HUMANITIES
YEAR 11 LEGAL STUDIES
ZOOM SESSION WITH JUSTICE JANE PATRICK AND JURIES COMMISSIONER PAUL DORE DURING LAW WEEK.
On Thursday 19 May, Year 11 Legal Studies students participated in a zoom session with Justice Jane Patrick and Juries Commissioner Paul Dore, as part of Law Week.
Our students speak of their experiences below:
Sophie D’Ambrosio
VCE Legal Studies Teacher
Jane and Paul had really insightful information regarding Criminal Law as well as the process of trials and how the role of a judge is put into play. Furthermore, there was an explanation of the effects and implications of Covid on the courts and its processes with the juries, which was quite fascinating to hear because Covid has had such a large impact on all individuals worldwide. I believe that overall, I gained a better understanding of the legal system which definitely had benefits on myself and many others in my class which hopefully will encourage us to excel in Legal Studies for the rest of this year and Units 3 and 4.
Swethaa Jayaram
Something I learnt over this zoom session and presentation was about jury duty (juror). Justice Jane Patrick made many interesting facts about the process of being selected and the duty itself. Just by attending this zoom presentation, I obtained a great understanding of the legal system and would recommend this to the following Units 1 & 2 legal classes over the years.
Meera Bhatia
Over the zoom session, I learnt how time-consuming juries are to form, and that under some circumstances the trial might have to start all over again due to the jury trying to do their own research.
Alex O’Shannessy
Over the course of the zoom session, presented by Justice Jane Patrick and Juries Commissioner Paul Dore, I learnt about the significance of the role of juries in a criminal case and how it was enforced to ensure that people take the duty seriously. This was exemplified in the numerous cases and examples of how jurors have breached the Juries Act, which result in varying penalties depending on the crime. Furthermore, I also learnt about the process of selecting a jury, cutting down a pool of applicants of a few hundred thousand to just only twelve members. Finally, there was also an additional explanation of the impacts and implications COVID had on the courts and their processes involved with juries.
Suen Kee
I learned something over this zoom session is that to be selected as a juror, one must be over 18 and is eligible to vote. There is a jury summon document which requires the juror to attend a trial at a particular date. Also, they will be paid because they will be absent from work and there is a jury act legislation.
Amanda Liu
Through Justice Jane Patrick and Juries Commissioner Paul Dore’s zoom session, I learnt about the complex process of selecting jury members, and the impact of Covid-19 on the Victorian legal system.
Ella Cairney
From viewing the zoom session, I gained a lot of insight into the intricacies of selecting members of the jury. I was not aware of the nuances regarding how we selected members of the jury, especially when taking into account criminal history. I feel 100 times more knowledgeable on this subject then I did prior to watching.
Nathan Tyrrell
I learnt that there are more than 15,000 citizens chosen to be eligible for jury service and only twelve are chosen to decide the outcome of the case. I also learnt that juries cannot seek outside assistance about the case eg. the internet, friends or family and will be taken out of the case and placed under investigation as they have broken the Juries Act. The outcome of this crime consists of fines or even jail time.
Indy Baker-Hill
I learnt how jurors are selected and how if a juror breaks the Jury Act the consequences could be fines or even jail time depending on what they did. I also learned that the Australian Legal system and the American legal system have a few key differences such as, in America the jurors are allowed to talk about the case with other people out of the courtroom whereas in Australia it is illegal for a juror to talk about their case with anyone expect for other jurors.
Michaela Di Lecce
MODEL UNITED NATIONS 2022 - FRIDAY 20 MAY
Theme: Climate Change
The Model UN adventure was highly enriching for the two of us and all other participants. In the initial stages, we began with discussions at the Wednesday lunchtime meetings in order to prepare our assigned country’s brief. While walking home we found ourselves discussing the subject of climate change and the problems brought on by this. We discussed rising temperatures, high water levels and floods and contrarily droughts, and how an influx of certain climates causes destruction.
The second stage was examining our country's stand on this issue, filling out a questionnaire and drawing up a position statement. As the delegates of Germany, this was incredibly interesting to learn. We are both aware of and researched German history but learning about the present state of the country and their contributions to this worldwide problem was eye-opening. We also discussed what clauses (suggested rules) from the draft resolution Germany supported. Overall, it was a very educating venture.
On Friday 20 May was the long-awaited conference. We began the day with the delegates outlining their positions on climate change and their efforts to combat it for their respective countries. After recess, the conferencing and ‘caucusing’ began. The two unmoderated caucuses and three moderated caucuses allowed us to identify allies and foes which proved useful in creating amendments. Returning for the amendments sessions after lunch, we debated and rebutted proposed amendments and in the end, all but two of the proposed amendments were successfully passed.
Model UN was an exhilarating and stimulating experience. Not only did we expand our knowledge of our country but also of the priorities of other countries through detailed discussions, where we honed our oratory skills. I recommend everyone to be a part of this experience at least once in their school life.
Ananya Jha & Mischa Kong
Year 10 Students