18 September 2013

Rep community actors help lay down the law

Photocall: 12.15pm, Thursday September 19th
Dundee Rep
Students will be on the set of 'Victoria' at the Rep

Law students at the University of Dundee are set for a little more drama to be added to their course thanks to a unique partnership with Dundee Rep theatre.

Students on the Diploma in Professional Legal Practice will work with actors from the Rep's community company on a range of scenarios designed to prepare them for real-life encounters once they move into the professional world.

The actors will fill the roles of everything from accident victims to people seeking advice on divorce.

'A core aim of the Diploma is to give students confidence that when they leave University they will be professionally trained to cope with real situations that they will encounter in practice,' said Elizabeth Comerford, Deputy Director of the Diploma programme.

'Role-play has long been a part of legal education but using real actors adds an extra dimension to this that we think the students will find valuable. The human side of working face-to-face with the public is a very important part of work for many people in the legal profession and the students have to be as ready for that as they do for the 'hard' legal matters.

'We are delighted that the Rep, as our next-door neighbours have agreed to help. It builds on the very good links which have already been established between the two institutions.'

The actors will be given a brief on the reasons they are attending a solicitor and are then encouraged to improvise as much as they want, to set the students a unique challenge.

Each student will go through four sessions with the actors, with the last one recorded on video so they can review how they have coped with the situation.

'This is a fantastic opportunity for our community company and former youth theatre actors to work with the Law students on this exciting initiative,' said Gemma Nicol, Acting Head of Creative Learning at The Rep.' As our relationship with Dundee University grows from strength to strength, we are delighted to be able to support the work that goes on in the Law school through this innovative collaboration.'

The new initiative has been supported by funds from the Conveyancing Manual Trust, which was established in 1990. Professor A. J. McDonald, who was Professor of Conveyancing at Dundee for many years, published the first edition of his Conveyancing Manual in 1982.

He assigned his entitlement to any royalties from the sale of the 4th edition of the Manual to the Trust.

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Roddy Isles
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University of Dundee
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