TCD – Page 2 – cearta.ie

The title of this post comes from the headline in an interesting and provocative article by Larry Donnelly of NUI Galway (pictured left) in Monday’s Irish Times. His core argument is that the preparation of students for law practice should play a greater role in legal education in Ireland:

Historically, law study at third-level institutions in Ireland and in other common law jurisdictions was theory-based and took place exclusively in lecture halls. Law, however, is both an academic and a vocational discipline. Accordingly, law schools in every other common law jurisdiction have embraced the role of practice in legal education, but Irish law schools still lag far behind.

I entirely agree. Clinical and experiential learning centers on providing students with hands-on opportunities to understand how the law works in the real world. Along with the legal skills traditionally taught by law schools (legal research, legal analysis, and sometimes the ability to engage with policy and theoretical literature), the modern law degree should also seek to inculcate written and oral communication skills, interview skills, team-work, legal drafting, negotiation, advocacy, case management and practice management. 2007 saw the foundation of two very exciting Law Schools committed to this appraoch. The School of Law in the University of York began life with a bang, offering a completely progressive, clinical and experiential undergraduate curriculum, with problem-based learning modules centred on what they call the student law firm.…

Judicial Activism

3 October, 200929 September, 2009

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| Conferences, Lectures, Papers and Workshops, judges, law school

The Hon. Mr. Chief Justice Balakrishnan, Chief Justice of India, will deliver a Guest Lecture at the School of Law, TCD:

Judicial Activism Under the Indian Constitution

It will be held on Wednesday, 14 October 2009, at 6:00 pm in the JM Synge Theatre, Room 2039, Arts Building, Trinity College Dublin (map).

If you would like to attend, please contact the Law School, by email, by mail to School of Law, House 39, Trinity College, Dublin 2; by phone to (01) 896 2367 or by fax to (01) 677 0449.

It promises to be an interesting evening. The label “judicial activism” is often used loosely, sometimes to describe the judicial process, sometimes to castigate judges as failing to confine themselves to reasonable interpretations of laws, and instead substitute their own political opinions for the applicable law. I particularly reocmmend the posts on Balkinization. The issue, a long-time staple of constituitonal jurisprudence, came to the fore again during the confirmation hearings for US Supreme Court justice Sonia Sotomayor. But the debate is not confined to the US: rather, it arises where-ever there are Courts – so judges in Canada, Australia, the European Court of Justice, and Ireland are all routinely praised and criticised accordingly.…

Advice to Freshers: Don’t Panic

21 September, 200930 September, 2009

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| Universities

As our new first year students arrive this week, there is a strong orientation programme for them, to ease them into Trinity life. Trinity News, one of the student newspapers, writes in praise of Trinity’s old-fashioned freshers’ week; another college’s publication last week looked at Freshers’ First Steps; and GoToCollege has some useful tips for those Starting College. Flying Saucer; a current UK student has some excellent advice (entertainingly quirky, often practical, but occasionally misleading: have loud parties, make friends, don’t buy books); a recent US graduate does something similar in a very American fashion (prioritize, study, find meaning); the Guardian warns that the first week is more likely to challenge your wallet than your brain; Registrarism emphasises that newspaper copy doesn’t always recognise that there is much more to freshers’ week than commerce and alcohol; but by far the most useful pieces of college advice is a series of columns in the New York Times called College Advice, From People Who Have Been There Awhile. Some favourites:

Gerald Graff: Recognize that knowing a lot of stuff won’t do you much good unless you can do something with it by turning it into an argument.

…

Fulsome pedantry

15 September, 200919 February, 2013

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| Language

Yesterday, one Irish politician called on another to make an apology to the Irish people. This would just be another forgettable eddy in a political coffee cup were it not for the fact that the demand was for a “fulsome” apology. Can this be right?

The Oxford English Dictionary (pictured left) in its entry (sub req’d) for “fulsome” lists six various obsolete usages (in which it simply means abundant or generous) and then gives the following modern definition of that word:

Of language, style, behaviour, etc.: Offensive to good taste; esp. offending from excess or want of measure or from being ‘over-done’. Now chiefly used in reference to gross or excessive flattery, over-demonstrative affection, or the like.

