Program Details

Leo Cussen’s Practical Legal Training helps you be the Whole Lawyer. Our PLT program is designed to teach you the skills and develop your professional capabilities, so you enter the legal profession as a confident lawyer with technical capability, human skills, character and adaptability.

The Whole Lawyer

Everyone’s career goals are different. That’s why we’ve designed our PLT to be personalised to your needs. Whether it’s start dates, learning modes, specialisations or personalised mentoring, we want you to enjoy a personalised PLT experience at Leo Cussen.

What is your learning style? There are currently three formats available for law grads.

Blended Learning (BL)
Mostly self-paced online, plus 10 days of immersive face-to-face learning onsite.

Get the best of both worlds. Enjoy the flexibility of online training, with some face-to-face learning where you’ll receive instant, in-person feedback from your instructors and socialise with other PLT trainees.

The 10 days of interactive face-to-face learning are mandatory and held on specific dates onsite. To find the attendance dates, check out the course dates.

Online Learning (OL)
Mostly self-paced online, plus 10 days of immersive sessions held via video conferencing.

Giving you the flexibility to work at your own place, online PLT can be completed from any location.

The 10 days of interactive face-to-face learning are mandatory and held on specific dates via Zoom. To find the attendance dates, check out the course dates.

Onsite Learning

Two days per week of onsite structured learning and three days per week of self-paced online, plus 10 days of immersive learning.
Location: 15 William St, Melbourne VIC 3000

Make the most of the opportunity to engage in our simulated legal practice. Attend 10 days of Immersive learning onsite at our Melbourne office, and then continue working collaboratively with other grads, mentors and supervising lawyers on Tuesdays and Thursdays throughout the program.

Find out more about specific course dates below.

Course Dates

Our PLT course goes beyond the minimum requirements for admission within Australia. We want you to enter the legal profession as a confident and capable lawyer, well-equipped with the knowledge, skills and values required to be the Whole Lawyer.

The Leo Cussen PLT is designed to provide you with the 4 professional capabilities of the Whole Lawyer.  You can find out more about the 4 professional capabilities of the Whole Lawyer.

The Whole Lawyer

These 4 capabilities are developed through different and complementary parts of our course.

(1) Technical Capability (TQ)

Technical Capability is developed throughout the PLT course. During each of your five rotations, you will run client matters across a range of practice areas, while being supported by expert practitioners.

(2) Human Skills (EQ)

Human Skills are developed and appraised through immersive learning with a focus on the people skills required for effective client interaction, negotiation, and advocacy. This includes the option to be seconded as part of your GDLP to work with real clients as a paralegal with Anika Legal.

(3) Character (CQ)

Character is developed through a 20-week full time or 30-week part time program of mentoring with a focus on ethics, professionalism, and reflective practice. During this time, you will work closely with your mentor – an experienced lawyer – who will act as a guide through the course and a sounding board as you look to enter the profession.

(4) Adaptability (AQ)

Adaptability is developed through the Leo Justice Lab. The Leo Justice Lab is undertaken by every Leo Cussen graduate. You will work in a team to apply your knowledge to a real access-to-justice problem faced by a partner organisation. You’ll be taught and appraised on methods and mindsets for innovation, including legal tech awareness, critical thinking, and collaborative problem solving, which you’ll use as you enter the legal profession.

Find out more about Leo Justice Lab.

Leo Justice Lab

Our PLT program is designed to help you to be the Whole Lawyer by developing your technical capability, adaptability, human skills and character. This is done through four parts of the course: rotations, mentoring, immersives and Leo Justice Lab.

While completing your PLT at Leo Cussen, you’ll progress through five rotations that reflect the experience of a grad in a simulated law firm. The five rotations are:

1. Induction – The Induction rotation gives you time to transition from university into legal work, to settle you into the course and to understand the pathway to admission and the profession you’ll soon join.
2. Transactions – During the Transactions rotation you’ll work on client files in the Property Law and Commercial and Corporate practice areas.
3. Specialist – During the Specialist rotation, you’ll choose two practice areas to specialise in. You can choose two options to complete during your PLT program:
   – Administrative (Human Rights) Law Practice
   – Banking & Finance
   – Consumer Law Practice
   – Criminal Law Practice
   – Employment Law Practice
   – Family Law Practice
   – Planning & Environment
   – Wills & Estates
4. Disputes – During the Disputes rotation, you’ll work on a client file in the Civil Litigation practice area.
5. Profession Ready – The Profession Ready rotation gives you a chance to focus on your future career as a lawyer, as well as developing skills for advocacy.

Throughout each rotation you will be guided by your mentor. Your mentor is an experienced lawyer who will provide you with personalised coaching and help develop skills and values for reflective practice. Alongside your mentor, you will also work closely with a supervising lawyer through the Transactions, Specialist and Disputes rotations. The supervising lawyer is a practice area expert who you will work alongside throughout each client file during each rotation.

From Week 12 onwards, you’ll also take part in the Leo Justice Lab. Through Leo Justice Lab, you’ll work in a team to generate real-world policy or technology solutions that help impact justice. You’ll develop skills for the future of law including innovation and collaborative problem-solving. Find out more about the Leo Justice Lab.

Leo Justice Lab

Throughout the PLT program, you’ll participate in immersive learning that develops the people skills you’ll require for the legal profession. Immersive learning takes different forms in each learning mode.

For the Blended and Online courses, you’ll take part in three ‘immersives’ across the PLT program. Each immersive is a multi-day, face-to-face learning block where you’ll interact with your mentor and other grads. These take place during the Induction, Specialist and Profession Ready rotations.

For the blended and onsite programs, these take place onsite, while for the online program, immersives are conducted online via video conferencing.

You can find out more about the immersive attendance dates here.

Course Dates

Building on the four capabilities you’ve developed through the PLT program, the professional placement provides an opportunity to further experience real-life legal work.

You’ll get to practice the skills you’ve developed throughout the PLT program, and apply them in a real-world setting. You could complete your placement in a law firm, a community legal centre, in the legal office of a government department, or in-house.

The professional placement component of our PLT program takes 20 days in WA and 15 days in all other states and is a requirement for admission to legal practice.
Leo Cussen also offer the opportunity to have your placement organised for you for a fee of $650.

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