Obiter, Issue 5, 2013

the ndsls

obiter

The Maurice Blackburn Law Ball 2013

05

Week Ten Semester One Tuesday 7 May 2013 the notre dame sydney law society

Notre Dame Sydney Law Society

acknowledgements Obiter Issue Three Editor Caroline Michel Contributors Eden Christopher Jake Lowther Special Thanks Peter Gray Aidan Williams Design Alexander Carlos NDSLS Committee 2013 Executive Eden Christopher, President Natalie Baladi, Vice-President Daniel Austin, Secretary Sean D’almada Remedios, Treasurer Directors Jacob Deigan, Careers Julia Lavers, Competitions Aidan Williams, Education Peter Gray, IT Alexander Carlos, Marketing Caroline Michel, Publications Dominique Hermo, Social Events Rachel Bennett, Social Justice Lauren Absalom, Sponsorship Year Representatives Adrian Vincent, First Year Shelby van Ooran, Second Year Caitlin Gallagher, Third Year Sean D’almada Remedios, Fourth/Final Year Contact the Editor Contact the Committee www.ndsls.org

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From the

Editor

CAROLINE MICHEL

Hi everyone,

Despite a much needed mid semester break, I have to say that somehow, for me, this week has been the busiest of the Semester. There has been a lot going on in the NDSLS recently.

Our annual Law Ball was a great success, and I’d like to especially thank our Social Director, Dominique Hermo, for all the hard work she put in to ensure that the night was fantastic!

The NDSLS has also been busy planning the annual Careers Week, which begins next week! Careers Week is a highly anticipated week on our calendar, and I’m personally looking forward to all of the great events and opportunities we have on offer.

Our second competition for the year, Allens Client Interview, also begins next week. After the success of the Clayton Utz Negotiation Competition earlier on in the year, I am really excited for Client Interview. I am competing this year for the first time, as are many of my fellow competitors. I would like to wish my colleagues the best of luck, and congratulate the many first timers who are taking the plunge and giving competitions a go!

That’s all for now, I hope you enjoy this fortnight’s Obiter… it’s a jam packed edition with everything you need to know for Careers Week!

Best Wishes, Caroline

Notre Dame Sydney Law Society

in this issue 6 Careers Week 2013

13 Maurice Blackburn Law Ball 2013 15 ALSA 2013 17 Allens Client Interview Competition 18 YourSay

President’s Note There is obviously a lot to talk about from NDSLS events recently. The Law School had a great showing at the Annual Notre Dame Gift and our first competition was completed last week. So firstly, congratulations to all four of our Negotiation Competition grand-finalists. The grand final winners were Dominic Rohde and Scott Rogers. Runners up were Daniel Austin and Caroline Michel. Negotiation is my favourite competition and it was a pleasure to be involved this year guiding students through such a great competition.

The annual Law Ball, organised by our wonderful Social Director, Dominique Hermo, could not have been closer to how I wanted it. I never expected a night out to go from excited, stressed, nervous and tearful to relief, amazement and incredible fun. I just had the best time and so many of you have passed on this same sentiment, which is great for us to hear.

The three speeches on the night all had a common element - to celebrate the community here at Notre Dame and to enjoy the time here with each other. Already this semester we’ve had an

Amazing Race, Negotiation Competition, Maurice Blackburn Law Ball, Notre Dame Gift, Study Boot Camp Lite and the regular after-class drinks on a Wednesday night to take advantage of $3 tacos. These moments are what we will all look back on, remember and love about Law School.

It’s surprising this has all come up around the time of ANZAC Day - my favourite day of the year. A day that celebrates the mateship and sacrifice of young adults and teenagers, just like us, and many others who contributed to the war effort throughout the years both at Gallipoli and Afghanistan. I hope you all got out to a dawns service and had a game of two-up with family and friends because that’s what it’s all about.

I’ll finish with the great news that we’re past the halfway mark for Semester One. Personally, I have only just started going back over lecture notes (now my assignments have almost come to a close).

I encourage everyone to make this upcoming exam period (yes, it’s just around the corner) their best and to take time to be grateful and appreciative of what we all have and that is each other.

