career success secure scholarships research project of ... · • Attend careers events:Ellie attended an event hosted by Irwin Mitchell which helped her secure a job with the firm

The ReporterBringing you the latest news from Kent Law School at the University of Kent Autumn Term 2019

Kent Law School

Extraordinary breadthof doctoral research Pages 6 & 7

Mooting helps secure scholarshipsPage 4

Revolutionary research project Page 5

Top tips for career success Page 2

Aspiring lawyers network withleading firms at annual Law FairThe annual Law Fair at Kent offered aspiring lawyers anexcellent opportunity to network with leading local, nationaland international law firms.

Organised by Kent Student Law Society (KSLS) – withsupport from the Law School’s Employability Officer JayneInstone – the Fair attracted more than 30 firms andorganisations including Magic Circle firms Clifford Chanceand Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer.

Hundreds of law and non-law students took advantage ofthe chance to explore their career options and makeimportant connections. In the run up to the October event,KSLS invited Clifford Chance to run a workshop forstudents on ‘how to secure a training contract’. Final-yearKent Law School student Tyra Ntege, who secured an offerfor a training contract with the firm at the end of her firstyear, was among the panel members. Other preparatoryevents organised by KSLS included an application andinterview skills workshop with Hogan Lovells, a workshopon effective networking with BPP University Law School anda talk by trainee solicitor Matt Speed from Pinsent MasonsLLP on how to make a good impression and how best toapproach law firms.

Law Fair Organiser Yoginni Gopal said: ‘The Fair is definitelyone of our most important events of the year. We had manyamazing firms attending and it was such a great chance tonetwork and get your name out there. We worked hard toencourage students to do their research in advance so thatthey would be ready and prepared to network. It’s so usefulfor applying for vacations schemes and training contractsand also for exploring your preferred professional trainingroute after graduation’.

See inside for a full list of exhibitors

Ellie’s tips for career success

Since graduating this summer with a degree in Law from Kent,Ellie Sullivan has been working as a paralegal for Irwin Mitchelland will join Thomson Snell and Passmore as a trainee solicitor inSeptember 2020. Ellie’s top tips for improving your chances ofcareer success include:• Become a Student Ambassador: Ellie worked as a Student

Ambassador throughout her studies• Read Kent Law School’s Employability Bulletin: it’s sent out

each week in term-time, via email, by Law School EmployabilityOfficer Jayne Instone

• Get involved with Aspiring Solicitors: Ellie met representativesat the annual Law Fair and signed up as a member on theirwebsite

• Work as a Campus Ambassador for a law firm: Ellie says thatbeing an ambassador for Herbert Smith Freehills gave herincredible insight into the process of making applications

• Attend careers events: Ellie attended an event hosted by Irwin Mitchell which helped her securea job with the firm as a legal assistant

• Go to the annual Law Fair: Ellie says: ‘A list of firms attending the Fair is sent out prior to theevent which is super useful as you can research the firms that will be attending and askinformed questions. Last year, I spoke to Thomson, Snell and Passmore’s HR team and this ledto me gaining a place on their vacation scheme’

• Get networking: Network with as many aspiring solicitors, careers advisors and legalprofessionals as you can to gain an insight into the industry

• Create a Linkedin profile: Connect with all of the students, professionals and teachers you meetand keep your profile updated

• Develop commercial awareness: Read commercial news sources such as The Economist andform opinions about different commercial issues

Kent Law FairexhibitorsKent Law School and Kent Student LawSociety extends its grateful thanks to all thefirms and organisations who supported ourannual Law Fair held in Eliot College on ourCanterbury campus in October:

Law Firms• Boys & Maughan Solicitors• Clifford Chance• Cripps Pemberton Greenish• Dentons• dgb Solicitors• F:LEX• Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer• Furley Page Solicitors• Girlings Solicitors• Hatten Wyatt• Herbert Smith Freehills• Hogan Lovells• Judge & Priestly• Martin Tolhurst Solicitors• Mayer Brown• Outset• RPC• Thomson Snell & Passmore• Trowers and Hamlins

Other organisations• Aspiring Solicitors• BARBRI International• BPP Law School• Chambers Student• City Law School• Employability Points (Kent)• ICSA (The Chartered Governance

Institute)• Institute of Chartered Secretaries

and Administrators• Kent Law Society• LawCareers.Net• Law Training Centre• TARGET Jobs• University of Law

2 University of Kent Kent Law School

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University of Kent Kent Law School 3

Law School ranked51st in the world

Kent Law School’s strong internationalcharacter and world-leading reputation forresearch sees it ranked 51st in today’sprestigious Times Higher Education (THE)World University Rankings 2020 for law.

