Melbourne Law School

Coordinates: 37°48′09″S 144°57′36″E / 37.8024°S 144.9600°E / -37.8024; 144.9600
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Melbourne Law School
Victoria, Australia
Websitewww.law.unimelb.edu.au

Melbourne Law School is one of the professional

THE World University Rankings ranked the law school as 5th best in the world and first both in Australia and Asia-Pacific.[3]

Alumni of Melbourne Law School include four

Prime Ministers of Australia, three Governors-General, four Chief Justices of Australia and thirteen Commonwealth Attorneys-General. Alumni include a current Judge of the International Court of Justice, a current Justice of the High Court of Australia, the current Chief Justice of the Family Court of Australia, the current Governor of Victoria, the current Solicitor-General of Australia, the current President of the Australian Human Rights Commission, the current Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commissioner and the current Chairwoman of the Victorian Bar Council
.

Established in 1857, Melbourne Law School initially offered LL.B degrees for those seeking a first degree in law. However, in 2007 Melbourne Law School ceased accepting students into this program and instead offered only a J.D. Admission to Melbourne Law School is competitive, with applicants typically requiring a distinction average or higher in their undergraduate degree for admission to its J.D. program. Applicants seeking to study the LL.M program require high results in their undergraduate law studies.

Melbourne Law School publishes a number of academic journals, including the Melbourne University Law Review, the Melbourne Journal of International Law and the Australian Journal of Labour Law. Melbourne Law School is host to a number of research centres and institutes, specialising in a wide variety of legal fields. It also offers subjects taught overseas and partner programs with leading international law schools. The Law Library of Melbourne Law School encompasses three floors offering access to a variety of resources including periodicals and law journals. Students can participate in a number of organisations designed to enrich student life.

History

There was no organised legal education in Australia until the start of lectures at Melbourne Law School in 1857.[4]: 5–8  Prior to this, the majority of common-law lawyers had never attended university.[4]: 1  A small proportion of people in the United States, England and her colonies, including Australia at the time, chose to study law in college before entering the legal profession.[4]: 1–5  Like many of its peers, the University of Melbourne did not teach law at its inception in 1855, although by the second year of teaching enrolments at the institution were so low that teaching in the fields of law and medicine was suggested in order to attract students.[4]: 7  Compared to sciences that needed expensive equipment, law could be taught more affordably and draw in a useful number of students.[5]

William Hearn, first Dean from 1873 to 1889

New admission roles created by the Supreme Court of Victoria gave prospective lawyers the choice between completing an exam administered by the Court, or completing a course of study at Melbourne Law School, with the thirty-three law students of 1857 more than doubling total enrolments at the University.[4]: 7 

Richard Clarke Sewell
Edward Jenks, second Dean from 1889 to 1892

Richard Clarke Sewell was the first appointed lecturer in Law.[4]: 5–8  Sewell was educated and qualified, however was eventually found to be unsuitable for the role to which he was appointed. Born in England, Sewell had twelve siblings. His father was a solicitor. Sewell was educated at Winchester and then Oxford University, becoming a fellow of Magdalen College and graduating with a doctorate in civil law. He came to Victoria in 1855, although his reason for doing so is unclear.[4]: 8–9  He was admitted to the Victorian bar where he practiced criminal law. After Sewell was hired, the new course's outline was finalised, and he may have shared part of the design credit. The course started with an encyclopaedic introduction and was split into terms and years rather than subjects. Sewell struggled with the commitments of teaching, with his initial lectures bland and poorly received by students. Attendance started to fall, and Sewell resigned.[4]: 10–14 

The first students studied for a certificate that, with practical training, qualified them for admission to legal practice. In 1860 they were given the additional option of studying for a degree.[6]

Melbourne Law School was expanded and reorganised in 1873, becoming the Faculty of Law.[7][8] In 1873, William Hearn was appointed as the first Dean of Melbourne Law School, lecturing in subjects such as constitutional law. Hearn would go on to be elected to the Victorian Legislative Council for Central Province.

