Summer Clerk applications open March 2027

Our summer clerk programme is for law students in their penultimate year – so for law students who are scheduled to finish all of their University studies no later than June 2029. As we look to our summer clerk cohort to fill our permanent law clerk roles, you'll need to be available for a permanent full-time role starting in January or July 2029. If you have other plans after University which means that you are not available until after July 2029 (such as an exchange or overseas travel) please note this in your cover letter.

Law Clerk applications open March 2027

Our law clerk programme is for law students who will have finished all of their University studies by the end of 2027, and are available to start a permanent full-time role in January 2028. 

Applications open in early March 2027 and close in late March 2027. Interviews will be held in late April in Christchurch and Dunedin and in early May in Auckland and Wellington.

Intern applications open September 2026

If you are a law student from the University of Auckland or AUT with a passion for excellence, and want to kick-start your legal career, and...

• have already completed at least two of the second year law papers; and 
• will complete all your university studies by January 2029,

... then we are keen to hear from you when applications open in September. 

Please note that our intern programme only applies to our Auckland office. 

Applying for a role with us: What happens

Submit your CV, cover letter and academic transcript by the deadline

Overall, try to show your personality. Our HR team reviews all applications and we're keen to hear what makes you who you are!

Remember to submit your application before the deadline and leave plenty of time to do this. Our application process is straightforward – we don't ask you for references or to complete a long questionnaire. 

Some key tips from our previous graduates:

• Keep your CV succinct – 2 to 3 pages is ideal. It should be simple but ordered well. You don't need fancy fonts or pictures.
• Tell us about your education, achievements (both academic and non-academic), work experience and your interests. 
• Triple check your spelling and grammar – a great CV can be let down by typos and small mistakes. 
• Include your contact details.
• Write a one-page cover letter to accompany your CV – tell us who you are. Why law? What interests you? What achievements are you most proud of? Why do you want to work with our firm? Talk to us in a conversational tone (and don't ask AI to write your cover letter)  

We review all applications

Our people are smart, resilient, friendly, fun and diverse. They also have a passion for excellence and always strive to be the best they can be. So, we look for the same in our interns, summer clerks, and graduates.

We're looking for candidates that are enthusiastic, positive and genuinely interested in our work. They'll be from diverse backgrounds and ethnicities, have different perspectives, varied interests and life experiences and be interested in a variety of practice areas. 

Caitlin Read, previous summer clerk (2025) now a solicitor "The culture at MinterEllisonRuddWatts is unparalleled. I was able to immediately build connections during my interviews, which have continued during my summer clerkship. I felt that the firm was genuinely interested in me as a person, and it was great to be able to be myself and have a good laugh with my interviewers."