Open Justice Centre off to Parliament for prestigious awards

The Law School’s ‘Open Justice Criminal Justice Clinic’ has been shortlisted in the LawWorks and Attorney General Student Awards 2023 for ‘Best new pro bono activity’.

Run by LawWorks with the support of the Attorney General, The Rt Hon Victoria Prentis KC MP, the awards recognise and celebrate the outstanding pro bono work undertaken by law schools and law students across the UK.

Our Open Justice Centre will hear on Thursday (27 April) afternoon if they have been successful, after being shortlisted by a prestigious seven-strong judging panel earlier in April. The awards ceremony is at the Terrace Pavilion, House of Commons, with LawWorks Chair Alasdair Douglas hosting and the Attorney General presenting the awards to the winners.

The Criminal Justice Clinic project sees students research and advise on live criminal cases under the direct supervision of a solicitor. Students consider the evidence and unused material on a live criminal case where the convicted defendant continues to protest their innocence. They then carry out research and apply legal principles to determine whether there are any grounds for referral to the Criminal Cases Review Commission or for an appeal to be made.