Wotton + Kearney Clerkship Application
Insurance and risk law firm with substance, built on real relationships and backing each other
At a Glance
- Gender pay gap: 25.4%
Rankings & Recognition
- Insurance, Construction & Engineering, Professional Liability, Technology, Corporate — Firm Website
Workplace & Culture
Gender pay gap: 25.4%
Women in workforce: 68%
Primary carer parental leave: 26 weeks
Source: Workplace Gender Equality Agency, Employer Gender Pay Gaps 2024-25 — CC BY 4.0
Clerkship Programme
- No traditional clerkship program. Pathways Program (alternative to clerkship): final-year law students work as casual paralegals during final year of law degree
- real client work alongside senior lawyers and partners. WK funds all PLT costs (paid study leave, educational fees, individualised mentoring). Eligibility: final year of undergraduate law degree
- Australian citizen or PR with full working rights. Applications open September each year. Contact: [email protected]. Graduate enquiries (all offices): [email protected]. Vacancies also listed at wottonkearney.com/join-us/vacancies/.
Awards & Recognition
- 5-Star Employer of Choice 2025 (Australasian Lawyer and NZ Lawyer). 48 lawyers recognised in Best Lawyers for Australia/NZ/Singapore 2026
- Ben Nicholson (Managing Partner Asia) awarded Lawyer of the Year. 4 Future Legal Leaders 2025 (Australasian Lawyer). AWEI Bronze Badge (2023–2029). Heidi Anderson: Pro Bono Partner of the Year 2018 and 2019 (Lawyers Weekly Partner of the Year Awards). Diversity Initiative of the Year Excellence Award 2021 (W+K FLEX initiative).
Pro Bono & Community
- Community Footprint program. 20,400 pro bono hours (92% year-on-year increase)
- 44 hours per FTE lawyer. Refugee rights: ~60% of program
- partnerships with Refugee Advice and Casework Service, Human Rights Law Centre, Refugee Legal, and Refugee Council of Australia. Seniors rights and elder abuse: partnerships with Seniors Rights Service NSW and Justice Connect. Contributed to 2025-26 Universal Periodic Review report to UN on Australian human rights record. Dedicated pro bono partner (Heidi Anderson). Award-winning Community Footprint responsible business program.
Culture & Values
- Three core values: (1) Focus on the Main Game — excellence in insurance and risk
- meaningful client relationships
- commitment to giving back. (2) Have Each Other's Back — team-based work
- mutual investment in colleagues
- authentic support. (3) Be Real — authenticity valued
- diversity prioritised
- 'The behaviour you walk past is the behaviour you accept.' D&I commitments: WGEA partner, Pride in Diversity member, Reconciliation Action Plan, AWEI Bronze Badge (2023–2029), LGBTQIA+ Pride@WK network.