ISSUE 21
WELCOME
INDEX
CONTENTS 1. USALSA NEWS
04 - 05
Get updated with all the USALSA and law school news you need to know.
2. MEET THE COMMITTEE
06 - 07
An overview of the new committee for the period of 2018 and 2019.
3. PRESIDENTAL ADDRESS
08 - 09
A letter from the incoming 2018 / 2019 USALSA President, Emma Martin.
4. NOVIE MOOT
11 - 13
Hannah and Shania discuss their experiences with administering and participating in competitions.
5. SOCIAL EVENTS
14 - 15
An overview of the winter wonderland law ball.
6. CAREER HIGHLIGHTS Courtney Highlights the events that were held in trimester 3.
7. FEATURE ARTICLE
16 - 17
18 - 19
Jessica highlights the visit from the Honorable Michael Kirby.
8. FIRST YEAR STUDENT FEATURE Richard discusses his expericne with his first year of law.
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MEET THE EDITORS Victoria DARZANOS Publications Director Hi, my name’s Victoria and I am your new Publications Director for the 2018/2019 term. I am currently a fourth year student, enrolled in a Law and Psychological Science double degree at UniSA. Previously on USALSA, I was the Publications Officer and redsigned the website. For this new term, as your Publications Director, Claire and I will be presdenting to you publications regarding current events and exciting infromation. I look forward to sharing these with you!
Claire zollo Publications Officer Hello, my name’s Claire and I am your new Publications Officer for the 2018/209 term. I am currently enrolled in a Law and Business (Management) degree at UniSA. My time at UniSA has been one of the craziest yet happiest in my life. As a part of the UniSA Law school has I have felt a part of a supportive and encouraging community and I aim to bring that same feeling the law school to all other students. As part of the Publications team, I want to work to help promote the law school and showcase the many wonderful achievements of its students to ensure all students know their contributions make a difference. I believe it is important we celebrate this community and its students and in my role I want to help ensure all students have a voice.
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USALS
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1. SOCIAL
2. CAREERS
3. COMPETITIONS
4. WEBSITE
The Law ball was the
The speed dating event was
The Novice Moot, Open
Take a look at our newly
highlight of the triemster,
a hit among law students,
Competitions and ALSA
refurbished website at:
featuring a sit down meal
and professionals.
were all successfully
and a live band!
organised and run this year.
http://usalsa.org.au/
F E AT U R E
SA NEWS In 2018, numerous social events, career
2018 events included USALSA’s Juristic Park
events, and competitions were run by USALSA
Pub Crawl in April, and the Winter Wonderland
to benefit the student body.
Law Ball, with both events successfully completed.
Relating to careers, the south Australian Trivarsity Careers Fair, the USALSA and Adelaide GDLP skills building night, the Practical
Legal
Training
(PLT)
fair,
KEEP AN EYE OUT
the
alternative careers seminar and the speed
In 2019, the South Australian Trivarsity Law
dating event.
Fair will take place between 11am and 2pm on Friday 15 March 2019 at the Adelaide
Competitions in 2018 were a huge success,
Convention Centre.
with UniSA and USALSA taking first place for the Witness Examination. In trimester one,
For more information visit:
the Open Competitions were held, and in
www.trilawsa.com.au
trimester 3 the Novice Moot was held. THE OBITER
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MEET THE 2018 /
ALEXANDER HAMAM
EMMA MARTIN
Vice President of Finance
President
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Vice Preside
treasury@usalsa.org
president@usalsa.org
VICTORIA DARZANOS
EDEN P
CLAIRE ZOLLO
activities@
ALEX VUKOJE
Publications and I.T. Director
Publications and I.T. Officer
Competitions Director
publications@usalsa.org
publicationsofficer@usalsa.org
competitions@usalsa.org
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RICHARD TRAN
SOMAYEH MIRZAIEI
Sponsorship Director
Activities Director
LAUREN K
Career
sponsorship@usalsa.org
activitiesdirector@usalsa.org
careers@
2019 COMMITTEE
PANOZZO
ent of Activities
@usalsa.org
COURTNEY DOLPHIN
JASMIN ROBINS
Vice President of Education
Vice President of Administration
education@usalsa.org
secretary@usalsa.org
SHANIA MORGAN
PENNY WHITING
NATALIA REVERUZZI
Competitions Officer
Careers Officer
Marketing Officer
competitionsofficer@usalsa.org
careersofficer@usalsa.org
marketing@usalsa.org
KNAPPSTEIN
rs Director
@usalsa.org
CASEY ELLENDON
TERESA TA
Finance Officer
Events Officer
financeofficer@usalsa.org
eventsofficer@usalsa.org
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2019
P R EASD DI DR EESNST ’ S
EMMA MARTIN Final Year Law Student