Only 190 law schools across the globe metstrict criteria (related to the number ofpublications published in the last five years)to be ranked. Out of this total number, only33 UK law schools made the list.

Within the ranking, Kent is 18th in the worldfor ‘international outlook’ and is listed amongthe top 60 best law schools in the world forresearch.

Kent Law School also maintains a strongand consistent performance in all threemajor UK league tables, with a top 20ranking in all three for 2020: 16th in TheGuardian University Guide 2020 for law;17th in The Times and Sunday TimesGood University Guide 2020 for law; and18th in The Complete University Guide2020 for law.

Lifetime Achievement AwardKent Law School alumna Dr Lucy Scott-Moncrieff has been presented with a Lifetime AchievementAward at the prestigious annual Law Society Excellence Awards for solicitors in England and Wales.

Dr Scott-Moncrieff, a former Law Society president, graduated with a degree in law from Kent in1975. She is a former patron of the Kent Law Campaign (to raise funds for the Wigoder LawBuilding) and was made an Honorary Doctor of Laws at Kent in 2009.

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1 Law Society President Simon Davis presents theaward to Dr Lucy Scott-Moncrieff

Launch of Fire Safety ChecklistKent Law School housing law expert ProfessorHelen Carr addressed politicians, policymakersand leading fire safety professionals at theparliamentary launch of a crucial Fire SafetyChecklist for tower block residents.

The Checklist is a practical tool that helpsresidents check the fire safety of their homes. It has been compiled by Professor Carr working in collaboration with Kent Law School colleagueDr Ed Kirton-Darling, Tower Blocks UK (a websitefor people who are concerned about tower blocksafety), Dr Stephen Battersby (a freelanceEnvironmental Health and Housing Consultant),and with input from fire safety expert Phil Murphy.

The launch event, held at Portcullis House, washosted by Karen Buck, MP for Westminster Northand supported by Inside Housing trademagazine.

Professor Carr urged widespread use of the Checklist to help support necessary cultural change.She said housing laws remain ‘out-dated, complex and patchily enforced’. She added: ‘The bestway to empower occupiers of poor-quality housing is enforceable rights to get remedial works donespeedily, and we should not lose sight of that. We have to keep repeating it so that governmenthears it and updates the law.’

Kent Law School’s vibrant mooting programme iscomplemented this year by the introduction ofan exciting extra-curricular module in Mock TrialAdvocacy (for Stage 2 and Stage 3 lawstudents). This new module introduces the skillsrequired by an advocate to win their case in aCrown Court Trial. As part of their assessment,students assume the role of advocate in aninternal mock trial competition while otherstudents take the roles of Court Clerk, Usher,witness, defendant and jury members.

Mock Trials are held in Kent Law School’s replicacourtroom within the Wigoder Law Building and,this term, four of the trials will be judged byCriminal Judges from Canterbury Crown Court.

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Mooting helps securescholarshipsAspiring barrister, Mark Nagy-Miticzky saysmooting experiences at Kent were ‘critical’ inhelping him secure more than £20k inscholarships from Inner Temple and BPP.

The scholarships will help support Mark as heprogresses to the BPTC, the next stage in hisprofessional training to become a barrister.Mark completed his four-year InternationalLegal Studies degree at Kent this summer. Hesaid: ‘My mooting experiences were critical inmy interview. Really the three thingsscholarship providers and chambers look forthe most (I think) are good grades, andinvolvement in mini-pupillages and mooting’.

Mock Trials at Kent

During a speech at the British Council’s ‘GoingGlobal’ conference in Berlin earlier this year, theUK government’s Universities Minister ChrisSkidmore MP cited Kent’s Brussels School ofInternational Studies (BSIS) as a model ofEuropean collaboration. In a speech to leadersand representatives of international educationfrom around the world, the Minster shared hisvision for ‘the UK’s approach to ‘going global’ in higher education’ and said that ‘when it comesto higher education and research, the UK is mostcertainly open’. He went on to cite BSIS as anexample of an established institution that deliversa transnational education (TNE) and ‘enablesthe UK’s Higher Education sector to maximiseand benefit from the full range of internationalopportunities and interconnectedness’. Amongthe programmes available to study at BSIS aretwo Kent Law School LLMs (Master’s in Law) and a PhD in Law.

