are assessed
on the quality of their reflections.
Question 1: Competence1
Option 1 – Calling or meeting with a client for the first time
Think back to the first time you were asked to call or meet a client without another lawyer present.
Think of how a reasonably competent and experienced lawyer would approach calling or meeting with a client.
What would a reasonably competent and experienced lawyer do to achieve a basic level of competence in
carrying out their responsibilities? Would they review the file, have a clear understanding of the purpose of
the call or meeting and undertake any necessary research?
Now think about your level of knowledge in the area and your professional obligations to deliver legal services
competently and diligently.
Reflecting on what you did when you were asked to call or meet a client during your legal workplace
experience:
• What did you do that worked well?
• Why do you think it worked well?
• What are you going to do in the future in a similar situation?
• Would you manage your time differently?
• Are your personal standards different to the professional standards?
Option 2 – Given a client’s file for the first time
Think back to the first time you were given a client’s file to work on.
Think of how a reasonably competent and experienced lawyer would approach a client’s file for the first time.
What would a reasonably competent and experienced lawyer do to achieve a basic level of competence in
carrying out their responsibilities? Would they conduct thorough research, read the file and all previous
correspondence fully?
Now think about your level of knowledge in the area and your professional obligations to deliver legal services
competently and diligently.
1 See, eg. Timothy Casey, ‘Reflective Practice in Legal Education: The Stages of Reflection’ (2014) 20 Clinical Law
Review 317.
Reflecting on what you did when you were first given a client’s file to work on during your legal workplace
experience:
• What did you do that worked well?
• Why do you think it worked well?
• What are you going to do in the future in a similar situation?
• Would you manage your time differently?
• Are your personal standards different to the professional standards?
Question 2: Difference and Choice2
Option 1 – Writing Styles
Think back to some of the documents you drafted during the legal workplace experience.
Think about the writing styles and techniques used by others (including your supervisors and other lawyers)
as well as your own style of writing.
Choose two writing techniques or skills you think are effective and explain why. How can you use those
techniques or skills in the future? In what circumstances might they be more, or less, effective?
Option 2 – Interview Styles
Think back to the client interviews you have conducted or observed during your legal workplace experience.
Think about interview styles and techniques used by others (including your supervisor and colleagues) as well
as your own style of interviewing.
Choose 2 client interview techniques or skills you think are effective and explain why. How can you use those
techniques and skills in future client interviews? In what circumstances might they be more, or less, effective?
Question 3: Internal Context3
Think about whether your personal preferences, experiences, biases, character or personal traits impact you
as a lawyer.
Option 1 – Your attributes Helped you as a lawyer
Give an example of where your personal preferences, experiences, biases, character or personal traits
Helped you as a lawyer during your legal workplace experience. How can you build on that strength? In
some situations, could it be a weakness? Explain why.
Option 2 – Challenged
Did you feel personally challenged during your legal workplace experience? Explain the situation and why
you felt challenged. How did you resolve that issue? Would you approach that same situation differently in
the future?
2 Ibid.
3 Ibid.
Question 4: External Context4
Think about whether the personal preferences, experiences, biases, character or personal traits of others
impacted you as a lawyer.
Option 1 – Challenged
Did you feel personally challenged by a client, lawyer, judge or someone you came into contact with during
your legal workplace experience? Explain the situation and why you felt challenged. Did you make an incorrect
assumption or belief? How did you resolve that issue? Would you approach that same situation differently in
the future?
Option 2 – Approach
Did you notice your approach as a lawyer to different clients or lawyers changed? Why did that happen? Was
the setting different? Give two examples.
Question 5: Societal Choice5
Think about whether any societal forces or factors influence you as a lawyer. How society shapes us and our
clients can also affect us as lawyers.
Option 1 – Different Clients
During your legal workplace experience, did you treat any clients differently due to societal forces or factors?
Why? Did it impact your role as a lawyer? Would you prefer to not act for certain clients? Why? Were you
aware you had biases before? Were you aware of the potential biases of others? What would you do
differently in the future?
Option 2 – Societal forces or factors
Were you confronted by a situation during your legal workplace experience that had societal forces or factors
involved? Were you surprised by your reaction? Did it impact you as a lawyer? Has it impacted the client or
another party? What would you do differently next time?
Question 6: Metacognition6
Option 1 – Comprises of 2 parts
Part 1: Mistakes
What are some mistakes you are glad you made during the legal workplace experience? Why? What will you
do differently so that you don’t make the same mistake again?
Part 2: Qualities
Write down 5 qualities or attributes you have and that you believe are valuable or useful as a lawyer. For
example: you are punctual, have an excellent work ethic, demonstrate ethical values, attention to detail,
embrace challenges, are persistent, responsible, motivated, creative thinker, etc.
Choose one and write your final reflective piece on why that quality or attribute is important, why you value it,
why others value it, how you’ve expressed it in the past, and how you’re going to express it in the future.
4 Ibid.
5 Ibid.
6 Ibid.
Option 2 – Comprises of 2 parts
Part 1: Experience
Have any of your thinking processes changed since the start of the legal workplace experience? What have
caused those changes? What will you do differently in the future?
Part 2: Practice
The practice of law. What do you think of that statement? What does it mean to you? After the legal
workplace experience, do you feel better prepared to enter the legal profession?

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