Sir William Harrison Moore was appointed as the third Dean of Melbourne Law School, succeeding

undergraduate course.[9]

The first woman to enrol at Melbourne Law School was Flos Greig in 1897. Greig would graduate in 1903, the first woman in Victoria to do so, and only the second in the country, after Ada Evans who graduated the previous year from the University of Sydney. Greig received third-class honours for her degree, placing her second in her year level.

Melbourne Law School staff and students in the 1870's
William Harrison Moore, third Dean from 1892 to 1927

Melbourne Law School under Moore opened its doors to practising lawyers in addition to academics, visiting lecturers in the year of 1908 including people such as

John Madden, and judge of the Supreme Court of Victoria Leo Cussen.[10] The School, located then in what is now known as the "Old Law" building, struggled for room and resources, Moore having to contribute some of his personal library for the use of students, and some lectures having to be held in the Supreme Court building in the city.[10]

The school continued to grow throughout the 19th and 20th centuries, and underwent a major transformation with the appointment of

Sir Zelman Cowen as Dean in 1951. Sir Zelman shaped Melbourne Law School after the United States model, rather than the British model that is common in Australia. Sir Zelman reformed teaching, research and academic recruitment. Under his stewardship, full-time academics came to dominate teaching, instead of part-time practitioners. Many prominent international academics were invited to study at the School, and many Australians were given the opportunity to study abroad.[11][12]

In 2007, Melbourne Law School accepted its last cohort of

undergraduate
students (known as 'breadth' subjects).

Admissions

Main Entrance to Melbourne Law School
East Entry

Prior tertiary performance

Applicants for the Juris Doctor program require a three year bachelors degree or equivalent.[13] The performance of an applicant in this degree and any previous tertiary study is assessed. For a competitive application, the weighted average mark (WAM) across tertiary studies must be generally be at least 70%.[13] The requirements are based on the academic grading system in Australia, which means students must typically achieve the grade of Distinction throughout their studies in order to be admitted, or the equivalent of a 3.5 GPA or above when converting for the academic grading system used in the United States.

Law school admissions test

The School previously required the law school admissions test (LSAT) be sat, with the results considered in deciding whether to admit an applicant. In 2022, the School announced the LSAT would no longer be required.[14] The board of admissions removed the requirement due to the impact of COVID-19 on students, and initially planned to reinstate the requirement once restrictions were eased. However, the School permanently removed the LSAT as doing so increased diversity and access to the program while maintaining strong academic standards.[15] The process of removing the LSAT requirement was criticised by the University of Melbourne Student Union, noting the WAM requirement remained high and "severe lack of organisation displayed by the School" in not providing students sufficient notice or detail surrounding the decision.[15]

Costs

Students studying the J.D. program do so in either a Commonwealth Supported Place or full-fee paying place. Fees for students in a Commonwealth Supported Place were $15,142 per year in 2023,[16] while fees for full-fee paying students were $42,784 per year.[17] Eligible students in either fee type may defer payment of tuition through the Higher Education Loan Program.

Academics

Research centres

Melbourne Law School is host to a number of research centres and institutes, specialising in a wide variety of legal fields:[18]

  • Asian Law Centre
  • Centre for Artificial Intelligence and Digital Ethics
  • Centre for Comparative Constitutional Studies
  • Centre for Corporate Law
  • Centre for Employment and Labour Relations Law
  • Centre for Indonesian Law, Islam and Society
  • Centre for Media and Communications Law
  • Centre for Resources, Energy and Environmental Law
  • Competition Law and Economics Network
  • Electoral Regulation Research Network
  • Health Law and Ethics Network
  • Institute for International Law and Humanities
  • Intellectual Property Research Institute of Australia
  • Melbourne Climate Futures
  • Obligations Group
  • Peter McMullin Centre on Statelessness
  • Tax Group

Mooting

Moot Court at Melbourne Law School

ELSA Moot Court Competition three times, and in 2012 a team from Melbourne Law School won the IASLA Space Law Moot Court Competition.[22] A Melbourne Law School team also won the inaugural Victorian Championship Moot in 2013.[23]