As a note to the definition of “fulsome” in the Compact Oxford English Dictionary Online (no sub req’d) makes clear:

Although the earliest sense of fulsome was ‘abundant’, this is now regarded by many as incorrect; the correct meaning today is said to be ‘excessively flattering’. This gives rise to ambiguity: the possibility that while for one speaker fulsome praise will be a genuine compliment, for others it will be interpreted as an insult.

Merriam-Webster Online (no sub req’d) says that the meaning of the word “fulsome” became a point of dispute when the largely positive meanings

thought to be obsolete in the 19th century, began to be revived in the 20th.

…

Joseph Raz on ‘Innovative Interpretation’

13 February, 200922 February, 2009

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| Conferences, Lectures, Papers and Workshops

The Irish Jurisprudence Society, with funding from TCD’s Long Room Hub Initiative, will host a public lecture by Professor Joseph Raz (Oxford and Columbia) at 7pm on Wednesday 25 February 2009 in the Lloyd Institute Building (pdf map here; dynamic map here). The evening will be chaired by Professor Desmond M Clarke, University College Cork; and Prof Raz will speak on the topic

Innovative Interpretation

The event is free, and all are welcome to attend, but numbers are limited so booking by email is essential.…

Rethinking Law – Law Student Colloquium at TCD

6 February, 200917 November, 2010

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| Conferences, Lectures, Papers and Workshops, Legal Education

Are you a Law student, undergraduate or postgraduate? Would you like to present a short paper or give a presentation on a legal topic of your choice at a colloquium at TCD on Saturday 4 April 2009?

Individual presentations will last 10-15 minutes. Prospective participants may consider presenting a paper on a topic in which they are personally interested or have conducted research for an essay or article. Whatever the topic, and reflecting the title Rethinking Law, proposals should challenge existing law or current understandings of law. For further information, including how to submit an abstract, visit the website or send an email to the organisers as soon as possible.

This is a wonderful idea. I love the fact that it is entirely general, soliciting contributions on all aspects of the law. Moreover, whilst there are now are now lots of outlets for postgraduates, this colloquium – uniquely, and excitingly – also solicits submissions from undergraduates. Indeed, it actively welcomes their (your) participation on the day, whether by presenting papers or as members of the audience. So, what are you waiting for? Send that email now!

Update: the deadline for submission of abstracts has been extended to 5:00pm on 16 February 2009, so send that email now!…

What’s on in Trinity?

24 January, 200925 January, 2009

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| Cinema, television and theatre

There are three really interesting things on in Trinity at the moment.

First, the 1930s Cleudo-style poster on the left is for a fascinating exhibition in the Old Library (the building that houses the Long Room and the Book of Kells) about crime writing in the 1920s and the 1930s. Showcasing the first golden age of the detective novel, the exhibition illustrates the origins of the detective story in the mid 19th century, and focuses on the growth in popularity of fictional heroes such as Sherlock Holmes, Father Brown and Hercule Poirot in the earlier part of the 20th century. [Update: more here]. One thing is sure: since academics have become overworked administrators, the body in the library is not one of my academic colleagues!

Second, hot on the heels of winning an Irish Times Living Dublin Award, the Science Gallery is holding a festival and exhibition called LIGHTWAVE. Defy the Darkness. The festival features talks, workshops, performances and a very civilized LightClub conversation space, and the interactive exhibition will continue for another month.

‘Sé an tríú rud atá ar siúl sa choláiste ná Égise na Trinóide 09. Chuir An Chumann Ghaelach agus Oifig na Gaeilge an féile bhliantúil Ghaeilge an Choláiste le chéile, agus beidh go leor le deanamh an seachtain seo chugainn [Leagan úr: féach anseo chomh mhaith].…

University fees are looking inevitable

16 January, 200922 January, 2009

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| college funding, Universities

The question of the return of university fees has been a concern of this blog for some time (see, eg, here, here, here). Via the invaluable Ninth Level Ireland, I learn of three stories this morning on the issue. Cumulatively, they seem to suggest that university fees are looking inevitable (which, I suspect, means that the Minister for Education has managed this debate very well indeed, initially trailing an idea for discussion, then preparing the public for them, and now sitting back while the debate is broadly about what form they should take). …

cearta.ie

Tag: TCD

More practice needed in legal education

Judicial Activism

Advice to Freshers: Don’t Panic

Fulsome pedantry

Joseph Raz on ‘Innovative Interpretation’

Rethinking Law – Law Student Colloquium at TCD

What’s on in Trinity?

University fees are looking inevitable