Yours in law, Eden Christopher “O Captain, My Captain” President

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Notre Dame Sydney Law Society

Upcoming Events and Notices May 6

Careers Week Begins Facebook Event Here

May 7

Allens Client Interview Competition Begins

May 8

Registration for ALSA Conference General Delegates closes

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Notre Dame Sydney Law Society

Contact Us

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For social media enquiries, contact the Marketing Director, Alex Carlos at marketing@ndsls.org.

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Notre Dame Sydney Law Society

CAREERS WEEK 2013 INTRODUCTION BY CAROLINE MICHEL SEE OUR FACEBOOK EVENT HERE It’s that time of the year again! Our annual Careers Week begins Monday Week 10. We have organised many great events that all students are welcome to attend. The aim of these events is to enrich the student experience by providing important information regarding the many options and paths that are available to pursue with a law degree.

Careers Week is also a great way to meet, talk and create connections with professionals in the legal sphere. This year, the agenda consists of in-class specialty talks, a clerkship seminar, alternate careers fair and a PLT presentation from the College of Law. You can find all the information regarding these events further down, but also on our website. We hope to see you all there!

In-class Speciality Talks (Monday 6 May to Friday 10 May) With help from the NDS staff, we have organised several ‘specialty talks’ during class times. Many professionals who have a specialty or connection with the subject have been invited to come into class and speak to us about their career and experiences.

Students who are not enrolled in these classes are still very welcome to attend!

Alternative Careers Fair (Thursday 9th May 12:30-1:30pm, NDS2/209) Ever wondered what you could do with a law degree if you didn’t want to work at a firm? The opportunities are endless! This year we are very 6 | The Obiter, Issue 5

excited about our Alternate Careers Fair. We have invited representatives from several legal and educational institutions to talk about alternate legal careers outside of the ‘typical’ law firm path. All students are welcome and encouraged to attend.

PLT Presentation (Thursday 9th May 5:00pm, NDS5/403) Presented by The College of Law, the PLT evening will provide students with the information they need regarding Practical Legal Training. The College of Law is the main provider of PLT (which is required before you are able to practise law) so this is a fantastic opportunity to hear directly from them. We highly recommend 4th/5th year students to attend, but also welcome all students.

Clerkship Seminar (Monday 13 May 12:00-1:30pm, NDS2/201) Come along to our Clerkship Seminar evening event to hear personally from representatives from several top-tier firms. Each of them will be providing details regarding the seasonal/summer clerkships that they offer students, and the application details for each.

Whilst this Seminar is aimed to 3rd-5th year students, everybody is welcome to attend! It is never too early to find out about the many clerkship opportunities available.

Dame Sydney Law Society Notre DameNotre Sydney Law Society

Legal Specialty Talks Schedule Overview Date

Time 9:30am

Monday 6 May

1:30pm 4:30pm

Tuesday 7 May

Wednesday 8 May

8:30am 1:30pm

8:30am 9:30am

9:30am Thursday 9 May

9:30am 1:30pm

Monday 13 May

9:30am

Thursday

9:30am

16 May

4:30pm

8 | The Obiter, 5 Guide 2013 96 | Issue Careers

Location Principles of Contract Law NDS5/304 Principles of Equity NDS5/304 Family Law NDS2/222 Administrative Law NDS2/222 Principles of Contract Law NDS2/324 Legal Research and Writing NDS5/203 Commercial Law NDS15/103 Personal Taxation Law NDS5/410 Principles of Torts NDS5/203 Principles of Torts NDS5/209 Constitutional Law NDS2/222 Commercial Practice and Ethics NDS2/201 Commercial Practice and Ethics NDS15/102

Speaker John Cooper Diccon Loxton Richard Maurice

Dennis Wilson Ian McGill

Denise McConie Michael Popkin

Chris Peadon Jenni Priestley Mark Lindfield

Philip Taylor S.C.

Jim Dwyer Matthew McLennan

Notre Dame Sydney Law Society

LEGAL SPECIALTY TALKS: CONTRIBUTE YOUR THOUGHTS

We have a great line up of guest speakers attending classes next week, and we would love to hear first hand about what they have to share. We are looking for keen writers to contribute articles (short or long, doesn’t matter!) about a specialty talk that you attended, or occurred in your class.

Your work will be published in future issues of the Obiter. We have included an example written by a student last year. Please email your article to Caroline: publications@ndsls.org

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Notre Dame Sydney Law Society Everyone has probably looked up to someone in the legal industry, on the sporting Þeld or in their jobs and asked themselves, “How do I do what they do?”

