Legal Studies

Year 11 Legal Studies excursion

The day started bright and early as our legal class met at the Parliament station. Our first stop was ACU, Australian Catholic University, where we had a fun activity planned by some of the ACU law students and professors. We went to the moot court and learnt about the different types of lawyers, the difference between civil and criminal law and overall what it’s like studying law at university. Furthermore, we were delighted with the opportunity to discuss a real-life civil case whereby we had to determine whether a company (Men at Work) had copyrighted another’s company’s (Kookaburra) song or not. Lastly, we were given a bonus campus tour which was great as it allowed us to get an idea of what university is like and what ACU had to offer. 

Later we went to the Parliament House of Victoria. Unfortunately, we weren’t allowed to go in due to COVID restrictions and we missed a very exciting opportunity to meet politicians. Despite this, our legal teacher, Mr. Zampogna, gave us information about what the Parliament of Victoria was like and how it worked. 

Our last stop for the day was each court of Victoria as well as the Victoria Police head office. We went to the Magistrates Court, County Court and Supreme Court of Victoria. Outside of each court our teacher explained the jurisdiction of each court and allowed us to have a look at the building. However, we missed out on listening to actual court cases due to the current COVID situation. 

Overall, this excursion was such a great learning experience for me. Meeting passionate law students, visiting the courts and getting to see how the law works in the real world really enabled me to think beyond the textbooks and Mr Zampogna’s amazing powerpoints. It also allowed me to understand the importance of law in our everyday lives and what pathways I can look out for in the future. I would like to thank Mr Z for organising this wonderful excursion and Mrs Piccione for coming along. It wouldn’t have been possible without both of them and we hope that we can do more excursions like this in the future. 

Tanya Shah 

Year 11 Legal Studies Student