Rising Star

It’s been accolades all the way, but for this academically talented professional, the challenge ahead is tackling the Indian legal system

BY RITAM MITRA

With a name like Star, it’s no wonder young Shaun Star is soaring to fantastic heights. Shaun was recently chosen as one of the successful Australian undergraduate recipients in the inaugural 2010 round of the Prime Minister’s Australia Asia Endeavour Awards. The “best and brightest” university students from Australia and Asia are recipients of these awards. Shaun will travel to India as a visiting student at the National Law School of India in Bangalore, and as part of this award, he will also undertake an internship in India after completing the study component in January 2011.

This 23-year-old genius is currently undertaking a Bachelor of Commerce in Marketing as well as a Bachelor of Laws at Macquarie University, and is ranked in the top 1% of his class for both degrees. He has also, since 2008, worked in the International Arbitration Group at leading law firm Clayton Utz. Shaun has been awarded countless accolades and scholarships, including the Super Innovation Scholarship for five consecutive years (2006-2010), the Dean’s Award for Outstanding Academic Achievement for four consecutive years (2007-2010), the Goldman Sachs Global Leadership Award, the Golden Key Asia Pacific Student Leader of the Year Award, and the Golden Key International Honours Society Board of Directors Award. And the list goes on and on...

However, although everything Shaun touches appears to turn to gold, it is ironic that he initially chose law as a career path mainly for the challenge. Speaking of his decision Shaun says, “The challenge was pretty much the initial instinct. I’ve always been interested in commerce, and I picked law primarily for the challenge. But as I got more and more involved, I realised there was a lot more scope for policy influence. It’s a good foundation, whether I get into commercial law or not. It’s a good foundation for influencing policy change, and I find that nowadays I also enjoy dispute resolution.”

Shaun has never been to India before, but his fiancé runs a not-for-profit organisation in India and has visited on several occasions. The Endeavour Awards scholarship is associated with Asian countries; choosing which one was entirely up to Shaun.

Why did he choose India?

“One of the interesting things about what I’m doing is that I don’t particularly know any other Australian students in university who are doing an exchange-type thing in India. I would like to be an ambassador for young Australian students to do things in India,” he reveals. While the majority of Endeavour Award recipients went to China and Hong Kong, Shaun believes that, “From an economic perspective, and a political and cultural perspective…India’s got the lot. There’s no doubt that it’s a growing market and a growing trade partner.” He sees India as a great opportunity for him to realise his desire to contribute to the Australian-Indian space in terms of policies, as well as on a social level.

Shaun’s studies in India will focus on international commercial arbitration, encompassing courses in international trade law, commercial arbitration, and alternate dispute resolution and securities law. Meanwhile, his work placement in India will centralise around dispute resolution, and he will also undertake voluntary work. While he will be based in Bangalore, he hopes to travel within India following his graduation in January.

Shaun completed his Higher School Certificate as school captain and Dux of Epping Boys High School and followed this up with a gap year in Germany. He has two pieces of advice for any students today:

“First, get involved domestically, if you can’t go overseas. Secondly, embrace other cultures in Australia, through cultural groups. Germany was one of my best experiences.”

Shaun’s achievements are stunningly scintillating, and this is only the beginning. With such an amazing start to his professional life, we can be sure that we will hear more about Shaun Star again in the future.