In fact, the desire to go to Law School is probably a manifestation of your desire to learn to, ‘do what they do’.

LEGAL INSIGHT: SHANE SIMPSON

The Protagonist ...

The summer school elective was Entertainment Law, taking place over the Þrst two weeks of February with an exam the week before everybody returned to the corridors of ND. The class had the privilidge of hearing the thoughts and story of a great mind in this niche Þeld, Mr Shane Simpson.

An attempt to publish the value of the unit and the talk would be futile, nothing can replace being there and hearing the frank and eye-opening thoughts of this engaging man.

Mr Simpson retold his life story with a colour not often associated with the status quo lawyer image so many of society are used to. The talk was reminiscent of an Ian Lloyd Criminal Law class, full of life and anecdotal humour.

On the industry...

“If you’re doing this course you should be reading like crazy...”

A Þeld as dynamic as the entertainment industry requires constant updating, reading and learning. The many mediums which society communicate through, the hundreds of possible revenue streams, the sale-power of stars and talent behind these creative outlets leaves a lot to be exploited. A noteworthy conviction of Mr Simpsons was that the best money spent was the money spent before the deal, in the preparation and research to save on the money wasted getting out of a bad deal. It was made clear throughout the talk that working hard, being diligent and ultimately being worth the money you charge is the key to success. The age-old proverb that ‘knowledge is power’ was put across in multiple ways, through anecdotes and advice, “You have to know about the industry and environment you’re practicing in, not just legally but the lingo, common practice, who owns who, who commissions what work, who does what and what is the legal relationship...”

Mr Simpson is the man to speak to in the industry, in fact he wrote the book on it. His words to those with shallow intentions of parties and celebrities were probably not suitable

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Notre Dame Sydney Law Society to this publication. He spoke of his love for the work he does even if aspects such as celebrity merchandising agreements bored him to tears and the amount of theatrical precedents hardly justiÞed a folder in his practice. Knowing the industry allows you to apply your legal skills and creates value for you and your practice.

“What has driven me all along is that you must remember you are a lawyer, not a media person, not an entertainment player... you are a lawyer...”

The client takes preference in his ofÞces, he made it evident that what differentiates the industry from other legal Þelds is the client and that is what interests him. Essentially, his legal toolkit is the same as any lawyer no matter the area; contracts, torts, copyright, equity and so on, simply applied to the Entertainment Industry.

“I know what clauses they need, the wording that will protect the client from risk, it may not have happened in Sydney but it did in Arkansas, California and Auckland...”

Again, the point comes across that the value is the legal knowledge, the reading, learning and re-learning of the principles and concepts applied to new situations, such is the Brave New World of entertainment law.

On Law School...

The story of Mr Simpson sent a message of developing the core skills because they all are relevant and apply to any Þeld of law. The constant thread of working hard, reading widely and constant development of skills learnt through law school carries on into employment, ÒItÕs all about self-improvement and self-education, especially in my Þeld...Ó An emphasis was put on good marks and that this comes with persistence and hard work.

It can be hard to picture the use of the material learnt today in the applications of tomorrow. Law school is so important because it teaches a student how to think, analyse, appreciate the law and emphasise a precision in thinking. ÒYou need a Þre in the belly to go and do stuff yourself, Þnd out what the good books are it’s not hard...”

On gaining employment...

Most lawyers who give talks often begin with the phrase, Òthe last thing I wanted to be was a lawyer when I left law schoolÓ, right before they swing into action with a re-telling of their life of success in law and the fulÞllment of using their mind in something they love.

“What I never wanted to be was a commercial lawyer... now I’m a commercial lawyer... my tools are corporate structure and tax, deals and copyright.”

The topic of graduate employment is a top priority of every student and the message was clear,

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Notre Dame Sydney Law Society

ÒDonÕt be all talk, what are you really doing to show youÕre serious? My Þrst question would be ‘What are you reading? What have you read? And why entertainment law? Why because there must be some reason you have decided to do this for the rest of your life...

The last time a job vacancy opened up there were 157 applicants. It’s a tough industry and what you do now will determine your success or not. Marks are not everything, an active role in the industry you’re interested in scores highly and work experience also sets an applicant apart from the pack.

