Graduate Certificate in Law

Summary

This flexible certificate is a way for you to take undergraduate law courses if you have already completed an undergraduate law degree from a recognised university.

Programme overview

This certificate is an excellent choice for law graduates from both New Zealand and overseas who wish to further enhance their legal knowledge.

You can focus on an area of specialisation according to your own interests or professional requirements, while updating skills and continuing professional development (it meets the requirements of the New Zealand Law Society's Continuing Professional Development).

Becoming a barrister and solicitor

Overseas practitioners or graduates who wish to be admitted to practise as a barrister and solicitor in New Zealand will need to apply to the New Zealand Council of Legal Education to have their overseas legal qualifications assessed.

Programme structure

60 points are required.

The programme is one semester full-time but may be completed part-time (over any duration).

Students must pass 60 points of law courses from LLB Parts II, III and IV. If a student wishes to enrol in an LLB Part II course, they must satisfy the Grade Point Average required for admission into LLB Part II.

With faculty approval, in lieu of courses from LLB Parts II, III, or IV, a student may substitute up to 30 points from courses listed in the Master of Laws programme. It will be required for the student to include Legal Research Methodology (LAW 700) with other courses from the Master of Laws programme.

With faculty approval, a student may enrol in a suitable 15-point course from Stage II or higher in a relevant programme offered elsewhere in the University.

Please ensure that you complete the Law 006 form below to select your courses for the Grad Cert in Law.

Course Selection form for COP, Grad Dip and Grad Cert programmes

Postgraduate pathway

Download the Law postgraduate pathway (407KB, PDF)

Where could this programme take you?

A Graduate Certificate in Law is an excellent choice for LLB graduates from both New Zealand and overseas who wish to further enhance their legal knowledge. It enables law graduates to focus on a new area of specialisation, update skills, continue professional development and gain an academic qualification while fulfilling professional requirements required by the NZCLE.

Jobs related to this programme

Academia – lecturing, research

Government – policy work, resource management, parliamentary drafting

Judiciary

Law reform

Mediation

Private companies – in-house legal counsel, tax, property, management consultant, regulation, compliance, human resources

Private practice – barrister, solicitor

Public service – prosecution, defence

Further study options

Postgraduate Certificate in Law

Master of Laws

Master of Legal Studies

Doctor of Philosophy