Social Justice
Commercial law isn’t the only valid use of a Sydney University law degree. To reinforce that message, SULS works to promote and develop opportunities for students to be involved in social justice work, and to stimulate debate on social justice issues. This work is led by the SULS Vice-President (Social Justice).
SULS’ Social Justice activities include:
- Working to establish a Prisoner’s Legal Service
- Running fortnightly public forums with a social justice focus
- Involving students in the federal government’s Bill of Rights consultation process
- Disseminating information on social justice related careers
- Sending students to conferences such as Breaking Down Boundaries
- Working with the Faculty to provide internal, academically accredited social justice placements, and summer holiday internships
- Publishing a social justice journal, Dissent
- Organising pro bono winter clerkships
- Helping students to understand what their options are after graduating (other than practising commercial law)
- Raising awareness of the excellent pro bono work done by some commercial firms
There are three social justice sub-committees:
The CLE Committee
The Community Legal Education Committee has two key areas of responsibility. Their first responsibility is to continue developing a prisoners’ legal clinic under the Homeless Persons Legal Service scheme, which is currently being trialed. At present, the service is focused on indigenous children in juvenile detention centres across NSW. The second responsibility of the Committee is to provide support to the broader CLE/Social Justice Program that the Faculty is developing.
The Dissent Committee
Dissent is an annual journal published under the Social Justice portfolio of SULS. It focuses on issues of social justice in both domestic and international law and publishes work by students at Sydney University. The Dissent sub-committee coordinates all aspects of the annual Dissent publication. This includes calling for submissions, selection and editing, as well as design and layout, marketing and distribution, coordinating prizes for outstanding contribution and planning a launch for the journal.
The Pro Bono Clerkships Committee
The Pro Bono Clerkships Committee has responsibility for organizing a limited number of Pro Bono Winter Clerkships for law students in the final stages of their degree. Successful clerkship applicants design a project that will assist a public interest organization or community legal centre, and implement it while gaining experience in a commercial law firm.
If you have ideas on how the Social Justice can continue to grow, please do not hesitate to contact me by email at socialjustice@suls.org.au.
Kind regards,
Geoffrey Winters
Vice-President (Social Justice)
Video: Social Justice Program at Sydney Law School
See below for a short video about the experiences of students that have participated in the Social Justice Program at Sydney Law School.
Recent News and Events
Dissent 09 Teaser
Pro Bono Practices Guide 2009
Click here to download the Pro Bono Practices Guide 2009.
Looking for something to do over summer, other than a commercial clerkship?
It has come to our attention that many law students are looking for something productive and structured to do over the summer holiday break, but that not everyone is attracted to the commercial clerkship option.
SULS has raised this with Faculty staff, who are now in the process of speaking to a number of social-justice orientated legal organisations about whether they can offer summer internships.
Stay tuned for more details!