Model of European collaboration

A young Eritrean man in Kent was reunited withhis mother for the first time in five years thanks tolengthy efforts by Kent Law Clinic to secure a visathat has enabled her to come to the UK. Theyoung man fled from indefinite national service inEritrea at the age of 14, making a perilous journeyto the UK via Libya and the Mediterranean Sea.He was placed in the care of Kent Social Servicesand was eventually granted refugee status in theUK. Shortly after he fled, his mother was alsoforced to flee her home in Eritrea and ended up ina refugee camp in Sudan. Now a young man of18 with serious health problems, he approachedKent Law Clinic when he was 17 to seek help withmaking an application to bring his mother to theUK. After an application was initially refused in2018, Clinic Immigration Caseworker RichardWarren and Clinic Immigration Solicitor SheonaYork won an appeal after presenting a compellingcase in court.

Eritrean man reunited with mother

Supporting victims in courtA group of 16 Kent Law Clinic students has begun training that will enable them to supportvictims of domestic abuse during court proceedings. The students are being trained asvolunteers by SATEDA (Support and Action To End Domestic Abuse) for a project calledSupport2Court. This initiative is the result of a new partnership established between the Law Clinic and SATEDA by Family Law Solicitor Philippa Bruce.

At the 2019 Kent Student Awards in June,students involved in the Law School’sDecolonising the Curriculum Project wererecognised for their work in making an‘outstanding contribution to equality, diversityand inclusivity.’

Law and Criminology student Daniel Rozenbergwas named overall ‘Student of the Year’ and wasalso the winner of the trophy for making an‘Outstanding contribution to the local community’.Law and Accounting and Finance student AarishHyder was a joint winner for the ‘OutstandingInternational/Multicultural Initiative of the Year’.

Revolutionary student-ledresearch projectA revolutionary, student-led research project atKent Law School has empowered Black, Asianand minority ethnic (BAME) students to begin‘decolonising’ their curriculum.

Student members of the Decolonising theCurriculum Project (DtCP) undertook researchto critically explore perceptions of the BAMEattainment gap. They wrote a Manifesto, basedon their findings, to suggest ways for enhancinginclusivity, identity and academic performanceat Kent.

As a result of the project, a new KaleidoscopeNetwork has been set up at Kent for staff andstudents who support the principles of raceequality. A DtCP conference, planned for March2020 at Kent, will focus on ‘whiteness andempowering colleagues promoting BAMEinclusion’.

The project, the first of its kind to be establishedin a UK law school, was initiated by Kent LawSchool Senior Lecturer Dr Suhraiya Jivraj andsupported by Student Success colleaguesDave Thomas and Sheree Palmer.

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Award-winning students

Teaching awardKent Law School Senior Lecturer Dr SuhraiyaJivraj won the Social Sciences FacultyTeaching Award 2019 for her leadership of theDecolonising the Curriculum Project (DtCP).She was recognised for her work in leading theproject which aims to support BAME studentsin becoming change actors and co-producersof knowledge.

Access to medicines in Tanzania:Utilising TRIPS flexibilities to promote public healthZainab Bakari

This research focuses on access to essentialmedicines in Tanzania, in terms of physical andgeographical availability and accessibility,affordability and quality. Access to essentialmedicines has been a problem in Tanzania. This research is specifically looking at the role of legal regulation in mediating access tomedicines, and at how Tanzania has sought to deploy adequate responses to enhance or facilitate access.

A core (if not exclusive) focus of this analysiswill be the international agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights(TRIPs), and the flexibility it offers to itssignatories, including Tanzania, in the context ofpublic health. My research will also look beyondthe issue of compliance and implementation ofTRIPS flexibilities (particularly if the latter isfound to be inadequate) to consider feasiblepolicies that will enhance physical andgeographical availability and accessibility,affordability and quality, including the supportfor local pharmaceutical industries.

Juridical Truth: Metaphysical Closurein Modern Legal ThoughtHüseyin Disli

On the basis of the argument that modern law’srelation to truth is marked by the discourse of‘metaphysical closure’, this thesis undertakes areading of the ‘metaphysics of law’ in relation tothe notion of juridical truth, through examiningthe relation between the ‘elimination’ ofmetaphysical thought in both philosophicaldiscourse and modern legal thought.

