JobBoard - FAQs DPP Employment Page

Employment with the ODPP
The Office of the DPP employs people who perform a range of functions including:

Legal officers (State Prosecutors and Confiscations Lawyers)
Paralegal and Clerical Officers;
Articled and Vacation Clerks;
Legal Secretaries; and
Corporate Support (human resources, finance, records, information technology and media / public relations).

As an agency within the WA Public Sector, the office complies with Government recruitment practices and the relevant Public Sector Standards in Recruitment, Selection and Appointment. All permanent and fixed term positions greater than six months (and to be filled by an external appointment), are advertised on the Western Australian Government Job Board (jobs.wa.gov.au), this website (click on ‘Jobs at DPP’) and in the Saturday edition of the West Australian. Senior legal positions may also be advertised in the Weekend Australian newspaper. If you are interested in vacancies with the ODPP, it’s recommended you click on the ‘Email me Jobs’ link to be automatically notified as advertised vacancies arise.

Non-Australian citizens and non-permanent residents can be engaged on a fixed term contract provided their visa provides this option. More information is available on the Department of the Premier and Cabinet’s website under ‘Getting a Job’.

For further information on employment opportunities with the ODPP, please contact the HR Consultant on (08) 9425 3818 or by email to jobs@dpp.wa.gov.au

Legal Positions
For all Legal Officer positions, admission or eligibility for admission as a practitioner of the Supreme Court of Western Australia is a prerequisite to appointment. Please refer to the Legal Practice Board of Western Australia for details regarding the admission process.

State Prosecutors
State Prosecutors represent the community and public interest by conducting criminal prosecutions under Western Australia state law throughout various courts. They are appointed to have overall responsibility for both the preparation and presentation work of prosecution cases as they progress through the criminal court process.

View the generic job description forms below:

Vacant State Prosecutor positions are generally advertised in sequential order from level 5LG, level 4LG, level 3LG to level 2LG. Vacancies are then filled from the list of applicants deemed most suitable and available for selection and appointment.

Graduate Recruitment (Law Graduates)
The ODPP actively contributes to the training and development of junior lawyers, and has participated annually in vacation clerk and articled clerk programs for many years.

The ODPP employs up to 4 graduates each year on fixed term contract that covers the pre-admission requirements, and the post admission restricted practice period.

The Legal Practice Board of Western Australia and the Law Society of Western Australia have recently made a series of changes, which has affected the recruitment and appointment of law graduates. Graduates are encouraged to keep abreast of these, and further changes by visiting those websites regularly.

The Law Society has up until 2010, supplied a ‘Guide’ to the law profession and law students regarding the advertising and appointment dates of clerks and graduates. On 24 June 2010 they announced that they’ll no longer be monitoring that scheme. As a result, this website will be updated as required with information confirming the direction of graduate recruitment for the ODPP.

Advertising and Applications for Graduate Positions
For 2011:
In the first instance, the ODPP will be making offers of articles to law graduates (to commence in 2011), through the Priority Offer System established by the Law Society in January 2010. Should vacancies arise, or are not filled during this process, the ODPP will advertise to fill the positions on the WA Job Board.

For 2012:
Until contrary advice is received from the Law Society, the ODPP will continue to offer graduate positions in accordance with the Priority Offer System, and therefore to be eligible, students:

must complete a formal vacation clerkship with the ODPP (i.e. summer 2010/2011 or winter 2011); and
must complete their final year of study in 2011.

Advertising for Vacation Clerkships
The ODPP will be accepting and reviewing applications for summer 2010/2011 and winter 2011 vacation clerkships in accordance with the following timetable:

Applications open:	Monday 9 August 2010
Applications close:	Friday 20 August 2010
Application review/interview:	Monday 23 August – Friday 24 September 2010
Offers (from 9.00am - 11.00am):	Wednesday 29 September 2010

If you are applying for both a summer and winter clerkship, you will need to submit 2 separate applications. Please follow the instructions in the job advertisement.

Summer and Winter Vacation Clerks
The ODPP offers 12 summer and 12 winter vacation clerk positions*, where students learn first hand about the specific work and nature of the Office.

Generally, the period of a summer clerkship spans the months November to February. Winter Clerkships are completed during June and July.

* Summer clerkships are reserved for, and offered to students who are eligible to graduate with a law degree in 2011, or have graduated prior to this date.

* Winter clerkships are reserved for, and offered to students who are eligible to graduate with a law degree in 2011, or have graduated prior to this date.

Application for a Vacation Clerkship
Applicants are expected to submit the following information for a summer and/or winter vacation clerkship application:

a current and comprehensive resume,
an academic transcript to date,
details of 1 or 2 referees (if possible), and
a covering letter of no more than 2 pages that expresses your interest in working for the ODPP.

Please apply for your winter and summer vacation clerkships online by visiting www.jobs.wa.gov.au, searching for ‘ODPP summer (or winter) vacation clerkship’* in the web search box. Instructions on how and where to submit your application are included in each advertisement.

* Please note that there will be 2 separate advertisements.

If you’re unable to apply online, the advertisement will offer alternate methods of submitting your application.

Should you have any questions about the application, or recruitment and selection process, please contact the HR Consultant by email at jobs@dpp.wa.gov.au or by calling (08) 9425 3818.

Non Legal Positions

As vacancies arise, all Paralegal, Clerical, Corporate Support and other non-legal positions are advertised on the Government job board (jobs.wa.gov.au). Often, these positions are advertised as ‘appointment pools’ where the office can draw from a ‘pool’ of suitable applicants when vacancies arise over the following twelve months.

Please make sure you read each advertisement carefully, as the application process may be different to others advertised. A ‘guide for prospective applicants’ package is also supplied with each advertisement, which aims to provide you with the best chance of submitting a competitive application.

View some generic job description forms below: