How to become a lawyer
Official title: Lawyer
Also called: Solicitor, Barrister, Legal counsel, Attorney, Patent attorney, Prosecutor, Defence lawyer
Lawyers advise and represent clients in legal matters. They also do research, prepare legal documents and defend clients in criminal or civil court proceedings.
Main tasks
- Give legal advice to clients
- Prepare for court cases
- Represent clients in court
- Draft legal documents
- Review contracts and agreements
- Research legal cases
- Resolve disputes through discussion
- Negotiate settlement terms and amounts for clients
How to become one
You need more than one qualification to become a lawyer. You need University Entrance to do the study or training for this job. Required: a Bachelor of Laws; to pass the Professional Legal Studies course; a certificate of completion from the New Zealand Council of Legal Education; a certificate of character from the New Zealand Law Society; to be admitted to the Roll of Barristers and Solicitors of the High Court of New Zealand; a practising certificate from the New Zealand Law Society. Registration body: New Zealand Law Society.
Ways in
- University: Law & Justice degrees, Offered by 5 universities in New Zealand
- Registration or licence: A practising certificate from the New Zealand Law Society. Registration body: New Zealand Law Society (https://www.lawsociety.org.nz/).
Pay · Past change
- Most common pay: $85,000 to $215,000 a year (median $132,000), a TEC estimate before tax.
- Lower: $63,000 a year · Upper: $383,000 a year
- TEC's pay figures are estimates only. TEC says they must not be used to set pay, in pay negotiations or in visa applications.
- Change in the number of people doing this job between the 2018 and 2023 Censuses: Steady (TEC). This is past change, not a forecast.
Who does this work
- About 13,000 people did this job at the 2023 Census (TEC).
Related jobs
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Questions people ask
How do I become a lawyer?
You need more than one qualification to become a lawyer. You need University Entrance to do the study or training for this job. Required: a Bachelor of Laws; to pass the Professional Legal Studies course; a certificate of completion from the New Zealand Council of Legal Education; a certificate of character from the New Zealand Law Society; to be admitted to the Roll of Barristers and Solicitors of the High Court of New Zealand; a practising certificate from the New Zealand Law Society. Registration body: New Zealand Law Society.
How much does a lawyer earn in New Zealand?
The Tertiary Education Commission estimates median pay at $132,000 a year, before tax. Most common pay is $85,000 to $215,000 a year.
Has the number of people working as a lawyer grown in New Zealand?
It has held steady: TEC records the number of people doing this job as steady between the 2018 and 2023 Censuses. This is past change, not a forecast.
Sources
- Tertiary Education Commission (Tahatu Career Navigator): Tahatu career ideas: descriptions, tasks, pay estimates, people employed, employment change 2018 to 2023, entry requirements, registration, interest scores (Site scrape 2026-10 (816 career ideas, sitemap lastmod 2026-10-01)), CC BY 4.0, retrieved 4 October 2026
This content is sourced from the Tertiary Education Commission through the Tahatū Career Navigator website (www.tahatu.govt.nz) and used under the CC BY 4.0 licence. All or some of the information has been modified by Peernovo. TEC has not approved, endorsed or tested these modifications. TEC will not be held accountable for any errors within this content.
Qualification information from NZQA, used under CC BY 3.0 NZ.
This work is based on/includes Stats NZ's data which are licensed by Stats NZ for reuse under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence. Census data via Figure.NZ.
Includes information from O*NET OnLine by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications.
Sources: Tertiary Education Commission, Tahatū Career Navigator (career ideas, pay estimates, entry requirements and study options, CC BY 4.0, modified by Peernovo); Stats NZ, 2023 Census (via Figure.NZ) and the National Occupation List (CC BY 4.0); NZQA qualification information (CC BY 3.0 NZ); O*NET interest scores (CC BY 4.0); ILO global generative AI exposure index (CC BY 4.0). Links between career ideas and ANZSCO groups, degree fields and broad job groups are Peernovo's.
These results are not official statistics. They have been created for research purposes from the Integrated Data Infrastructure (IDI), which is carefully managed by Stats NZ.
Graduate outcomes: these results are not official statistics. They have been created for research purposes from the Integrated Data Infrastructure (IDI), which is carefully managed by Stats NZ.
Updated 4 October 2026