Issue 7 | Spring 2014 | Southampton Law School

VerdictLegal research and education at Southampton Law School has a global reach. Our research led degree programmes combine academic excellence with employability skills and excellent links to the legal professions.

This newsletter showcases recent developments over the last year in the School and in the wider world.

New Law and Psychology degree launched | page 3

Southampton lawyers on the road | page 4 & 5

Opportunities to enhance experience | page 7

Welcome to the Southampton Law SchoolOnce again we have had an action packed year. We have five new members of staff, whose expertise bolsters our existing strengths in research and teaching. We also welcomed record numbers of undergraduate and postgraduate students.

Several staff have published new books, and the number of articles published across the School is too numerous to count. Our research continues to be influential in a number of areas, particularly in Maritime Law, Health Law and policy and insurance provision.

Our students have also been busy hosting and attending national and international mooting competitions, raising funds for Lawyers without Borders and conducting negotiations. Pro-bono activities have also increased with the Innocence Project continuing apace and the Law Clinic attracting more clients. We hope to develop this into an LLB module so more students will benefit in the future.

The Institute of Maritime Law has appointed a new Director, Mikis Tsimplis, and continues to deliver its acclaimed short courses around the world. The Centre for Law Ethics and Globalisation (LEAG) hosted a successful annual lecture on the Global Reach of EU Law, staff from the centre for Health Ethics and Law (HEAL) have presented their work in a number of other countries, and the Centre for Criminal Justice Research (ICJR) has hosted a series of seminars.

Not only is Southampton an excellent place to study and prepare for a career in law, we are also positioned at the cutting edge of legal research. As we go to print we are looking forward to showcasing our research by hosting a three-day conference on English and Chinese Maritime Law, and a public lecture debating the place of international law in the recent Crimean crisis.

Over the next few years we are set to expand the Law Clinic, introduce a joint honours programme with Psychology, and potentially launch new Masters Level courses. With all this going on, the Law School continues to thrive.

Professor Hazel Biggs Head of school, Professor of Healthcare Law & Bioethics

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“This new programme provides a platform for careers in many areas, from a solicitor and barrister to careers in criminology, business, government, research and more.”Liz Williams Senior Lecturer

Southampton Law School, in partnership with Psychology, is launching a new Law and Psychology degree that will appeal to students looking to combine both disciplines for their future career.

The new LLB (Hons) Law with Psychology is set to enrol its first students in the autumn next year and is designed for those interested in the relationship of law with psychology within the framework of a Qualifying Law Degree.

As well as developing the essential legal, academic, and analytical skills, the programme will also provide its students with important transferable skills that will prepare them for a broad range of legal and non-legal careers.

The multi-disciplinary three-year degree majors in law, with psychology as a minor subject, and provides a well-rounded education in English law including its relationship to the Law of the European Union and the European Convention on Human Rights. It also includes a wide range of psychology optional modules enabling students to tailor the degree to their particular interests or career aspirations.

These psychology modules explore the scientific study of human thought and behaviour and will help develop knowledge in the broader philosophical, social and educational context within which the law operates.

Senior Lecturer Liz Williams said: “The programme is designed to attract not only students wishing to progress to the Legal Practice Course to qualify as a solicitor, or the Bar Vocational Course to become a barrister, but also those wishing to pursue careers in criminology, the criminal justice system, probation, business, government, voluntary organisations, or research and teaching.

“It draws upon a range of subject areas to inform and develop an understanding of the content and operation of law, and to establish the sound skills of legal analysis, alongside an understanding of the theory and practices in modern psychology.”

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New Law and Psychology degree launched

At the end of March Head of Southampton Law School Professor Hazel Biggs visited Singapore for the second time. The main purpose of her trip was to attend student recruitment events organised by the British Council and also to visit schools to meet prospective students.

Her four-day visit was very hectic with visits to River Valley High School, Anglo Chinese Junior College, United World College of South East Asia (UWCSEA), and Tanglin Trust.

She said: “It was great to see the schools where some of our students have studied and to meet possible future students, some of whom were very excited to have just received their A Level results.

“The British Council Fair at Suntec City was extremely busy, and it was a delight to meet with so many prospective students and many of their parents. It was especially good to meet several students who already had offers to study with us and to be able to talk with them about the University and what it is like to study Law here. I am looking forward to welcoming them to Southampton in October.

“I also had the opportunity to spend an evening with a group of our alumni. It was very enjoyable to discover

who had changed jobs or been promoted, as well as hearing about wedding plans and catching up with other news. There was even a suggestion that some might return to Southampton for further study, which would be brilliant.

“All in all, it was a successful and pleasurable trip and one I very much hope to be able to repeat,” she said.

