The new premises, located on William Street in Melbourne, mark a “new era for legal education in Victoria and across Australia”, the provider said in a statement.

Governor Dessau said: “Today, it’s extraordinary to see not just the difference in this beautiful building… but it’s just how entrenched this institute has become.”

Leo Cussen chair Tom Poulton added that “the challenge that the board and staff faced was to look carefully at the way we delivered our training”.

“We acknowledged what was the best legal training and practice currently and then investigated what the legal education environment would likely be in the next 10-15 years. We then had to find new premises that would accommodate our current and future training needs.”

Leo Cussen executive director Elizabeth Loftus added that “Leo Cussen’s purpose is to provide high-quality education, training and professional development to strengthen and support the administration of justice and the legal system.

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“This new building will support our business and the needs of our stakeholders in the years ahead. Our priorities were flexibility in spaces and the latest in technology, to ensure that we could deliver our training in a variety of modes,” she said.

At the launch, it was also announced that Ms Loftus would be retiring after “31 extremely successful years” at Leo Cussen, with Shirley Southgate – the current director of PLT – being appointed to the executive director role as of October this year.