On 7 June, eight Edinburgh law students representing the Free Legal Advice Centre attended the SULCN Roundtable event hosted by Strathclyde University.
SULCN was formally launched in June last year to act as a forum devoted to encouraging communication, collaboration and information exchange amongst existing law clinics whilst supporting the establishment of new law clinics.
This year’s event brought together law students and academics from around the world and students were fortunate to hear from Ed O’Brien, Executive Director Emeritus, Streetlaw Inc. and David McQuoid-Mason, Centre for Socio-Legal Studies, University of KwaZulu-Natal, both of whom talked about Street Law and explained how to teach and deliver Street Law programmes. Street Law is an interactive presentation to educate an identified group about their legal rights and responsibilities in relation to a particular issue or area of law.
The day included a number of useful discussions and workshops, with three Edinburgh delegates, Claudia Jack (FLAC Student Director), Rachel Mackenzie (Graduate LLB student and volunteer for the Student Child Advocacy Project), and Rebecca Samaras (Pro Bono Coordinator) giving presentations on different clinic models, clinical activities, and integration of clinical legal education into clinics and the curriculum.
To conclude what was a truly inspiring day, delegates heard from Bruce Beveridge, President of the Law Society of Scotland, Catriona Headley, past President of the Scottish Young Lawyer’s Assocation, Ian Moffet, Chair of LawWorks Scotland, Eugene Creally, Free Legal Services Unit, Faculty of Advocates, and Malcolm Combe for the Higher Education Academy. Each representative explained the importance of and discussed the opportunities for retaining a commitment to promoting access to justice after graduation.