The profession is well remunerated and what still endures from the hours spent with Shane Simpson is the pleading to be, ‘Worth your hourly rate’ best summed up in the line, “I will make those shoes perfect for you...”

BY EDEN CHRISTOPHER

How to Contribute The Obiter welcomes original student written pieces. If you would like to have something included in our publication, don’t be shy- we are now accepting a range of original works whether they be short articles, long essays or maybe just a piece of advice for other students. As long as they are focused on a legal or university related issue/topic we would love to publish your work! If you are a budding writer why not send us something? You can either upload your document here, or email it directly to Caroline, the Publications Director at publications@ndsls.org. It’s that easy. We look forward to hearing from you.

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Notre Dame Sydney Law Society

MAURICE BLACKBURN LAW BALL 2013

BY JAKE LOWTHER On a rather out-of-character whim, I boldly booked ball and plane tickets for the Maurice Blackburn Notre Dame Sydney Law Society’s annual ball. Quite a mouthful; and indeed the food was good, but this is somewhat jumping around.

By way of context, I recently returned to Fremantle after a lovely year in the suave city of Sydney.

The foundations of firm friendships were laid, and the opportunity to build upon these was not one to be lightly dismissed. YOLO, YOYO, carpe diem whichever you may follow, be sure to follow faithfully.

Upon my return, it was immediately apparent that I had made the correct choice. The sun shone. A Paddington tailor, in the midst of relocating to the Strand arcade, gifted me a handmade, heteroclite handkerchief of a pocket square (in my haste I had forgotten to pack one). Excellent cocktails were available at AUD$12. Such fun.

I had the good sense to enter a raffle for a round of cocktails with the President of the NDSLS, Eden Christopher, and three friends. Although belated by tiresome traffic, we entered the charming ShangriLa Hotel at the Rocks, bee lining for the lifts. At floor 36, we entered 2010’s Bar of the Year, the New York-inspired Blu Bar. Reconnecting with friends over an espresso martini, whilst overlooking the glorious harbour at night is an activity I highly recommend.

Following this, we ear-poppingly descended to the ballroom for the main event. A charming space

greeted us: crisp, white tablecloths, silver service and the bubbling effervescence of excited and partly inebriated chatter. Drinks à gogo; bread rolls helpfully present.

The night opened with speeches. Mirroring the changes in Fremantle, the new Dean Professor Michael Quinlan spoke first. Chaplaincy Convenor Patrick Langrell said Grace. Finally the President, a reluctant public speaker, referred to the recent and tragic passing of much-loved student Chris Drake, whose parents were in attendance. It was a reminder of the closeness of the community at our young law school and how privileged we are to attend, be it west or east coast.

With the formalities over, the aforementioned food was served and it was topping. Particularly pudding, but then, in that department I am rarely disappointed. The obligatory Macklemore inspired many a honky to take to the dance floor. This included the doyenne of the Sydney Law School’s administration, Roszanna Hazlewood, who was in fabulous form. The wonderful event put on by the NDSLS included a decadent photo booth, where many forgotten moments could be recalled the following under-the-weather day.

Many thanks go to Eden Christopher and the NDSLS for having me to such a delightful night.

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Notre Dame Sydney Law Society

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Notre Dame Sydney Law Society

ALSA 2013

BY EDEN CHRISTOPHER Over the weekend of the STUVAC, as the President of your NDSLS, I attended a Special General Meeting (SGM) of the Australian Law Students Association (ALSA), which the NDSLS is affiliated to. The SGM was hosted by the University of Wollongong Law Society and we all stayed in the wonderful Chifley Hotel in Wollongong.

ALSA is the peak student body that represents all the Law Student Societies (LSSs) in Australia (alsa. net.au). Each year they host an annual conference in a rotating roster of capital cities in Australia, and this year the conference is in Perth, WA! We’ve had four competitors register to represent us, and two councillors will go along to do all the admin work (unfortunately this is me).

You don’t have to be anyone in a competition or as part of the NDSLS to attend, you can go as a General Delegate (GD) and experience all the fun stuff (Balls, cocktail nights, talks from some of the great minds of Law in Aus) or just visit the sights of Perth or even Margaret River! If you’re interested, email Aidan our Education Director to get the info http://www.ndsls.org/contact-edu/.

