Humanities

VCE Legal Studies

It was an incredible experience for our Year 11 and Year 12 students to enter the County Court and the Supreme Court. Students were granted the opportunity to speak with multiple legal experts. Justice Patricia Matthews in the Supreme Court spoke about her experiences in commercial law and the many interesting cases she has worked on in the past, for example the Uber and Taxi case study. After speaking with Justice Matthews, we observed a committal hearing surrounding a man that was accused of murder. It was hard to get the students to leave as they were so thoroughly engaged with the case.

In the County Court we were greeted by Judge Frances Hogan who spoke about her work in the Northern Territory helping Aboriginals. The stories were incredibly insightful for students to hear about the cultural shifts between Victoria and Northern Territory. Students represented the school values of harmony and respect during their conversations, even referring to Judge Hogan as “Your Honour”. I was notified afterwards that not all students around the state share the same level of respect. After observing one case revolving around culpable driving causing death, another Judge called our group over to enter a discussion revolving around the importance of a jury. Students were able to engage with two judges on this excursion and have gained an incredible amount of knowledge, which has assisted many on their latest SAC results.

It is important to note that the manner in which students conducted themselves at the courts was admirable on all accounts. We received many compliments from judges, security, staff that organised the event and even members of the community about the way the students behaved. Their conduct has made us, as their teachers, incredibly proud and we look forward to taking more groups on these excursions in the future.