Josh+R

=__Barrister__=

=**__Summary__**= A Barrister is a person that works on their own account, give leegal advice and appear on the behalf of others in civil, family and criminal cases in courts and tribunals. Their clients are usually referred to them by a practising Solicitor =**__Tasks and Duties__**= Barristers may do some or all of the following:
 * give legal advice to Solicitors or the Solitor's client
 * give legal opinions on questionss of law and fact
 * prepare and conduct criminal, civil and family cases in court
 * prepare and present cases to specialist tribunals and committees.

=**__Skills and Knowledge__**= Barristers need to have:
 * knowledge of New Zealand law and legal system
 * knowledge of courthouse proceedure
 * the ability to present evidence in court
 * legal research skills

=**__Personal and Physical Qualities__**= A Barrister must be:
 * calm
 * unbiased
 * quick witted
 * persuasive
 * honest and reliable
 * confident with public speaking

=__**Useful Experience**__= __**Useful experience for Barristers inclue:**__
 * law clerk, executive or secretary work
 * solicitor work
 * public speaking experience

=__**Work Conditions**__=
 * work in offices or courthouses
 * may travel to view scenes, interview witnesses or attend court

=__**Hours and Contact**__= Hours are usual business hours but evenings may be spent researching cases. Contact will occur on a daily basis as you have to deliver cases in court defending or prosecuting numerous people.

=**__Pay and Progression__**= To become a barrister one must start off as a Solicitor and with enough experience and practice they can become a Barrister. Pay for a barrister varies due to experience levels and whether they are self employed or are an employee but they usually earn between 80,000-300,000 a year.

=__**Similar Jobs**__= Jobs similar to a Barrister are: =**__Three__** __**Questions**__=
 * Solicitors
 * Judges
 * What level of education is required to become a Barrister?
 * What job opportunities are available?
 * Whats the job like?

=**__What level of education is required to become a Barrister?__**= To become a barrister you need to have a Bachelor of Laws. After gaining the degree, you must complete a Professional Legal Studies course to be admitted to the role of Barristers and Solicitors of the High Court of New Zealand. A Lawyer wishing to become a has to have three years prior legal experience in New Zealand in the past five years.

__Secondary Education__
Most universities require NCEA Level 3 or an A or B Bursary. Useful subjects to study are essay based such as English, History or Classical Studies. Maths and Accounting are also useful but are less needed

=__**What job opportunities are** available__= Job opportunities for Barristers are average at the moment but it is a steadily growing occupation. The number of people employed as barristers is growing at the slowest rate of all lawyer roles. This is partly because of the high level of experience required to be a Barrister. Solicitors must have at least 3 years legal experience before they apply to be a Barrister. Job openings for Barristers are few and far between as most vacancies arise due to resignation and retirement, not due to more spaces being made.

**__Current Job Openings__**
Currently there are not many job openings for Barristers. There are three openings in Auckland, two in the Nelson/Tasman region, one in Canterbury and one in Wellington.

__**Progression and Specialisations[[image:http://www.carbolicsmokeball.com/images/300/90128.jpg width="221" height="281" align="right"]]**__
Barristers may specialise in one area of law, including:
 * family law
 * environmental law
 * criminal law
 * indigenous rights
 * commercial law

Barristers may start out working as an employee before establishing their own practice.

=__**Whats the Job Like?**__=

__**Nicolette** **Levy**__
As a barrister, Nicolette Levy knows that there always be an opportunity for work because 'people will always have problems with other people.

Nicolette advises people on how to deal with the court process. "Some people just want an opinion, others want me to issue proceedings and some want me to try mediation, so it varies. Another thing that makes the job interesting is that a very interesting issue can arise, whether it be a $20,000 or a $2,000,000 case

**__What kind of person do you need to be?__**
Nicolette say that one of hardest aspects of being a barrister is seeing things form an impartial point of view. "You need to be objective; you need to bring a calm, unbiased mind to a persons argument. It's good if you can be quite a lateral thinker. When I decided to become a lawyer, I very much enjoyed the speech part of the law degree. You need to have confidence to speak in court and that is something that comes with time and practice."

=**__Conclusion__**= I think I would enjoy the job of barrister as the hours are good, they pay is good and I would have the opportunity to travel and meet new people. I think the thing I would dislike about the job is that when you are defending a client there is an immense pressure on you not to mess up. I am highly interested in the job and it would match my qualities,values, skills and interests. To further develop these skills I will have to get more confident in my public speaking ability and to see both sides of an argument more clearly. Over time I could gather enough experience to one day become a Judge which would mean a bigger paycheck but I wouldn't be as busy.

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