Now back to the Council...

Basically what happens at the April Council (and again in September) is the Presidents and Education Directors from each LSS come together to share knowledge, develop proposals and discuss issues currently facing law students or the LSSs. Some LSSs make presentations on things they’ve done well and overall we all develop best practice and procedure protocols to be used and shared for all LSSs.

One of the most interesting talks was the development of an iPhone app by Murdoch LSS (Perth, WA). The app made information available through your phone of every major firm that sponsors the app with critical information such as the HR rep from each firm to contact, grad/clerkship applications opening and closing dates as well as push notifications to remind you of LSS events (no more Facebook spamming! lol jks).

The recent tax liability on Sydney University Law Society made all LSS Presidents (personally liable for our LSSs) sink in their seat a little and led to the generation of many meme’s during council.

Of course, it wouldn’t be a law student conference without the provision of free alcohol (after council of course) with two social nights arranged including dinners and drinks at cocktail bars and the like. As well as the alcohol, there is plenty of banter including motions to have a harlem shake video recorded and to always refer to the University of Queensland LSS President as, “the Chad” (both motions passed unanimously). Your very own LSS President was able to keep his nose clean and not get into any trouble (more so, I was not caught), which our Notre Dame Fremantle LSS sisters were not so fortunate to avoid.

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Notre Dame Sydney Law Society LSSs are able to provide their students and they are all so willing to share their information, spreadsheets, cost analyses and advice to budding LSSs like us.

Surprisingly, we had some stuff they wanted too!

The SGM lasted over 24 hours over 3 days; filled with discussion, voting, workshops, Q&As and showcases. It was an amazing experience and is another benefit of getting involved with your LSS or any other student body. You never know who you might meet, what you might learn or where you might go.

To say the crowd is interesting is an understatement.

You’ll get someone like me (who practices ‘selective input’ techniques in group discussions) and others who turned a talk about stopwatches in the National Competitions into a 10 minute shouting match over who would fund the stopwatches - that escalated quickly!

Having said that, everyone was so awesome and easy to deal with. Many new friends were made from all over the country and a lot of ideas are now down in my notebook ready to unleash for your benefit! It is absolutely mind-boggling what some 16 | The Obiter, Issue 5

I will definitely be attending the next council meeting in September hosted by Macquarie University. I’ve committed to the ALSA Conference in Perth in July and would love to see more General Delegates come along. It’s $850 for registration and accommodation, and we’re looking into providing you guys with a subsidy!

Check out the Facebook page for the July ALSA Conference - https://www.facebook.com/ alsaconference

Notre Dame Sydney Law Society

ALLENS CLIENT INTERVIEW COMPETITION Next week, our 2nd competition begins! After the success of the Clayton Utz Negotiation Competition earlier on this semester, the NDSLS is very excited for this year’s Client Interview Competition, sponsored by Allens.

Good luck to all of the competitors!

Competitors and clients can check the competition schedule for times and rooms by clicking here.

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Notre Dame Sydney Law Society

YourSay Issue Five This week:

The high price of legal services means that many Australians would find it difficult to pay for a lawyer for anything but the most basic legal issues. When people who can’t afford a lawyer turn to government funded legal assistance services, they find that due to chronic funding shortages, ongoing help is often restricted to those on the lowest incomes, and then only for a limited range of mainly family law and criminal law issues.

Unike the health and education system in Australia, there is no universal safety next for legal help: report by Community Law Australia, July 2012.

We have Medicare and public hospitals, as well as free public schooling. Why is there so little in the way of schemes and funding for universal access to lawyers?

Let us know what you think! Jump online and send us your thoughts to have your say published in the next Obiter! Contribute by clicking here.

Disclaimer: All submissions will be considered for publishing provided that they do not contain offensive language or themes. The NDSLS reserves the right to refuse a submission if it is inappropriate.

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Notre Dame Sydney Law Society

The NDSLS would like to recognise the significant contributions of our Gold Sponsors.

These sponsors have been with us for many years and have made significant contributions to YOUR society during that time. Check out their website and Like them on Facebook to stay informed on how they can help you more.

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This is a publication of the Notre Dame Sydney Law Society. Its sponsors, contributors, the University of Notre Dame Australia, its affiliates or its employees do not necessarily endorse any facts or opinions contained within this publication