Alumni Spotlight - William Underwood

Favourite Memory of Legal Prac

I particularly enjoyed the close camaraderie both among trainees and between trainees and teaching staff, many of whom were senior members of the legal profession. The opportunity to get to know the Hobart legal community and to appear before serving judges was a real highlight. The significant social side was an unexpected bonus: a particularly fond memory is a class bushwalking trip led by the indefatigable then-director, Hugh Murray.

Career Journey & Highlights

After legal prac I joined the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), working on international legal issues in both Canberra and The Hague. Highlights include negotiating on behalf of Australia at the International Criminal Court Assembly of States Parties, participating in cases before the International Court of Justice, and working on the legal response to the downing of flight MH17. After leaving DFAT I specialised further on peace and conflict related issues and am now completing a PhD at Stockholm University examining the influence of international law on constitutional change after civil war. Sadly I have yet to apply many of my hard-won legal prac skills (e.g. trust accounting) but it has always been helpful to be able to call myself a ‘real’ (i.e. admitted) lawyer!

Current Role

As a PhD candidate my main ‘job’ is to conduct research with the aim of producing a dissertation of around 300 pages. My thesis looks at the practical influence of international law on constitutional change after civil war and involves a mix of legal and empirical research, including field interviews in South Sudan. In Sweden PhDs are a bit different to those in Australia in that you are employed as a (very!) junior faculty member and are also involved in teaching and administration. I have therefore also had the opportunity to develop and teach my own courses which has been a lot of fun.

Words of advice for those unsure about commencing the TLPC?

Just do it. You never really know if or when you’ll need it (unless of course, unlike me, you know you want to practice domestic law in Australia). But it’s always useful to have, and better to do it now rather than to have to go back and do it further down the track. Plus, taking a small group attendance based course and appearing before serving judges is a lot more fun and rewarding than taking one of the online courses available in other jurisdictions.

What would you tell your 2010 self?

I would advise myself to prepare a little more for the Supreme Court appearances (yes, it is possible to ‘fail’ them!) I would also tell myself to pay closer attention to the instructions on drafting and filing your admission documentation – I had to re-do mine all over again on the very last day!