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Doctoral scholars at Kent Law School are engaged in an extraordinary breadthof critical, socio-legal research. But don’t just take our word for it; we’vespotlighted a small selection of thesis summaries to help you see the diverseaspects of the law our scholars choose to interrogate!

Extraordinary breadth of doctoral research at Kent Law School

Dr Thanos Zartaloudis, Co-Director ofPostgraduate Research at Kent LawSchool said: ‘Our research studentsare exceptionally capable. Theirprojects make a wonderfully intellectualcontribution to the present and futurelegacy of Kent Law School. At Kent wehave, over the decades, developed achallenging, interdisciplinary, criticaland above all collegiate andcollaborative research programme thathas rendered Kent Law School one ofthe very best places to study for aresearch degree, worldwide.’

Parents on the Periphery: ChildProtection Law and Parents withLearning DisabilitiesSiobhan Collins

This thesis seeks to identify aspects of currentchild protection law and legal process thatparticularly disadvantage parent(s) with learningdisabilities. I am undertaking a criticalexploration of the emergence and developmentof current ideologies such as theories ofindividual responsibility and the post-liberalsubject underpinning the current legal

framework relating to parenthood and childprotection. I’ll contrast these with morecommunitarian theories of responsibility(Eckstein) and the Vulnerability Theory (MarthaFineman) in an effort to propose alternative waysto reimagine the current law on child protectionto enable it to be more inclusive of this group ofparents. My research will include the views ofparents with learning disabilities andprofessionals who work with them on theirexperiences of the current legal system andinclude their voices on how the law could bereframed to empower more parents with learningdisabilities to raise their own children.

A critical reflection on the no-propertyrule in the human body andbiomaterials in the context of biobanksRebecca Gulbul

My research examines the ambiguity around theproperty status of biomaterials in the context ofbiobanks. This uncertainty appears to be thefoundation of the asymmetry between the rightsexercised by tissue donors and third parties. Ithas led to a dualism in biobanking where publicinterests exist alongside commercial ones. Mythesis explores this using three main concepts:the gift, biological citizenship and temporality.

The Regulation of Online Peer-to-Peer(P2P) Lending: A Comparative Studyin the UK and ChinaChen Yang

Over the last decade, P2P lending has emergedin markets of most countries and experienced ahigh-speed growth in the wake of the progressof internet technology and fintech. The objectiveof this study is to generate new insights aboutthe design and evaluation of P2P lendingregulation regimes of today, by undertaking acomparative study of the P2P lending regulationof the two leading P2P lending markets, the UKand China.

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1 Kent Law School PhD scholars2 Onderstepoort landfill in Pretoria (now closed)

STUDY YOUR PHD INLAW AT KENT

Kent Law School has an active andsupportive student community, withexcellent dedicated postgraduatefacilities. You are usually allocated twosupervisors, who give guidance aboutthe nature of the research, the standardof work required, and about the relevantliterature and sources that should beconsulted. You meet with supervisorsmonthly, ensuring consistent andcontinuous support during the length ofthe degree: www.kent.ac.uk/pg/340

Localising international law: theimplications for sustainabledevelopment in the lives of wastepickers in South AfricaAllison Lindner

This thesis explores what happens in a localisedsetting when sustainable development, aninternational legal concept, is translated intonational laws through an empirical case studyinvolving waste pickers in Johannesburg, SouthAfrica. I chose South Africa as the centre of theempirical examination given that sustainabledevelopment is both enshrined as a right in thehighly-regarded and progressive South AfricanConstitution, and is the prime objective of manylocal laws which comprise the wastemanagement regime.

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8 University of Kent Kent Law School

Research 1 Professor Anneli Albi2 Professor Lydia Hayes3 Professor Nick Grief4 Professor Erika Rackley5 Dr Connal Parsley6 Professor Maria Drakopoulou7 Dr Ed Kirton-Darling8 Professor Helen Carr

Role of national constitutionsA five-year Kent Law School research projectexamining ‘The Role of National Constitutions inEuropean and Global Governance’ recommendsreconsideration of the prevailing focus onsovereignty. The project, led by Professor AnneliAlbi, found that the focus on sovereigntyoverlooks the deeper comparative Europeanconstitutional cultures and their common anddiverse elements. The findings are published in a two-volume, open access book entitledNational Constitutions in European and GlobalGovernance: Democracy, Rights, the Rule ofLaw (TMC Asser Press, 2019).