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Hi everyone, I hope you’re all enjoying your holidays and have a new sense of relief now that trimester 3 results are out. If you are disappointed with your results, just remember that your grades don’t define you as a student. As long as you tried your best you should be happy with how you have gone. There’s always a next time to achieve what you want to achieve. USALSA and the entirety of the UniSA Law School had an extremely busy year in 2018. In August we held our annual Law Ball at The Function in Glenelg with a stunning ‘Winter Wonderland’ theme. This being only our third year of running an independent Law Ball, we were extremely pleased with how the night went. The Committee took on board the feedback from previous years and tried to create a fun night for all. We hope you all enjoyed your night, and feel free to provide any feedback you have. We want to make Law Ball 2019 bigger and better than ever! In September, we were also lucky enough to host the Honourable Michael Kirby for an afternoon discussion on the importance of mental health and dissent in the Court. USALSA extended an invitation to Justice Kirby in mid-2018 after we asked our cohort to complete a survey regarding their mental health at university. The survey revealed the struggles our students were facing, with that less than 50% of law students reporting the were higher than “5” on a “1-10” scale, “10” being of good mental health. Additional responses to the survey indicated that a stigma still exists surrounding mental health and seeking help in relation to mental health issues. We also invited the mental health organisation, Batyr, to present to our students. We felt this event would be able to help open the conversation regarding mental health for our students. This was an extremely successful event and USASLA will continue to focus upon recognising the importance of mental health and mental health education throughout 2019. In October we ran our annual Novice Moot. USALSA was extremely pleased with the participation and dedication from the 2018 cohort. First year students were given an opportunity to moot for the first time and gain invaluable legal skills. As always, USALSA and the judges were impressed with the high standard of mooting seen. Lipman Karas was kind enough to host the grand finale, and I congratulate Shania Morgan for being our 2018 winner. I encourage everyone to come along to our competition finals to support friends and fellow classmates! As the new year come in, 2019 also brings us the new structure of our law degree. Effectively our usual ‘trimester 2’ will now be for the Winter School intensives over the 8-week period. This change to the timetabling system should not affect your degree too significantly. However, if you feel you may face an issue with your enrolment in the future, remember the academic service officers in the law school are always there to help. Stay safe with the remainder of your holidays, I’ll see you all in March! THE OBITER
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THE
NOVICE MOOT Words by
GRAND FINALE 2018
HANNAH THOMAS
The preliminary round involves teams of two competing against each other to present an argument for the appellant or respondent of a fictional case. The judge for the preliminary round was Betty Kontoleon and we thank Betty for taking the time out to judge.
The novice moot was held in trimester 3 of 2018. This moot is aimed at first year law students,
From the preliminary round, the top two teams
where no mooting experience has occurred
proceed to the grand final. The grand final was held
through subjects or other avenues. This is aimed
at Lipman Karas who sponsored the competition.
for students to dip their toes into mooting, to give
Lipman Karas provided two partners to judge
it a go and have fun. It gives students an idea
the grand final, Mark Giddings and Andrew
of what to expect for subject moots in years to
Tarnowskyj. USALSA thanks Lipman Karas for
come.
hosting and assisting in judging. The grand final was also judged by Justice Sam Doyle. The four
Approximately 23 students signed up as
finalists, Shania Morgan, Teresa Ta, Alexander
interested to participate, these numbers are great
Belperio and Daniel Calerisi, displayed their skills
but I encourage anyone and everyone to get
and the judges were very impressed. The winners
involved. Approximately 17 students attended
were Shania Morgan and Teresa Ta.
the training session which was ran by Hannah Thomas. The training session incorporates what
The Novice Moot is a fun competition which gives
a moot is, what you need to know, court etiquette,
you an idea of what mooting is and what to expect
a mini practice question and much more. A guide
for subject moots. I recommend everyone to give
of the things covered is also handed out. These
it a go.
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The USALSA committee equipped us with the necessary skills to ensure that myself and the other competitors were prepared to the best of their ability for the moot. Their guidance enabled the first-time mooters to learn and practice how to participate in a moot, as it was a new skill which needed to be taught. Coming face to face with a Supreme Court Justice as well as two other partners of Lipman Karas was certainly an intimidating experience. However, it also allowed my fellow grand finalists and I to present our junior legal mooting skills and then receive insightful and beneficial feedback regarding our performance from legal experts.
Words by Shania Morgan, the 2018 Novice Moot Winner.
