Gabriella Lim

What did you study at university?

I studied a Bachelor of Politics, Philosophy and Economics (PPE) and a Bachelor of Laws at the Australian National University in Canberra.

What made you interested in commercial law?

My interest in commercial law stemmed from my love of problem-solving and understanding people. 

Whether you are in the transactional or litigious space, being a commercial lawyer is all about understanding your client and their goals. This requires you to be a bit creative and use both your technical abilities and your emotional intelligence.

Tell us about your experience so far at Clayton Utz (including what your role is)?

I am a first-year lawyer about to complete my second of three rotations as part of the Graduate Program at Clayton Utz.  I am currently in the Commercial Litigation (Class Actions & Product Liability) team and previously rotated through the Corporate, M&A and Capital Markets team. 

Working in both a litigious and a transactional practice group has presented me with opportunities to work on a wide variety of matters.

During my Corporate rotation I assisted by:

• drafting key transactional documents such as, share and asset sale agreements, shareholders' agreements, company constitutions and other agreements for both public and private clients;
• conducting due diligence on large M&A transactions;
• liaising with the Australian Securities Investments Commission (ASIC) and preparing a variety of director and shareholder documents; and
• conducting legal research relating to compliance with the Corporations Act 2001, ASX Listing Rules and Foreign Acquisitions and Takeovers Act 1975.

During my Commercial Litigation rotation, I was assisted by:

• preparing and filing court documents;
• liaising with clients;
• conducting witness interviews;
• reviewing documents for discovery and the preparation of evidence; and
• preparing briefs to Counsel and instructing Counsel at hearings.

What's one thing you love about your job?

The aspect of my job I love the most is the teamwork it involves. Each matter often requires input from various practice groups, meaning you are always working with and learning from different people. As a junior lawyer, this experience is invaluable and something I treasure greatly.

What is the limitation of your job?

Transitioning from university life to full-time work was difficult. You go from having a lifestyle where you can dictate your own schedule to relinquishing a lot of that control. 

Being a lawyer is not always your typical 9.00 am to 5.00 pm job, so you may have to sometimes manage demanding workloads. In saying that, the busiest periods of my career have also been the ones in which I have learned the most.

Three pieces of advice for yourself when you were a student...

My three pieces of advice would be:

1. Run your own race. You have an abundance of time to figure out where you want to go and who you want to be. In fact, you will probably continue to change your mind year to year, or even day to day! Everyone is on their own timeline, so just focus on being present and enjoying the opportunities presented to you - you are exactly where you are meant to be. 
2. Prioritise spending quality time with yourself, your family and your friends. A career in law can be demanding at times. When you have moments of doubt, confusion or stress, nothing helps quite as much as a conversation with a friend, or some alone time to wind down.
3. Be open-minded. As someone who never envisaged themselves as a lawyer, I often wonder where I would be if I had not taken the opportunity to explore a career in the law.  Being open to opportunity means you may end up on a track you never even imagined for yourself!