SPRINGBOARD 2015: QUT Law Society Careers Guide

My life as a Public Sector Lawyer is a bit like the movie "The Castle"… without the bad 90's fashion and
all of the "pool room" references.
I even had my very own Dennis Denuto moment when I found myself in the High Court when I was only
a third year lawyer. That's the thing about Clayton Utz, you get the opportunity to do things and meet
people and go to places that you never would have dreamed of.
I chose to work in the Public Sector group at Clayton Utz so that I could learn from "the best". The
Public Sector group was the first of its kind in Queensland and was established by the former Crown
Solicitor who then recruited the Deputy Crown Solicitor……… and so on. The partner I work for is highly
respected and recognised as an expert in the area of compulsory acquisition law.
The Public Sector group practices in a range of areas including administrative law, competition law,
privacy and information law, water and local government and property law. The only thing the group
has in common is that our clients are Government entities including State Departments, local Councils,
statutory authorities and government owned corporations (GOCs).
I provide advice to constructing authorities that acquire private land from people or businesses for
public infrastructure like roads, railways and hospitals. I provide advice to the constructing authorities
about their powers under the relevant legislation and claimant's entitlement to compensation. I assist
with the negotiations with the former landowners which may include without prejudice conferences
and/or mediations with solicitors, experts and Counsel. If the parties are unable to reach an
agreement, I act for the constructing authority in the Land Court proceedings.
I don't know of anyone who has gone to university planning to be a compulsory acquisition lawyer. At
university I enjoyed trade mark law but after a rotation in our intellectual property group I found it
wasn't for me. When I first started in the Public Sector group I worked for each of the partners across
a broad range of areas. My experience coordinating due diligence projects, reviewing and drafting
contracts and interpreting legislation has proved invaluable over the course of my career.
Over time, I began to specialise in compulsory acquisition law. I enjoyed the ability to see a matter
through from start to finish. I undertake a mix of advice work and court work but I am particularly
partial to litigation work. The tight timeframes, plethora of documents and the need to coordinate
clients, Counsel and multiple experts make the most of my organisational skills. Litigation also allows
you to work with a range of experts who are at the top of their field. I cannot believe how much I have
learned about land valuation, town planning principles, forensic accounting and mining.
I never would have pictured myself as a litigation lawyer. I am not particularly confrontational and I
wasn't interested in "fighting" for a living but I soon discovered that a courtroom isn't the battlefield
that it's made out to be in the movies. The court process is structured and designed to facilitate an
efficient resolution. In my experience, the 'system' works best when the lawyers for both parties act as
impartial advocates working together to reach a sensible resolution. Compulsory acquisition law is a
pretty specialised area so you get to know the other lawyers and Counsel and develop good working
relationships.
If I had to give a warning to future Public Sector Lawyers, it would be that you will constantly have to
explain that you work for a law firm, not the Government. But if that's the worst thing about your job,
I think you're doing pretty well. And if all else fails, when people ask me what I do, I tell them it's just
like "The Castle".
Kaia Duce, Senior Associate
Clayton Utz