External programs

Melbourne Law School offers subjects taught in

dual degree arrangements with the University of Oxford, the University of Cambridge, the National University of Singapore Faculty of Law, New York University School of Law, and the University of British Columbia's Peter A. Allard School of Law.[24]

Law Library

The Law Library is located on levels 3, 4 and 5 of Melbourne Law School at the Parkville Campus of the University. The Law Library offers research tools that include authorised law reports, Australian Case Citator Comparison, deep linking information, keeping up to date in law, legal abbreviations, legal citation style guides, reference management, style guides for authors, and theses advice.[25] The catalogue of books at the library encompasses new books, a rare book collection, past exams and readings online, and a digital repository.[26]

Publications

Melbourne University Law Review

Main article: Melbourne University Law Review

Students of the JD program are involved in preparing and publishing the Melbourne University Law Review, a triannual

editors-in-chief are Daniel Beratis, Danielle Feng and Deylan Kilic-Aidani.[27]

Occasionally, the journal produces a symposium issue devoted to a particular aspect of law. Past symposium issues have focused on the centenary of the federation of Australia, contemporary human rights in Australia, and tort law. The Review's alumni include two High Court Justices, three Solicitors-General, five Federal Court judges and at least six Supreme Court judges.

Australian Journal of Labour Law

Main article: Australian Journal of Labour Law

The Australian Journal of Labour Law is a triannual peer-reviewed law journal that was established in 1968. It is published by

editors-in-chief are Andrew Stewart of the University of Adelaide, John Howe of the University of Melbourne, and Shae McCrystal of the University of Sydney. The journal is abstracted and indexed in EBSCO databases.[28]

Melbourne Journal of International Law

Main article: Melbourne Journal of International Law

The Melbourne Journal of International Law ('MJIL') is a biannual peer-reviewed law review published by Melbourne Law School covering all areas of public and private international law. It was established in 2000. MJIL is edited and managed by an editorial board of around 70 Melbourne Law School studentsl,[29] and overseen by an advisory board. The 2022 Editors are Matthew Carlei, Tegan Evans and Nicholas Hui.

Additional journals published by Melbourne Law School include the Australian Journal of Asian Law (in conjunction with the Australian National University and the University of Washington), and Media and Arts Law Review. Melbourne Law School publishes the Australian Guide to Legal Citation, the most widely followed authority for legal citation formats in Australia.[30] Melbourne Law School students also produce a newspaper, De Minimis, and a magazine, "Purely Dicta".[31]

Rankings

Melbourne Law School has been consistently ranked as the top law school in Australia.[32] Melbourne Law School has been consistently ranked among the top law schools in the world.

2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024
QS Ranking by Subject (Law)[33] 5th 8th 8th 8th 11th 8th 6th 10th 11th 12th 11th NA
T.H.E. Ranking by Subject (Law)[34] NA NA NA NA NA 7th 10th 12th 11th 5th 7th 8th

Student organisations

Several student organisations are associated with Melbourne Law School.

Emblem of the Melbourne University Law School Society

Melbourne Law Student Society

The Melbourne University Law Students' Society represents all law students at the Melbourne Law School. The Society was originally known as the Law Clerk's Society. Unlike today, members used to comprise primarily of students working as an articled clerk in a law firm.[4]: 164–165  By the 1950's, most members of the Society were fulltime students and became based on campus. Today the Society is a student club and consists of approximately one hundred students who on a volunteer basis deliver programs and events.[35] Its president is Sabrina Liang.