Care sector workforceThe All-Party Parliamentary Group on SocialCare has acknowledged ‘a great debt ofgratitude’ to a team led by Kent Law SchoolProfessor Lydia Hayes for providing ‘expansive,thorough and vigorous’ research in support oftheir All-Party Inquiry into the care sectorworkforce. Professor Hayes collaborated with DrEleanor Johnson and Alison Tarrant to investigatehow care workers could be better supported todevelop as career professionals and why thiswas necessary. Their report ‘ProfessionalisationAt Work in Adult Social Care’, provides a pictureof professionalisation in adult social care acrossEngland, Scotland, Wales and Northern Irelandand is cited frequently in the APPG InquiryReport entitled ‘Elevation, Registration andStandardisation: The Professionalisation ofSocial Care Workers’.

Case for new human rightProfessor Nick Grief and Shona Illingworth (KentSchool of Arts) have been in Australia for thesecond hearing of The Airspace Tribunal, apeople’s tribunal that is considering the case forand against the recognition of a new humanright to protect the freedom to live withoutphysical or psychological threat from above. TheTribunal hearing was held in Sydney as part ofThe Big Anxiety, an international arts festivalorganised by the University of New South Wales.Experts across a range of disciplines and livedexperience made representations on whetherincreased protection through the proposed newhuman right is needed.

Shattering Lives and MythsA new report co-authored by Professor ErikaRackley reveals how sexual images sharedonline without consent can be devastating forvictims – who then find that the law fails them.Shattering Lives and Myths: A Report on Image-Based Sexual Abuse has been produced byProfessor Rackley in collaboration with ProfessorClare McGlynn and Dr Kelly Johnson fromDurham University. The report reveals the extentof the devastation caused by image-basedsexual abuse and shows that current laws aretoo limited and are ‘gambling with people’s lives’.The report’s authors are calling for urgent actionbefore more people suffer.

Law and the HumanKent Law School is hosting a new AHRC-fundedinternational network on the theme of ‘Law andthe Human’, with the participation of networkpartner Amherst College in the US. Theinterdisciplinary network, supported by a£45,000 grant from the Arts and HumanitiesResearch Council, is led by Dr Connal Parsley(Principal Investigator) and Professor MariaDrakopoulou. Its aim is to gather, support andadvance interdisciplinary research that raisesquestions, provokes reflection and generatesnew knowledge on the figure of the human andits relationship to law.

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Homeless veterans in LondonIn an ongoing collaborative investigation intohousing responsibilities for homeless veterans inLondon, Dr Ed Kirton-Darling and ProfessorHelen Carr have identified a need for research todetermine how the law may be hinderingcoordination and decision-making. Their latestfindings arise from a workshop organised by theLondon Veterans Advisory and PensionsCommittee (VAPC). Attendees from 13 localLondon authorities, the Greater London Authority,the charitable sector and military organisationsengaged in critical discussions abouthomelessness, allocation of social housing andworking with others.

Celebration of Lady HaleProfessors Erika Rackley and Rosemary Hunterhave been awarded £11,000 by the Society ofLegal Scholars (SLS) to celebrate the legal lifeand jurisprudence of The Right Honourable TheBaroness Hale of Richmond, as one of theSociety’s flagship Annual Seminars in 2020. Thetwo-day conference in central London will be afocus of celebrations to mark Lady Hale’sretirement from her role as President of the UK’sSupreme Court in January 2020. Papers from theconference will be published as an editedcollection by Cambridge University Press.

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1 Professor Diamond Ashiagbor2 Professor Rosemary Hunter

AHRC Advisory BoardProfessor Diamond Ashiagbor has beenappointed to the Arts and HumanitiesResearch Council’s Advisory Board for a three-year term.

Family Justice PanelProfessor Rosemary Hunter has beenappointed to a government Family JusticePanel steering a public call for evidence onhow the family courts protect victims in casesof domestic abuse and other serious offences.

Postgraduate research successCongratulations to postgraduate researchstudents who have successfully defended theirdoctoral thesis in 2019, including: Dr Mohammad Afshary; Dr MohammedAlhamzi; Dr Mark Charoenwong; Dr HayathemBin Hasher; Dr Marie Kerin; Dr Joao AraujoMonteiro Neto; Dr Dami Odetola; Dr JosipaSaric; Dr Josephine Uwineza; Dr Pamela White.

