New Zealand Careers

As New Zealand's first global business law firm, we provide a full range of legal services, covering all major regions and key markets and benchmarked against international best practice. We provide a seamless service, advising international clients doing business in New Zealand and New Zealand organisations doing business elsewhere.

On a local basis, we support New Zealand-focused businesses, and clients in government and public organisations, providing in-depth knowledge and networks. You’ll be working with an incredibly talented team of commercially astute lawyers, including many of the country’s leading legal minds.

To view our current vacancies, please visit our Career Portal.

For further information on our vacancies, please contact the recruitment team.

Innovation and Law&

DLA Piper has spearheaded many innovations in the legal sector.  So much so, we were named Most Innovative Law & Related Services Firm' in the beaton Client Choice Awards in 2022', Most Innovative Law Firm in 2021 by the Financial Times; our Global Co-CEO, Simon Levine, was named Most Innovative Leader and the firm won the award for Most Innovative Law Firm Transformation for its Law& brand. Law& delivers solutions beyond traditional legal services to help our clients succeed in the modern business environment. From consultancy to cutting-edge AI, it integrates technology with first class commercial and legal expertise.

High profile work

DLA Piper offers the opportunity to do work that matters. Here are some recent examples:

• Advising TVNZ on the Spark Sport deal making TVNZ the home of New Zealand cricket;
• Advising on the 2022 M&A Deal of the Year in which Accel-KKR sold New Zealand-founded Seequent to Bentley Systems;
• Advising the Auckland Council group on its participation in the trans-Tasman AsOne bid to secure co-hosting of the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup; and
• Assisting Sean Parker in his successful application to the Overseas Investment Office to purchase a third of Weta Digital.

Supportive and values-based culture

We may be one of the biggest law firms in the world, but it never feels like that. You will find yourself in a close-knit, diverse and supportive team. We pride ourselves in our friendly and collaborative culture where everyone is approachable. We take pride in our values-based culture which promotes openness, flexibility, belonging and wellbeing. Trusting and collaborative relationships with our clients and each other are at the heart of our success.

Strong sector experience

We value the importance of providing sector expertise to our international clients. Our sector approach promotes cross-practice and cross-jurisdiction working and ensures we are strengthening the engagement we have with our key clients. As a firm we are proud to actively support 10 industry sectors which we are continually investing in.

Global service and international opportunities

Because our clients are often global, we have to be too. DLA Piper was the first global business law firm to operate in New Zealand, giving us a key point of difference. Sharing our insights, we work together across borders and jurisdictions in more than 40 countries across the world to provide a seamless service to our clients. As well as having a global team of experts at your disposal, this will mean real opportunities to work abroad and gain international exposure.

Diversity, inclusion and inspiring women leaders

Diversity and Inclusion underpins how we live our values and everything we do. We are defined by our people and are committed to recruiting, developing and retaining the highest calibre of professionals who reflect the diversity of our clients and the communities and markets we work in. We welcome the unique contribution that each person brings to our firm. Our people own our D&I journey, which is why over a third of our people are active in one of our four D&I committees:

IRIS: Promoting an inclusive work environment for colleagues who identify as LGBTTQIA+.

MOSAIC: Aims to promote a culture that is inclusive of all races whilst recognising the uniqueness of Maori as tangata whenua.

THRIVE: Promoting and enhancing our workplace agility and wellness (including mental health).

LAW: Leadership Alliance for Women Group, our network that plays an integral role in our vision for a gender balanced and inclusive firm.

 

Pro bono, giving something back

We also have a deep commitment to pro bono, with every lawyer encouraged to perform at least 35 hours of pro bono work each year. We work with individuals and organisations that could not otherwise afford counsel, providing advice across a wide range of specialisms and geographies. Additionally, all our people are allocated two days a year to participate in firm-organised volunteering activities in the community. 

To deliver on our commitment of providing equal opportunity and breaking down barriers faced by under-represented groups when entering the business of law, we have partnered with The Prince’s Trust NZ to launch our Head Start New Zealand programme. 

 

Sustainability

DLA Piper strives to be a leader in environmental sustainability. We undertake initiatives to reduce our own operational environmental impact and we believe that our greatest contribution to a sustainable environment is the advice and support we provide to our clients – both in managing their own environmental impacts and assessing and responding to climate-related risks and opportunities.

We also make an active contribution to international climate policy discussions and the development of investments in low-carbon technology and infrastructure.

 

Some of our goals and initiatives include:

Energy: Our target is to reduce energy consumption by 25 percent by 2025.

Waste: By 2025, we aim to reduce paper use by 25 percent and to increase the percentage of the waste we recycle.

Sustainable procurement: We are currently in the process of implementing a supplier portal to encourage all of our major suppliers to provide us with regular, consistent sustainability performance data. We have also adopted a sustainable procurement policy.

Head for Sustainability and ESG: In April 2020, we appointed the firm's first International Head for Sustainability and ESG. It is a global topic which requires a global response and we are ideally placed as a firm to guide and assist our clients in this important area, and to play our role in helping to make business better.

Our people come from a diverse range of backgrounds. We don’t have a set profile – that’s what sets us apart. Not only does this allow us to serve our diverse clients better; it opens up a range of different and unique perspectives. Below are just a few of the elements that can make an individual stand out from the rest:

Leadership: Takes control and initiates action by giving direction and taking responsibility.

Teamwork: Works effectively with individuals and teams and provides a consistent role model for organisational values.

Interpersonal skills: Builds positive relationships by communicating, networking and influencing effectively

Analysis: Gets to the heart of complex issues and problems through clear analytical thinking.

Creativity: Applies creativity to develop new and innovative solutions.

Organisation: Able to provide clear and effective delivery of projects.

Adaptability: Responds to change positively and copes with setbacks.

Commercial outlook: Pays attention to commercial factors and opportunities.