Participating in the Lipman Karas Novice Moot was a challenging but enjoyable experience. Competitors in both the preliminary and grand final were remarkable in their performances, and
Entering into the Lipman Karas Novice Moot
should be commended, going up against these
was a very daunting, but ultimately a very
teams was not easy.
fulfilling experience. The decision to participate in this event allowed me to gently become
A thank you should be given to the UniSA staff
exposed to the art of mooting in a supportive and
who assisted in judging and organising the event,
pressure free environment. During this period,
as well as the USALSA Committee, in particular
I developed a myriad of different skills such
Hannah and Georgina, for all their hard work in
as confidence, advocacy, organisation, writing
ensuring that the competition was a success.
and preparing legal arguments for analysis. These skills are imperative for all assessments
I highly recommend that future first year students
undertaken during a law student’s degree but
get involved in this amazing opportunity, while
also in the workforce.
a lot of hard work is required, and it can be daunting, the experience that you gain from it is
The opportunity to participate in the Novice Moot
invaluable and rewarding.
provided me with an invaluable experience, where I was tested on my ability to think critically about legal issues and answer questions from a panel of judges about my prepared work. THE OBITER
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ALL IMAGES ARE ON OUR FA C E B O O K PA G E
The 2018 USALSA Winter Wonderland Law Ball 14
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W O R D S BY JASMIN ROBINS
The Winter Wonderland law ball was
the most of their drinks package and
held at the end of trimester two at the
danced the night away. Others also took
Function in Glenelg. The formal event
turns posing for the photo booth. When
saw over 80 people attend. Attendees
the drink package finished the party did
were greeted with canapĂŠs and a large
not, many attendees continued to the
selection of drinks, accompanied by a 2
after party held at The Mosley before
course sit down meal. Shortly after the
returning to their hotel rooms in the
conclusion of dinner there was a live
early hours of the morning.
band preforming whilst guests made
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CAREER HIGHLIGHTS SPEED DATING USALSA and the College of Law held their
Students were also able to ask questions
Speed Dating Networking Night in Week 6 of
about what the life of a lawyer entails, such as
Trimester 3 at Peter Rabbit.
the duties and responsibilities involved when entering the legal profession and maintaining
This event gives students the opportunity to
a healthy work-life balance.
network with members of the legal profession in a relaxed and informal environment. The
The professionals who came out on the day
event was attended by professionals who
were Bev Clark, Peter Kassapidis, Ed Jolly
practice in numerous areas such as family law,
and Joseph Henderson.
criminal law, civil litigation, wills and estates and commercial law. This event was very successful and students were able to seek advice and explore possible career paths.
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Word s by cour tney d olph in
Alternative careers fair The Alternative Careers Fair was held on the 9 August in SP4. As there are multiple paths that students can take with a law degree, this event gave students the opportunity to explore other career avenues available to them. Students were able to ask questions about how their law degree is useful for an alternative career path and also how students are able to pursue these careers. The speakers that attended this event had formed careers in mediation, legal research, academia, journalism and a myriad of other areas. Speakers 1. Ingo Block - Advisor to the Hon. Vickie Chapman MP. 2. Alison Shaw - Dispute Resolution Consultant and Mediator, Founder of Shaw Mediation. 3. Royce Kurmelovs - Freelance Journalist and Author. 4. Zachariah Reveruzzi - Advisor to the Hon. Andrew McLachlan CSC MLC, President of the Legislative Council. 5. Peta Spyrou - Legal Research Officer at the South Australian Parliament Research Library. 6. Anja Kantic - Academic at the University of South Australia School of Law. 7. Amy Ward - Law Mentor, Founder of Headstart Law Jobs. 8. Adriana Mainas - Legal Officer in the Ethics and Practice Unit of the Law Society of South Australia.
GDLP FAIR USALSA held its annual GDLP Fair on 17 July in SP4. The GDLP Fair provides students with the opportunity to explore their GDLP options and find the course that is suitable for them by having a one-on-one discussion with GDLP providers. This event also allows students to discuss admission opportunities, and how students should complete their GDLP while studying, or after they have graduated from their degree. The event was attended by the top GDLP providers and included, The Law Society, College of Law, ANU and Leo Cussen. USALSA would like to extend our thanks to Matthew Atkinson for his support in organising this event.
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FEATURE
The H on M i ch a e l K i r by & BA T By Jessica Punch Traditionally, the USALSA Committee holds an annual initiative centred around both physical and mental wellbeing of law students at UniSA. In 2018, the USALSA Committee held an online poll for law students to gauge an idea of the state of their mental health during any given study period. Sadly, but unsurprisingly, poll results indicated that at least half of the student body were experiencing, or had experienced, poor mental health and had never sought help for it.