Leavers and Joiners 2019This academic year we bid farewell to retirees:Dr Cheryl Dolder; Penny Grinter. We have alsosaid goodbye to: Dr Karen Devine; Naomi Evans;Dr Sinead Ring; Hannah Uglow; Dr Will White.

Professor Bill Howarth has moved to emeritusstatus and Dr Eleanor Curran is now anHonorary Fellow.

In 2019, we have welcomed three newprofessors: Professor Lydia Hayes; ProfessorShaun McVeigh; and Professor Alain Pottage(from January 2020). We have also welcomed:Dr Mohammed Afshary; Dr Gian GiacomoFusco; Dr Allison Holmes; Eric Loefflad; MosesMalekia; Dr Jeremmy Okonjo; Luminita Olteanu;Dr Josipa Saric; Russell Weeks; Dr PamelaWhite; Karen Widess.

Promotions 2019Our congratulations to the following colleagueson their promotion: Dr Jose Bellido (Reader); Dr Luis Eslava (Reader); Dr Rose Parfitt (SeniorLecturer).

Staff News

Books by Law School academicsBooks authored and edited by Kent Law Schoolacademics in 2019 include:

• National Constitutions in European and GlobalGovernance: Democracy, Rights, the Rule ofLaw (TMC Asser Press, 2019) edited byProfessor Anneli Albi and Samo Bardutzky,Assistant Professor of Constitutional Law atthe University of Ljubljana, Slovenia

• Re-Imagining Labour Law for Development:Informal Work in the Global North and South(Hart Publishing) edited by ProfessorDiamond Ashiagbor

• The Slave Trade, Abolition and the LongHistory of International Criminal Law(Routledge) by Dr Emily Haslam

• The Process of International LegalReproduction: Inequality, Historiography,Resistance (Cambridge University Press) byDr Rose Parfitt

• Women’s Legal Landmarks: Celebrating thehistory of women and law in the UK andIreland (Hart Publishing) co-edited byProfessor Erika Rackley and ProfessorRosemary Auchmuty (University of Reading)

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Kent Law Temple SocietyJennifer Earle, President 2019-20

Kent Temple Law Society (KTLS) is the oldest lawsociety at the University of Kent and our focus ison professional development and the Bar. Thisterm, we are holding a talk from Inner Temple onthe road to joining an Inn. We are also hosting apanel discussion of barristers who practice incivil law vs criminal law. This talk will include Kentalumni.

In November, we are co-hosting a Christmasdinner with the other law societies at Wildwood(in Canterbury). This will provide an opportunityto network with fellow students. Students canreflect upon and celebrate the near completionof the autumn term 2019/2020.

In the spring term, we are hosting a paneldiscussion in collaboration with the Kent StudentLaw Society. Students will hear from practicingbarristers and solicitors about their professionaljourney. The talk will be followed by a Q&Asession. This will assist students in decidingwhich path to choose.

Our mooting tournament will be held in February2020. Student mentors and mentees willcompete as a team (junior and senior barrister)against their peers in this student-led moot.

The KLTS Annual Dinner will be held at the endof the spring term. This is an event attended bystudents, barristers, faculty and judges. Thisaffords students the opportunity to meet andnetwork with legal professionals and Kent LawSchool staff. Several Kent alumni also attend thisdinner and are eager to share their experiencesfollowing their law degree.

Keep up with our events on our Facebook page@KentLawTempleSociety, Snapchat andInstagram @KentLawTemple.

Kent Student Law SocietyJordan Yohannes, Commercial AwarenessOfficer 2019-2020

Kent Student Law Society is an academic societyfor both law and non-law students, typicallyknown as the society for aspiring solicitors. Wehelp and encourage students in their preparationfor legal careers in a way that goes further thanthe curriculum.

Our lectures and events mostly feature Kent LawSchool alumni who are solicitors with significantexperience in the legal sector or successfultrainees who can give a true account of what atraining contract is like. Some of the firmsinclude Hogan Lovells, Pinsent Masons andLatham and Watkins. Some aspects that wefocus on include: interview training techniques,broadening commercial awareness andsubmitting an excellent application to a law firm.

In the last month, we have hosted talks on how toget a vacation scheme, how to get a trainingcontract, and how to prepare for the Law Fair.

KSLS also has the pleasure of hosting theannual Law Fair in Eliot College. Organised byYoginni Gopal, the Law Fair was open toeveryone pursuing a legal career. In addition tothis, we have a great following on Twitter,Instagram and Facebook, where we update ourmembers on our events. Exceptional tips forthose just beginning their legal career aresummarised in the ‘The Advisor’, as well ascommercial and financial updates on the legalmarket.

