1. Home >
  2. Kaupeka Ture | Faculty of Law >
  3. Bachelor of Laws >
  4. Law specialisations >

LLB specialisations and career pathways

Inside law building looking up at the glass ceiling © University of Canterbury 2017

In the third and fourth years of a Law degree you have a wide range of options and can choose to specialise in one or more of the following areas.

It is not possible to offer all courses every year.

Areas of specialisation in Law

Commercial Law is the area which deals with all legal matters connected with commercial business transactions including business structures, issue of shares, contracts, sale of property, loans, taxation, insurance and related matters. Law graduates interested in these fields are most likely to find employment in law firms, share brokers, accountancy firms, insurance companies, banks, government or private businesses.

Those wishing to specialise in this area would consider options from:

Commercial Litigation is concerned with the settlement of commercial disputes.

In addition to the Commercial Law options, those wishing to specialise in this area would choose options from:

Community Law is concerned with advising people who cannot afford to engage a lawyer from a law firm or who are otherwise disadvantaged. Law graduates who are interested in this kind of work are most likely to find employment in community law centres or with activist groups.

Those wishing to specialise in this area would consider options from:

Criminal Justice is concerned primarily with the functioning of the criminal justice system. Law graduates interested in this field might find employment in legal practice, the Crown Law Office, the Ministry of Justice, the Probation Service, community law centres or the Police.

Those wishing to specialise in this area would consider options from:

Students should consider appropriate courses from the Bachelor of Criminal Justice.

Introduction to Criminal Justice (CRJU 101) can be taken as part of the non-law courses for the LLB and other BCJ courses may be cross-credited to the LLB. Discuss with the School of Law’s Academic Manager.

Employment and Industrial Law deals with employment contracts, health and safety, taxation and social security. Law graduates interested in these fields might find employment in commercial organisations, accountancy firms, community law centres and other advisory agencies, employers’ organisations, employment advocates or trade unions.

Those wishing to specialise in this area would consider options from:

General Practice is conducted mainly by small to medium-sized law firms. They deal with a wide range of business including property law, family law, commercial and consumer law, criminal law, trusts, wills and estates. Law graduates interested in General Practice are most likely to find employment with law firms throughout New Zealand.

Those wishing to specialise in this area would consider options from:

Information, Media and Technology Law is concerned with the regulation and the dissemination and ownership of all kinds of information. Law graduates interested in these fields might find employment with law firms, patent attorneys or as in-house counsel in radio, television or technology firms.

Those wishing to specialise in this area would consider options from:

Economic integration, international IP, investment protection are only some of the keywords of International Economic Law. This broad field covers all aspects of law, private and public, necessary to do business internationally.

Students with an interest in International Economic Law are recommended to take the following courses:

Law courses

Economics courses

Management courses

The above courses are particularly interesting for students doing a double degree LLB/BCom.

International Law is largely conducted government-to-government and concerns the relationship of nations to each other. International Law also affects large parts of domestic law ranging from areas as diverse as criminal law and environmental law but is essentially the concern of the state. Law graduates in this field are most likely to find employment in central government (particularly – but not exclusively – in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade) or international and nongovernmental organisations.

Those wishing to specialise in this area would consider options from:

Māori Land and Resource Law is an area of growing importance which deals with claims under the Treaty of Waitangi and the application of natural resource law to Māori resources. Law graduates in this field are most likely to find employment in private practice, iwi organisations, or central and local government.

Those wishing to specialise in this area would consider options from:

Property and Resource Management Law deals with matters relating to the creation, ownership, possession and transfer of both tangible and intangible property. Law graduates interested in these fields might find employment with law firms, central and local government, patent attorneys, property management and development companies, or engineering consultancies.

Those wishing to specialise in this area would consider options from:

Public Law is concerned with the organisation and functioning of the institutions of government and the relationship of those institutions to its citizens and other bodies. Law graduates in this field are likely to find employment in central and local government, as well as in private practice.

Those wishing to specialise in this area would consider options from:

There are numerous other highly specialised areas of Law which practitioners may move into as they gain experience, including:

See the full list of courses

offered in Laws

See all courses