Policy on Serving Police and the Bachelor of Laws Programme
Entry
Entry into the Bachelor of Laws programme requires either a three year undergraduate degree or ‘at least three years’ relevant work experience’. For the purposes of admission into the degree, experience as a serving police officer shall be considered as relevant work experience.
Advanced Standing
It is arguable that police, and in particular, police prosecutors should get some advanced standing on the basis of their professional training and experience. Regulation 95(1)(b) of the Legal Profession Admission Rules 2005 (NSW) says that, in order to meet the academic requirements for admission as a legal practitioner, students must complete ‘courses of study … which are recognised in at least one Australian jurisdiction, for the purposes of academic requirements for admission by the Supreme Court of that jurisdiction as a lawyer.’ The effect of this rule is that if we gave advanced standing on the basis of professional experience, a student would meet the requirements for a UNE degree, but would not meet the academic requirements for admission.
The Legal Profession Admission Board has confirmed that they will not accept, for the purposes of admission, any advanced standing on the basis of professional experience.
On that basis we are unable to offer police any advanced standing on the basis of their professional experience or police training.
Michael Eburn
LLB/JD Course Coordinator
10 October 2006.