Melbourne Law School Leads Way on Transnational Legal Studies

A first-of-its-kind Centre for Transnational Legal Studies (CTLS) has opened in the heart of London’s legal quarter, and Melbourne Law School has the distinction of being its only Australian member.

Co-ordinated by Georgetown University’s Law Centre, the CTLS is a joint venture of ten leading global law schools that will teach semester length programs in transnational legal studies to students from each of the partner universities.

The other partner universities include Free University of Berlin, University of Fribourg, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, King’s College London, National University of Singapore, University of Sao Paulo, University of Torino and University of Toronto.

Melbourne Law School’s Dean, Professor James Hathaway, who joined staff and commencing students from each of the member law schools at an inaugural celebration at King’s College London, on Monday 27 October, followed by the official opening on Tuesday 28 October, acknowledged the Law School’s participation in the CTLS project as “a critical step in ensuring that Melbourne Law School’s commitment to remaining Australia’s global law school is more than merely rhetorical. Our students are now actively engaged in a high level academic and transactionally-oriented program with other top students from ten of the leading law schools in the world, providing them with the training ground that is genuinely unparalleled.”

Five outstanding students from Melbourne Law School have won semester scholarships to study at the CTLS, four generously sponsored by Clifford Chance and one by Herbert Smith.

Pictured above at the signing ceremony for the inauguration of the CTLS are Dean of Georgetown Law Center, Professor T. Alexander Aleinikoff (front, centre) and Georgetown University President John J. DeGioia (left), together with Melbourne Law School Dean, Professor James Hathaway (second from left), and other representatives from the CTLS member schools.

Photo: Steve Forrest