Equality Law Protection for Legal Education: Internships, Volunteering and Clinics
‘Practical’ legal education offers significant educational and personal benefits. However, it also comes with risks that need to be actively managed, including the risk of students experiencing harassment and discrimination. This article considers the scope of equality law, and how it applies to dif...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Bond University
2024-04-01
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| Series: | Legal Education Review |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.53300/001c.115466 |
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| _version_ | 1850112987145175040 |
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| author | Alysia Blackham |
| author_facet | Alysia Blackham |
| author_sort | Alysia Blackham |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | ‘Practical’ legal education offers significant educational and personal benefits. However, it also comes with risks that need to be actively managed, including the risk of students experiencing harassment and discrimination. This article considers the scope of equality law, and how it applies to different forms of ‘practical’ legal education activities. It considers how equality law applies to ‘volunteer’ positions, including those in law firm partnerships, barristers’ chambers, and community organisations, legal internships and law school-run legal clinics. It considers the complexity of the legal framework, and the resulting difficulties law students might have in asserting their equality rights. It argues there is a particular need to address three gaps in the current legal framework for practical legal education activities, by: adopting a broader definition of ‘work’ to include unpaid roles; regulating harassment on grounds other than sex; and protecting law students from the actions of third parties, such as clients and members of the public. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-0d7e63aa818f48f985fbb40eb394d45c |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 1033-2839 1839-3713 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-04-01 |
| publisher | Bond University |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Legal Education Review |
| spelling | doaj-art-0d7e63aa818f48f985fbb40eb394d45c2025-08-20T02:37:16ZengBond UniversityLegal Education Review1033-28391839-37132024-04-0134210.53300/001c.115466Equality Law Protection for Legal Education: Internships, Volunteering and ClinicsAlysia Blackham‘Practical’ legal education offers significant educational and personal benefits. However, it also comes with risks that need to be actively managed, including the risk of students experiencing harassment and discrimination. This article considers the scope of equality law, and how it applies to different forms of ‘practical’ legal education activities. It considers how equality law applies to ‘volunteer’ positions, including those in law firm partnerships, barristers’ chambers, and community organisations, legal internships and law school-run legal clinics. It considers the complexity of the legal framework, and the resulting difficulties law students might have in asserting their equality rights. It argues there is a particular need to address three gaps in the current legal framework for practical legal education activities, by: adopting a broader definition of ‘work’ to include unpaid roles; regulating harassment on grounds other than sex; and protecting law students from the actions of third parties, such as clients and members of the public.https://doi.org/10.53300/001c.115466 |
| spellingShingle | Alysia Blackham Equality Law Protection for Legal Education: Internships, Volunteering and Clinics Legal Education Review |
| title | Equality Law Protection for Legal Education: Internships, Volunteering and Clinics |
| title_full | Equality Law Protection for Legal Education: Internships, Volunteering and Clinics |
| title_fullStr | Equality Law Protection for Legal Education: Internships, Volunteering and Clinics |
| title_full_unstemmed | Equality Law Protection for Legal Education: Internships, Volunteering and Clinics |
| title_short | Equality Law Protection for Legal Education: Internships, Volunteering and Clinics |
| title_sort | equality law protection for legal education internships volunteering and clinics |
| url | https://doi.org/10.53300/001c.115466 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT alysiablackham equalitylawprotectionforlegaleducationinternshipsvolunteeringandclinics |