Kirby lives in Sydney) just to speak with our students felt like a long shot, but we decided to try, so, with the support of the law school, we extended an invitation to him. What started off as an overly ambitious idea, quickly became a reality when he responded to our letter with an enthusiastic acceptance and scheduled in 7 September 2018 to fly to Adelaide to speak with our student body about mental health in the legal profession and also kindly offered to give a lecture on dissent in the High Court.
We believed an esteemed member of the profession speaking on the topic would assist in breaking down the stigma and encourage students to seek help. One person that sprung to mind was someone whose popularity among law students seems to have transcended through each new cohort: our favourite dissenter, Kirby J.
The Committee organised for Batyr, a fantastic organisation for young individuals that are dedicated to breaking down the stigma of mental ill health, to speak before Mr Kirby. Batyr did an informative presentation focused on raising awareness of mental health issues and highlighting support systems and services available to students. I highly recommend you check them and the services they provide out. Mr Kirby’s talk was very different than I anticipated. Mr Kirby spoke about suicide (particularly amongst the judiciary), the nature of practising law and its detriment to work/life balance, his journey through the legal profession as a gay man and his own observations of the treatment of mental health in the profession. One point that Mr Kirby made was recognising that the desire for a universal solution to the prevalence of mental ill health amongst members of the profession is futile.
Feeling like having such an influential and well-known individual come to Adelaide (Mr
The nature of legal practice is inherently demanding, which is something that cannot be
For our 2018 initiative, we decided to do something different. Given the high prevalence of mental health issues in our law school, and the wider legal fraternity, our aim for the year was to raise awareness of mental ill health amongst the law student body and encourage students to seek out services that could assist in their mental wellbeing.
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Ty r vis i t unis a L A W S CH O O L avoided. Rather than searching for a band-aid solution, we should recognise the nature of legal practice for what it is and find mechanisms to deal with the stress that accompanies practice instead of trying to eliminate that stress altogether. Mr Kirby credited the support of his partner, Johan, that enabled him to lead a fulfilling and manageable career in the law. He jokingly suggested we all find ourselves partners like Johan. The message that he was trying to get across was the need for surrounding yourself with people, or a network of people, who will support your career in the law. Mr Kirby’s lecture on dissent in the High Court was equally as interesting as his first talk. Hearing Mr Kirby, whom we all admire for his strong dissents (even though he makes reading cases just that bit more difficult), speak about one of the things he is known best for was surreal to say the least.
BATyr Batyr was launched in 2011, after founder Sebastian Robertson experienced the frustration and isolation of living silently with mental ill health whilst at university. Sebastian recognised that it was time to have open honest conversations about mental health with young people, and founded the organisation, naming it after batyr (‘hero’), The Talking Elephant From Kazakhstan.
Read more at https://www.batyr.com.au/ about-us/#ElPGmbUfDsBok1D2.99 https://www.batyr.com.au/
I can confidently say that Mr Kirby’s visit was one of the highlights of my legal education and I thank the law school for their assistance in making such an amazing event happen.
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A REFLECTION ON RICHARD’S FIRST YEAR OF LAW The first year of studying law is a unique journey. For the first time many students will experience high levels of pressure, but they will also learn how to assert their energy to overcome the challenging tasks. You will be surprised by the high standard of work that law school will demand from you and be in shock and disbelief that the grades you receive are actually real, even for high-achievers. It is scary at first but the best thing to do is to work through it one step at a time. The best lesson I have learnt from law school so far is that every time things got hard and I wanted to quit was just to push through for one more day and then in the end it would all work out. You have to really learn to how cope with high volume and intensive workload. But at the end of the day, all of the hard work is worth the effort. Every time I raced against deadlines, I was be able to increase my working capacity and in turn cope with more stress. One thing I find effective is spending some time to reflect on your progress at the end of each assessment to see your current progress and to identify what you need to adjust to improve your learning. However, law school can be mentally draining, so be sure to keep your mental health in check. Making friends and keeping social plays a major part in student life to provide support and stress relief and can help you explore new perspectives. Getting involved in USALSA and their events is a great way of making friends and learning from your peers. My top tips for law school: •
Access learnonline and look at the course content before the start of the term. The workload starts snowballing very quickly so always try and be prepared.
•
Do all your reading where possible. If you can afford the time, don’t skip them.
•
Attend your tutorial every week and if you’re struggling don’t be afraid to reach out to your tutors for feedback.
•
Rather than just printing out the slides, attempt to make an outline of every topic in a word document.
•
Make a resolve to start all your assignments three weeks. Just sitting down and making a plan early on will increase your chances of success.
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Do you want to be featured in the next edition of the Obiter? Send an email to Victoria at - publications@usalsa.org
TRIMESTER YEAR
03
ISSUE
21 2019
PAGES
A 2 0 1 8/ 2 0 1 9 U S A L S A P U B L I C AT I O N
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