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Head of Law School visits Singapore

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A Southampton academic has recently returned from a successful trip to Canada strengthening and expanding links between the country and the University’s Law School.

Senior Lecturer Dr Alun Gibbs spent 10 days in the Toronto and Halifax regions formalising student exchange agreements, arranging visiting speakers and meeting potential new students.

“Our links with Canada are very important for Southampton Law School,” said Alun. “Over recent years we have seen an increase in the numbers of Canadian students coming to Southampton to study a Law Degree. We want to build on and strengthen our existing relationships with the country, as well as to forge new connections ensuring we offer our international students from Canada the best student experience possible.

“We are also keen to foster further links with Canada in terms of research and teaching as well as with legal professionals in the country,” he added.

The aim of Alun’s trip was four-fold:

– He attended pre-Law School fairs at several universities in and around the Toronto region to publicise the launch of the newly-adapted LLB Accelerated Graduate Programme (JD Pathway) that now includes the new module – Constitutional Law of Canada.

“We decided to adapt our programme for new students to include this new module that examines the system of constitutional law of Canada. They will develop an understanding of the political culture in Canada and critically consider how constitutional law expresses and seeks to overcome deep social oppositions,” said Alun.

– He also met with students who had received offers to study Law at Southampton to give them and their families the opportunity to ask questions and find out more about coming to the University this autumn.

– Alun signed an agreement with Dalhousie University, in Halifax, to exchange two Law students a year. “We already have an exchange agreement with the University of Ottawa and this further expands the range of opportunities on offer to both our students and students in Canada,” he said.

– He met with Robert Sharpe, a Court of Appeal judge in Ontario, to finalise arrangements for Robert to give a seminar to UK students in May. Robert joins a list of eminent speakers from around the world that regularly give seminars and talks at the University.

Strengthening links with Canada

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Examining the role of international law in world crisesA debate at the University of Southampton is due to reflect on the recent events in Crimea and the public’s perception of international law’s capacity to address such crises.

The language of international law dominated recent news coverage of events in Crimea. Many international lawyers condemned Russia’s ‘unlawful use of force’ and its ‘illegal annexation’ of Crimea.

Academics from Southampton Law School and the University of Southampton’s Politics and International Relations department are set to debate the place of international law in the Crimean crises and ask what it means to brand Russia’s action illegal.

The event Ukraine, Crimea, Russia and International Law’s (In)Capacity was due to take place on 1 May in the Physics Lecture Theatre and was organised by Dr Matthew Nicholson from Southampton Law School. He will be joined on the panel by Dr Andrew Serdy, also from Southampton Law School, and Dr Kamil Zwolski, from International Relations.

“The Small Business Clinic has allowed me to gain a unique insight into the business world which will be advantageous in my future career. I have been exposed to a diverse range of legal and commercial problems and through researching cases before consultations, and taking minutes during meetings, I have learnt how general advice is provided within a commercial context.”Robert White3rd Year LLB student, Small Business Clinic volunteer

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Students at Southampton Law School get the chance to benefit from numerous pro-bono initiatives that help them gain practical experience alongside their degree programmes.

Among the opportunities on offer to students are:

Southampton Law School ClinicSecond and third year students have the chance to gain practical legal experience from working under the close supervision of a barrister from local Chambers and with the support of Law School academics. The Clinic is a citizens’ advice-style law clinic that offers free consultations to any University of Southampton student who requires advice on private landlord and tenant disputes or employment law issues.

The students develop important transferable skills, such as interviewing, case management, and team work, as well as experience of communicating with clients and legal practitioners.

Senior Lecturer Liz Williams said: “The Clinic provides a fantastic pro-bono service to the student community. Whilst this is currently an extra-curricular clinical legal education activity, in future students will be able to take a clinical

module as part of their LLB degree programme.”

Small Business ClinicThe Small Business Clinic was launched at the end of last year and is run jointly by Law and Management students in collaboration and under supervision of a local businessman. The exciting and enterprising new project provides free advice to all University students who are interested in setting up a small business.

Initial advice is given on a range of issues including business start-ups; budgetary controls; design and implementation of management information system; general day-to-day accounting and business management; HR and staff planning; acquisition and disposal of business; tax planning and statutory audits.

Senior Lecturer Liz Williams said: “The Clinic’s law and management student volunteers gain valuable experience enhancing their professional development and gaining commercial awareness and important transferable skills.”

Opportunities to enhance experience

www.southampton.ac.uk/lawUK and EU enquiries: Ugapply.FBL@southampton.ac.uk +44 (0) 23 8059 2596 International (non EU) enquiries: global@southampton.ac.uk +44 (0) 23 8059 9699