Jessica Pridgeon - Fiji girl, up there with the best in New Zealand law

Ruby Taylor-Newton 
Sunday, January 22, 2012

+ Enlarge this image

Jessica Pridgeon is all smiles after being admitted to the Bar in New Zealand . Picture: SUPPLIED

Fiji girl Jessica Pridgeon has come a long way from her Stella Maris Primary, Yat Sen Secondary school days of blue and brown skirts and white shirts.

These days she dons a more professional attire in New Zealand court, prosecuting for the crown.

At 24, Jessica has a bachelor of law with honours, a bachelor of commerce majoring in international business which basically allows her to practice law in New Zealand and anywhere in the world as long she has been admitted to the Bar of that country.

The law degree opens her up to a whole range of things in law, but this year, she will be doing crown prosecutions.

In March, Jessica will start work at Meredith Connell - one of the best law firms in Auckland - in the Criminal Proceeds Recovery area.

"That means for example, when criminals make money out of their crime, they buy assets and whatever with the crime money, I'll be trying to get the assets back. That's called the proceeds of crime, so I'll be trying to help clients retrieve assets," she explains.

Jessica was admitted to the Bar in New Zealand recently.

"I was really excited and nervous, I felt that I was getting married to the court," she says with a laugh.

"It was quite an emotional experience because all my family was there, I felt that I was making everybody proud. All my hard work had finally come down to the moment," she says.

Jessica's passion for a career in law is bitter-sweet, but in all honesty, Jessica admits its one that actually sparked her interest in the first place.

"It was my parents - my mum and dad went through a really big divorce when I was very young and my brothers and I spent alot of time going back into the courts here in Fiji and speaking to the lawyers and stuff, and that kind of got me interested right from when I was five-years- old, and then it just continued from then. I saw it as a good degree to enable me to do a lot of things instead of being confined to just one thing."

Jessica was born in CWM hospital and is a twin to brother Anthony, who she insists is younger than her.

"We were born eight minutes apart. Mum's a McDonald from here. My dad was English. He came over, met mum and then there was us. We have an older brother James. He lives in Pacific Harbour and Anthony and I live overseas now. My mum also has another son, Ryan. My parents separated when I was very young and my dad passed away in Fiji when I was 16. My dad always drove us to work hard in school. I guess I've worked hard also to make my dad proud, my mum and my step dad, whose been a part of my life for so long as well."

Jessica left Fiji at 18 after getting accepted into Auckalnd University. This was where her life in law started, and where she also met her partner, Mike, also a lawyer.

"It was a very long process. In our year, there was 900 students who started and they let only 250 people go through to finish their degree, so it was very competitive right from the beginning. I was really nervous because to me everyone else there was from New Zealand and they knew a lot of the stuff like the Treaty of Waitangi ...it was really stressful the first year. But I got through, I made lots of friends, met Mike, and worked really hard. I also did a summer clerkship with Buddle Findlay in Auckland. Then I got admitted to the Bar.

"What happens is, you have six years in law school, and then you start your job and while you do your first job, you study on the side as well to get your ...what's called 'professionals' ...and that allows you to practice."

Jessica admits she did feel like giving up at times.

"Lots of times ..yeah (laughs). I remember the first time I wanted to give up, I rang home and I was talking to mum and my step-dad and he said "well you can come back here and work on the farm with me,' and I was like..."ok...no, I'll just stay!"(laughs).

"I think the first three years were the hardest because you're just getting started. I had just moved there, it was only my twin brother and I... I didn't really know anyone, it was a new city...but what kept me going was wanting to do my family proud," she says.

Another motivating factor was support - from her parents who provided all she needed and involving herself with the Pacific Islands Law Students program at the university, a support group for Pacific students; they ran tutorials and mentoring, and now Jessica herself supports younger students and tutors first year and second year law.

"I provide that mentoring because when I was going through law school, I found that really helpful," she says.

Jessica's endurance and commitment paid off when she was picked for a two-year work experience at the Auckland High Court.

"That was an amazing experience. I was really lucky to get that job because only the top law students from the whole of NZ schools apply and if you're lucky , you get through. I graduated in the top five per cent in my law school. It's pretty embarrassing talking about this kind of stuff..." she laughs.

"I worked for two judges in my first year and two in my second. I helped them with research and provide memos on anything they ask about which gets on their desk, whether it be criminal, law, commercial law, land law, equity..and I also did alot of memos on sentencing.

"It's not as glamorous as Boston Legal or anything like that on TV, no. But its really interesting. And you deal with alot of really sad situations as well, lots of family violence, rape, murders...I learnt that alot of stuff you read in the newspapers is just a small percentage of what actually goes on. I became more aware of the society I was in."

Although her work experience did not change her ideology of law as a career, Jessica says, if anything it has strengthened her desire to help people in their time of distress.

"I'm happy with what I've achieved in the last few years. Being from Fiji is an advantage as well. I found that even when I go for job interviews, the partners and firms interviewing me are really interested to hear my background and that I'm from Fiji. You sort of provide a point of difference. They like people from different parts of the world, because you have clients from different parts of the world who relate to different cultures and ethnicities."

Jessica may be a tad nervous but she's looking forward to March when work starts - where she'll put on a more serious personality and get down to some serious prosecuting business.

"There's a lot of formalities like in Fiji, its the same as Australia and New Zealand. There's a lot of respect between you and the judges, you become someone different because you're really professional and you doing things for your client. It just goes back to the integrity of what you do in your profession," she says of her job.

But for now, Jessica is happy basking in sun, sand and sea with Mike in Fiji, and then its off to East Asia for the final chill-out with her brother before its work, work, work.

And can this gutsy Fiji girl show them what she's made of?

"Meredith Connell is one of the best law firms in Auckland. They provide alot of training and and you work with really experienced people at the top of their game in the whole of NZ. So I think, with all their help and with the training that I've got, and all the background which I already have - yeah, I'm ready."

http://www.fijitimes.com/story.aspx?id=191465