Uni leads drive to attract indigenous law students

Law

The University of Adelaide's Law School has been a major sponsor of a forum aimed at addressing the issue of attracting indigenous law students to university.

The two-day forum, held last month at Port Augusta 300km north of Adelaide, was organised by a committee of the Law Society of South Australia, chaired by Justice John Sulan of the Supreme Court.

The Law School was the educational sponsor of the forum, which aimed to identify possible challenges faced by indigenous students and encourage more indigenous students to study law.

"The Law School at the University of Adelaide has a very proud history - we are one of the oldest law schools in the common law world, celebrating our 125th Anniversary this year. However, for the first century of our existence, we had no indigenous law graduates," said Professor Rosemary Owens, Dean of Law at the University of Adelaide.

"Over the last two decades the Law School has worked much harder to redress this situation, and since 1985, 17 indigenous students have graduated in law from the University of Adelaide. However, we would like to see many more indigenous people studying law.

"We encourage all indigenous students to consider studying law at the University of Adelaide," Professor Owens said.

Nicole Bichard, a final-year student in the University's Law School and a member of the Ngarrindjeri people of the Coorong, was one of the guest speakers at the forum.

"I chose law because it enables me to understand my legal rights, the legal rights of my family and friends, and gives me the ability to stand on my own two feet," Nicole said.

"My law degree will put me in good stead for a successful career and a bright future."

Nicole and Matthew Stubbs, a Lecturer and Indigenous Student Liaison Officer in the Law School, were among those interviewed by media as part of the forum's efforts to raise awareness of the study of law.

"In the past, sadly many indigenous people have experienced the law as an instrument through which other people's decisions have been imposed upon them," Mr Stubbs said.

"Our message to indigenous students is that law has a transformative potential - indigenous people can use the law as a powerful tool to advance the interests of their own communities.

"There remain many areas where law's relationship with indigenous people needs to be further reformed and improved, and the law is poorer in its attempts to reach out to indigenous people because of the scarcity of indigenous perspectives," he said.

Support and assistance for indigenous law students is provided by the Law School and Wilto Yerlo, the Centre for Australian Indigenous Research and Studies at the University of Adelaide.

"We can help indigenous students gain entry to the University of Adelaide, assist them to adjust to life as a university student, ensure they achieve the best possible outcomes from their studies through the provision of tutoring, mentoring and other forms of support, and help link them up to employers who can provide paid work whilst they are studying as well as employment opportunities at the completion of their degrees," Mr Stubbs said.