Global Law Students Association

The Global Law Students Association (GLSA), which focuses on international legal issues, careers and provides additional support for international students at Melbourne Law School.[36]

Melbourne China Law Society

The Melbourne China Law Society, facilitates the comparative study of

Australian law, as well as providing Mandarin language training to Melbourne Law School students.[37]

Melbourne Law Masters Student Association

The Melbourne Law Masters Student Association (MLMSA) represents the collective interests of all MLM (Melbourne Law Masters) students within Melbourne Law School.[38]

Deans

Below is a list of the deans of Melbourne Law School from 1873 to the present:

  • 1873–1888 William Hearn
  • 1889–1892 Edward Jenks
  • 1893–1927
    William Harrison Moore
  • 1928–1936 Kenneth Bailey
  • 1937–1937 George Paton
  • 1938–1942 Kenneth Bailey
  • 1943–1951 George Paton
  • 1951–1963 Zelman Cowen
  • 1964–1964 Harold Ford
  • 1964–1966 Zelman Cowen
  • 1967–1973 Harold Ford
  • 1973–1977 Sandford Clark[39]
  • 1978–1983 Colin Howard[40]
  • 1984–1986 Mark Weinberg[41]
  • 1986–1988 Harold Luntz
  • 1989–2002 Michael Crommelin
  • 2002–2003 Ian Ramsay
  • 2003–2007 Michael Crommelin
  • 2008–2009 James Hathaway
  • 2010–2011 Michael Crommelin
  • 2011–2017 Carolyn Evans
  • 2017–2018 Jenny Morgan
  • 2018–2022 Pip Nicholson
  • 2022-Present Matthew Harding

Notable alumni

See also: Category:Melbourne Law School alumni and List of University of Melbourne people

Alfred Deakin, the 2nd Prime Minister of Australia, Sir Robert Menzies, the 12th Prime Minister of Australia, Harold Holt, the 17th Prime Minister of Australia, and Julia Gillard, the 27th Prime Minister of Australia, all graduated from Melbourne Law School. Three Governors-General and at least 13 Attorneys-General have also graduated from Melbourne Law School, including Gareth Evans, Nicola Roxon and Mark Dreyfus.

Foreign politicians who attended Melbourne Law School include

Neri Javier Colmenares, a Member of the House of Representatives of the Philippines, Adnan Buyung Nasution, Member of the Presidential Advisory Council of the Republic of Indonesia and Dame Meg Taylor, former Ambassador of Papua New Guinea to the United States and former Secretary General of the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat

Four Melbourne Law School graduates have served as Chief Justice of Australia. This number includes Sir Owen Dixon, one of Australia's most eminent jurists,[42] and Sir Isaac Isaacs, the first Jewish Chief Justice. Geoffrey Nettle, a current Justice of the High Court of Australia, graduated from Melbourne Law School. In addition, two Melbourne Law School graduates have served on the International Court of Justice: Hsu Mo and Hilary Charlesworth.

Francis Gurry, the Director General of the World Intellectual Property Organization, Gillian Triggs, the President of the Australian Human Rights Commission, and Samuel Pisar, the UNESCO Special Envoy for Holocaust Education all graduated from Melbourne Law School.

Melbourne Law School graduates in the business world include James P. Gorman, Chairman and CEO of Morgan Stanley. Renowned lawyer, Leon Zwier, graduated from Melbourne Law School. Legal academics who graduated from Melbourne Law School include Sir David Derham, the founding Dean of Monash Law School, Greg Craven, the Vice-Chancellor of the Australian Catholic University, and Sir John Monash, a Vice-Chancellor of the University of Melbourne and decorated World War I general.


  • Former Prime Minister Julia Gillard
    Former Prime Minister Julia Gillard
  • Professor Gillian Triggs
    Professor Gillian Triggs
  • Former Prime Minister Robert Menzies
    Former Prime Minister Robert Menzies