We look forward to hosting a number of excitingevents, including: our Christmas dinner socialand our barrister vs. solicitor event incollaboration with Kent Law Temple Society inthe spring term.

Kent Critical Law SocietyAlisha Dhume, President 2019-2020

Kent Critical Law Society (KCLS) is a student ledlaw group that specialises in hosting engaginglectures, networking events and conferences thatencompass the values of critical legal studies.We place emphasis on historic and currentsocial, political and economic issues, and theircontinued effects upon the law.

Student Society News

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Our lectures and events are led by academicsand professionals who are respected specialistsin their field of expertise. However, we alsoprovide a safe forum for budding legal minds toexpress their opinions, theories and research.

This year, the Society has altered the traditionalapproach of solely hosting evening lectures. Inaddition to holding events that promotequestioning the issues in law, we have also heldand plan to hold events that will help membersmake an informed decision about what they wantto pursue in the future. Thus far, we have hosteda society introduction event, which informed newmembers of our aims. We then hosted an eventwith Akil Hunte, a future trainee solicitor at CMSUK who shed light on the do’s and don’ts of alegal education and spoke about his journey andthe problems he faced from being a universitystudent to achieving a trainee contract.

Our next event was a panel discussion featuringProfessor Maria Drakopoulou, Dr Alex Magaisaand Dr Connal Parsley. As a Critical Law schoolthere is an emphasis on how we can use thismode of thinking in applications to variousbranches of Law. At this panel discussion, weexpanded on the importance of this academiclens, through the insight of these distinguishedacademics who have devoted their research tothis field.

Next term, we look forward to hosting a numberof exciting and distinct events. These include ourannual and biggest event Kent Critical StudentLaw Conference which seeks to explore thetheme of ‘Legal paradoxes’. The conference willtake place on Saturday 14 March 2020.

Kent Canadian Law SocietyKalen Handford, President 2019-20

The members of the Canadian Law society are atop tier group of students, whose academicambition and success is unmatched at theUniversity of Kent. You have all taken a greatleap towards success, but you do not have toface this journey alone.

Our mission is to introduce you to a new school,a new country, and a new way of life. We willshow our members how to be successful at theUniversity, and how to adapt to an entirely newschool and culture. We will strengthen our senseof community by showing our members the verybest that Canterbury, and England, have to offerwhile retaining some comforts of home. Andfinally, we will present the paths available to youonce you finish your law degree, whether youwant to return to Canada, stay in England, orpractice elsewhere in the world.

By taking this great leap towards becoming alawyer, you have left behind many things, family,friends, and home, but what you have started isa journey into the world. The places you will go,the people you will meet, and things you studywill change your life, and your outlook forever.Welcome to some of the greatest years of yourlife. Welcome to the Canadian Law Society!

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Kent International Law SocietyTimothy Thirukkumar, President and Sabrina Aziz Khan, Vice President 2019-2020

Kent International Law Society’s goal is toprovide members with an opportunity to get toknow more about international law through ourvarious events. Our major event of the year is thetrip to the International Criminal Court in theHague, Netherlands. This insightful trip will offerstudents insights into many opportunitiesavailable in international law, more specificallyhuman rights law. We also expect to have guestspeakers from City law firms to explain their rolesand their impact on an international level. Thiswill also open up opportunities for students tolearn more about the recruitment process atthese international firms. We will also be having amoot in the upcoming year where students willhave the opportunity to tackle an internationallaw dispute. We also plan to collaborate with allthe other Kent Law School societies with socialevents to ensure that the law societies and itsmembers remain tightly knit.

You completed a year abroad in Maastricht lastyear, can you tell us what that was like?

It was a wonderful experience. I studied atMaastricht University’s Law School where Istudied a range of courses from ComparativeContract Law and EU Law to Human Rights Law,and International Business and Company Law.The best part of my year abroad wasparticipating in a European Human Rights MootCourt Competition (organised by ELSA – theEuropean Law Student Association) as part ofthe team representing Maastricht University. Ihadn’t mooted before I went but, with a lot ofhard work and practice, our team became verygood and we won: the pre-rounds in Odessa,Ukraine; best respondent written submission;and 3rd place at the oral rounds in Strasbourg.Besides my travels as part of the competition, Ivisited The Netherlands, Barcelona (with friendsfrom Kent) and Germany (to visit my parents). AtMaastricht, I got to meet a lot of people from allover the world, since – just like Kent – it has avery international and diverse student body. Ithink doing a year abroad is a great way toexpand your horizons, become moreindependent and learn about other cultures,people and places – I would definitelyrecommend it!

