people sat talking

We value
all people and
their experiences

Our people are our greatest asset and we actively promote fairness and equality by offering a range of support, such as flexible working, and learning and development, to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to grow and develop in their career. Supporting our people to be the best they can be is one of our core values. We are committed to maintaining an inclusive, safe and healthy workplace and fostering a culture of wellbeing.

Diversity, equity and belonging

The diversity and individualism of our people goes a long way to creating our culture. The unique experiences, different perspectives and the paths they've taken, make us the firm we are today. It is important to us that our people can be their authentic selves and thrive, both at and outside of, work. We are always keen to support our people through their own personal development and the various initiatives that mean so much to them.

Gender pay gap reporting

As part of our ongoing commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion, Chapman Tripp has signed up to the Mind the Gap Registry to publically report our pay gap information. Our 2023 base gender pay gaps are:

  • Firm wide: 15.1% *
  • Legal team: 0.9%

*This calculation includes all our people across both the legal and business services teams. The positive figures indicate the result is in favour of males.

Chapman Tripp uses the Statistics New Zealand methodology to calculate our gender pay gap i.e., our gender pay gap is a percentage measure of the difference between median full-time equivalent earnings of all females and the median full-time equivalent earnings of all males.

The firm wide base pay gap shown above is impacted by there being more females than males in our business services teams who are in lower paid roles than lawyers, coupled with the significant number of different roles within the overall business services team.

We consistently review roles along with promotional opportunities in our business services teams and we have had a number of internal promotions across the business services teams.

We are focussed on creating a more diverse, equitable and inclusive workplace. Our continued actions to achieve this include identifying and removing any biases that may exist during recruitment, promotion, work allocation, performance and remuneration processes.

In addition, we have a number of policies and practices which promote our ongoing support for diversity, equity and inclusion within the firm.

We hope to broaden our data collection and pay gap reporting to include ethnicity in the future.

Our gender data is reported using distinct female and male categories and we acknowledge there are other gender categories. 

Cultural competency

We have a formal Te Reo Maori Policy to encourage, support and facilitate the use of te reo Maori through language lessons, and invest in Te Tiriti education. We actively promote and have a firm-wide focus on diversity related calendar events including Lunar New Year, Pride, International Women’s Day, Pink Shirt Day, Matariki, Maori Language week, Mental Health Awareness Week and Movember.

Adopting our formal Te Reo Māori Policy

Rainbow

We have an active Rainbow Committee who provide support to employees who identify themselves as part of the rainbow community and also work with the Leadership Team and People and Culture to advocate for inclusive policies and practices. We also promote the use of pronouns in our email communications and achieved Rainbow Tick accreditation which signals our ongoing dedication to ensure our people can be their authentic self at Chapman Tripp.

 

Learning and development

We are serious about creating an environment where our people have the opportunity to learn and grow. In addition to our formal policies and structured training programmes, we recognise the valuable learning gained ‘on the job’ and we place an importance on ensuring our people get the opportunity to work on high profile transactions and internal strategic projects.

Our Study Support Policy assists employees to obtain relevant tertiary qualifications and provides paid time off for study and to attend exams.

From day one you will receive a tailored induction programme designed for you to get know your role, your team and the wider firm as quickly as possible.

Our CT Academy provides our newest lawyers (law clerks and experienced lawyers) with an opportunity to hear from some of our Partners and senior lawyers on their specialist legal areas.

Along with a range of technical and practical business skills workshops, we also offer a firm wide mentoring programme, invest in mental health and wellbeing, diversity and inclusion and are committed to building cultural competency.

Benefits

We are committed to providing a workplace environment where all our people can thrive and are fairly rewarded for their contributions. In addition to the financial rewards you would expect from a leading law firm, we offer a number of great benefits:

  • Fully funded health insurance.

  • Annual financial contribution to wellbeing related purchases or activities.

  • Access to specially trained support people, EAP services and annual flu vaccinations.

  • Values awards programme, recognising and rewarding individuals and teams who are role modelling our values.

  • Market leading parental leave which includes top up of full salary to 26 weeks; a one-off KiwiSaver contribution on return for period of unpaid leave for primary carers; four consecutive weeks paid leave for secondary carers; and additional fertility leave provisions for both primary and secondary carers.

  • Fully or partial subsidised support for staff participation in a range of sporting events including various marathons, Round the Bays, annual ski trips and sports teams.

  • A range of other leave options, including two parent days to attend your children’s special days, one volunteer day, graduation, study, sabbatical and long service leave.

  • Social events to build connection and celebration, including mid-year and end of year firm-wide functions and regular informal events.

  • Relocation and on-boarding assistance.

  • A culture of flexible working, ensuring you have the tools to work remotely when you need to.

Living Wage Accredited

We are proud to be recognised as a Living Wage employer. As a firm we play an active role in the community in which we work, becoming a Living Wage Accredited employer was the right thing to do. Paying at least the Living Wage enables our people and more importantly, those of our suppliers to afford the necessities of life and participate in their communities. 

Volunteering and pro bono

Our Volunteer Days enable our people to give their time to support community causes that they are passionate about or provide pro bono legal services.

Our contribution to our community

chapman tripp activities collage

Recent recognition

See all news

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Chapman Tripp wins NZ Deal Firm of the Year award at the Australasian Law Awards

Chapman Tripp is delighted to have scooped up the New Zealand Deal Firm of the Year award at last night’s Australasian Law Awards.

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Two Senior Associates recognised by NZ Lawyer as Rising Stars

We are delighted that Janko Marcetic and Tom Jemson have been recognised as Rising Stars by NZ Lawyer.

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Phillip Ascroft

Philip Ascroft recognised for exceptional young talent

Philip Ascroft, a highly respected senior lawyer within our market-leading equity capital markets (ECM) practice, has been recognised by NZ Lawyer as a Rising Star.

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Te Aopare

Elite Women recognition for Chapman Tripp partner Te Aopare Dewes

Our Māori Legal Group head and corporate partner Te Aopare Dewes has been recognised on NZ Lawyer’s 2021 Elite Women list.

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KangaNews

6th consecutive win for NZ Law Firm of the Year

We are stoked and stunned to have won New Zealand Law Firm of the Year for the sixth consecutive year in the KangaNews Awards for the Australian and New Zealand debt markets.

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chapman tripp branded envelope graphic

The standout winner amongst competition at legal awards

Chapman Tripp scooped up the most coveted award at the annual New Zealand Law Awards, winning Large Law Firm of the Year, as well as recognition across four deal category awards.

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two graduates talking

Chapman Tripp graduate recruitment campaign rated as one of the best

Chapman Tripp is the only law firm recognised by students across New Zealand in the Top 10 Best Graduate Campaigns for 2021 in a recent Student Pulse Report survey produced by Talent Solutions.

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Nicola Swan and Rachel Dunne

Two eminent leaders named Influential Lawyers for 2021

Rachel Dunne and Nicola Swan have been named Young Influencers on the Top 25 Most Influential Lawyers 2021 list, highlighting their accomplishments and contributions to the legal profession. Dunne is also one of two exclusively recognised Lawyers for ‘Capital Markets: Equity in New Zealand’ in IFLR’s Asia Future Leaders 2021.

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sienna spiral

Chapman Tripp named New Zealand Deal Firm of the Year

Our corporate and commercial team were named New Zealand Deal Firm of the Year at this year’s Australasian Law Awards.

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Chapman Tripp named Chambers NZ Law Firm of the Year

We have been recognised at the 2021 Chambers Asia Pacific Awards as New Zealand Law Firm of the Year.

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