References

  1. ^ "Beginnings". Archived from the original on 24 January 2013. Retrieved 14 February 2013.
  2. ISBN 9780522854480
    .
  3. ^ "THE World University Rankings by Subject 2022: Law". Top Universities. QS. 28 September 2021.
  4. ^
    OCLC 191676300
    .
  5. OCLC 51914188
    .
  6. ISBN 9780522854480
    .
  7. ISBN 9780522854480
    .
  8. ^ "The Faculty of Law". Archived from the original on 24 January 2013. Retrieved 15 February 2013.
  9. ISBN 0-522-84327-1
    . Retrieved 8 February 2007.
  10. ^
    ISBN 0-522-85045-6
    .
  11. ^ "Zelman Cowen, 1951–1963, 1964–1966". Archived from the original on 24 January 2013. Retrieved 15 February 2013.
  12. ISBN 9780522854480
    .
  13. ^ a b "Juris Doctor - The University of Melbourne". study.unimelb.edu.au. Retrieved 6 October 2022.
  14. ^ Perry, Amber (13 January 2022). "JD 2022 intake FAQs". Melbourne Law School. Retrieved 6 October 2022.
  15. ^ a b Sexton, Patrick. "University of Melbourne removes LSAT as entry requirement for Juris Doctor". umsu.unimelb.edu.au. Retrieved 6 October 2022.
  16. ^ "2023 Student contribution amounts". study.unimelb.edu.au. Retrieved 1 September 2023.
  17. ^ "Juris Doctor: Fees - The University of Melbourne". study.unimelb.edu.au. Retrieved 1 September 2023.
  18. ^ "Research Centres : Melbourne Law School". Melbourne Law School. 8 July 2021. Retrieved 8 July 2021.
  19. ^ "Constitutional Law". archive.handbook.unimelb.edu.au. Retrieved 9 October 2022.
  20. ^ "Moot Court". Archived from the original on 11 April 2013. Retrieved 16 March 2013.
  21. ^ "Mooting Information". Melbourne University Law Students’ Society. Retrieved 9 October 2022.
  22. ^ Quine, Stephanie (8 August 2012). "Curious students probe space law".
  23. ^ "Championship Mooters | News | Melbourne University Law Students' Society". mulss.com. Archived from the original on 8 December 2013.
  24. ^ "Degree Partnerships". Melbourne Law School. Archived from the original on 27 October 2023. Retrieved 27 October 2023.
  25. ^ "Law Library Research Tools". The University of Melbourne. Archived from the original on 7 May 2019. Retrieved 7 May 2019.
  26. ^ "Law Library Collections". The University of Melbourne. Archived from the original on 7 May 2019. Retrieved 7 May 2019.
  27. ^ Melbourne University Law Review. "Editorial Board". Melbourne Law School. Retrieved 10 August 2022.
  28. ^ "Australian Journal of Labour Law". MIAR: Information Matrix for the Analysis of Journals. University of Barcelona. Retrieved 7 June 2022.
  29. ^ "Editorial Board". Melbourne Journal of International Law. 3 May 2022.
  30. ^ Legal citation Archived 2012-03-31 at the Wayback Machine, Guide to Legal Research, Library, University of New South Wales accessed 3 September 2011.
  31. ^ "About Us". De Minimis. Retrieved 7 October 2022.
  32. ^ "Top Law Schools and Degrees in Australia". Good Universities. 12 August 2021. Retrieved 6 October 2022.
  33. ^ "QS Top Universities Ranking". Top Universities. Retrieved 10 July 2018.
  34. ^ "Times Higher Education World University Rankings". Times Higher Education (THE). Retrieved 10 July 2018.
  35. ^ "MULSS". MULSS. Retrieved 6 October 2022.
  36. ^ "What We Do". GLSA. Retrieved 10 October 2022.
  37. ^ "The Melbourne China Law Society". The Melbourne China Law Society. Retrieved 10 October 2022.
  38. ^ "Committee". 11 September 2020.
  39. ^ "Sandford Clark 1974-1977". Archived from the original on 24 January 2013. Retrieved 15 February 2013.
  40. ^ "Colin Howard 1978-1983". Archived from the original on 24 January 2013. Retrieved 14 February 2013.
  41. ^ "Mark Weinberg 1984 - 1986". Archived from the original on 24 January 2013. Retrieved 14 February 2013.
  42. ^ Justice Jim Spigelman, "Australia's Greatest Jurist," presented in Sydney, May 2003.

Further reading

37°48′09″S 144°57′36″E / 37.8024°S 144.9600°E / -37.8024; 144.9600

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