Have you been involved with any of the studentsocieties during your studies?

Yes, I was the first-year representative for theKent Critical Law Society and Kent Student LawSociety’s treasurer in my second year. I also triedto go to and proactively engage with the otherlaw societies because I think they all organise somany great events and interesting talks. I thinkthey present a really good opportunity to makenew friends, interact with fellow students,network with professionals and spice up yourday-to-day student experience.

Tell us about your role as a Kent student rep forThomson Reuters – what do you do and whathave you learned from doing it?!

As the TR Student Rep, I make myself available tohelp students navigate the online Westlawplatform. I show them useful functions which canhelp them research more effectively. I hold weeklydrop-in sessions in the Skills Hub and ad-hocsessions on how to use Westlaw for academicresearch or for enhancing employability skills andcommercial awareness. Having a job (any kind ofpart-time work I think) helps a lot with timemanagement skills as you have to learn how tojuggle that and your studies. With this workspecifically, I think I have become better atconducting research but also I’ve improved mycommunication and marketing skills.

12 University of Kent Kent Law School

Student in the spotlight

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Alexandra Nadasan, European Legal Studies

You work as a Kent Law School StudentAmbassador, what’s that been like?

Amazing! I really love getting to talk about theLaw School, what it has to offer and myexperience here. It is always a pleasure tointeract with potential students. It’s great toremember myself before coming to Kent andhow many great things I’ve had the chance to dosince then. This work has also really helpedimprove my communication skills, especially interms of public speaking and doingpresentations. If you’d have told me when I lefthigh school that I would be able to speak tomore than 200 people in a place like WoolfLecture Theatre, I wouldn’t have believed you!

What other extra-curricular activities have youbeen involved with at Kent?

I’ve done quite a bit – volunteered at the LawClinic in my first year and I’m still continuing tobe as involved as possible there. I also did amodule in Negotiation in my second year, ClientInterviewing just recently and I’ll be doing amodule in Mediation next term. I enjoy studyingfor my courses but I think the best part of mydegree is predominantly all the extra- or co-curriculuar things I get to do.

Favourite module?

The Clinical Option (LW453) is definitely at thetop; I loved working on cases in the Law Clinicand having the opportunity to help people. I’malso really enjoying the Human Rights andEnglish Law module and the Law andInternational Development module which I amtaking at the moment.

Any all-nighters in the library?

Oh yeah – not just at the library. However, nonesince the start of this year. Everyone is differentin the way they study but I would reallyrecommend getting enough sleep every daybecause sleep deprivation can put an immensestrain on your health so, yes, take your studiesseriously, but make sure you take care ofyourself and your health too. If you arestruggling with this there is plenty of supportaround!

Best thing about living in Canterbury?

I would say its location is pretty high on the listsince it is so close to Europe but also to London.I am not a fan of big, busy cities so Canterburyis pretty much perfect for me, with all its historicaland modern sides.

Most surprising thing you’ve learned about the law?

Probably the complexity of it. I had someawareness that ‘law’ does not really work inisolation, which I why I never wanted to studyblack letter law, so I chose Kent for itsinterdisciplinary and critical approach to learninglaw. That being said, I was still amazed by howmany things you can and sometimes must takeinto consideration when discussing legal issues.

Worst thing about studying law?

This is a really hard question because I don’tthink there is anything I completely dislike aboutit. So even if I cannot say I loved all themandatory modules (criminal law was not myfavourite) or that I’m over the moon when I seethe never-ending reading lists… at the end ofthe day, I believe it’s about how we, as studentscan make the experience enjoyable and fun byusing all the resources and opportunitiesavailable to us.

And finally, what advice would you give toaspiring or first-year law students?

Take advantage of the opportunities available toyou. It’s ok to focus on your studies but I think itwould be a shame to miss out on all the othergood things happening around you. Pursue yourhobbies and interests, get involved with societies,do some part-time work or volunteering – thesethings will not only make you stand out as acandidate in the very competitive job market butwill enrich your entire student experience.Everything you can do to make sure you have thetime of your life at uni is worth it, because, trustme, it goes by much faster than you think!