Students re-enact real life asylum appeal

Students from the Department of Law have been applying their legal skills to real life issues, including the re-enactment of an asylum trial. The mock trial included evidence from the Ugandan appeallant involved in the original case, who appeared in person at the university.

Neil Adam and Damir Duheric, from the Glasgow Asylum Project, gave a talk and then presented a mock asylum appeal for a group of students from the Departmen of Law. The two lawyers explained the main aspects of the Refugee Convention, including the requirement for persecution on specified grounds, and the United Kingdom processes for applying these requirements to an actual case.

In the appeal, they took on the roles of appellant's solicitor and Home Office Presenting Officer. The appellant, Innocent Jakisa, a Ugandan who had been badly assaulted by disguised police for his political views, gave evidence. The students collectively acted as Adjudicator, and awarded him refugee status, as had happened in the real life case.

David Brand, Director of Legal Practice, said "The Diploma in Legal Practice is a very practical, hands-on course. This was a very useful exercise to show students who are about to qualify the sharp end of a particular area of legal practice".

Law students also had the chance to debate with a distinguished panel of criminal justice experts at a 'Question Time' event organised by the department. Sheriff Ian Dunbar, Chief Constable John Vine, Betty Bott, the District Procurator Fiscal and George Donnelly, a distinguished criminal law practitioner who is Vice Dean of the Faculty of Procurators and Solicitors in Dundee, fielded the students’ questions. Chaired by Law lecturer Mark Mackarel, the topics ranged from international drugs dealing and domestic abuse to wildlife crime and TV licence dodging.