Legal Studies Court Visit  

Legal Studies Court Visit in Wagga Wagga

The Stage 6 Legal Studies class recently visited the Wagga Wagga Court House as part of their study of the topic Crime. The class started the day by viewing Local Court proceedings in front of a magistrate. We had a short opportunity to ask questions to the magistrate and saw the police prosecutors and defence lawyers present cases for their clients. Most cases were short hearings and included two bail applications that helped students understanding of bail and remand. We also took away from the experience an understanding of the enormous case load heard in the local court. 

On our lunch break we had the pleasure of bumping into Mr Michael McCormack, former Deputy Prime Minister and Member for Riverina. He was generous with his time, talking to us about the difference between state and federal parliament.

After lunch we attended the District Court and heard a hearing on a serious indictable offence. We were fortunate to hear the cross examination of the defendant. We also heard the closing statements of the Crown Prosecutor and the Defence Barrister. This allowed us to hear summaries of the cases, as well as understand the importance of strong advocacy in convincing a jury of your side of the case in a jury trial. 

After the adjournment for the day we were kindly invited into the chambers of His Honour Judge Gordon Lerve, District Court Judge of NSW. Mr Lerve was generous with his time, answering questions from the students and detailing his journey in his long and varied career in the law. 

Thank you to Lara, Zoe, Zayley and Hannah for the way they represented the school on the day. We were very lucky to see and hear what we did and we were looked after extremely well by all the professionals at the Wagga Wagga Court House. 

Mr Horrell

Legal Studies Teacher