Living the Law: A Tour of Legal Dublin

Undergraduate legal education in Ireland generally consists of undertaking a set of 'core' law modules, by listening to lectures, analysing cases and legislation and reading lengthy treatises on various principles of legal theory. Very little of the modern law curriculum deals with the realities of legal issues or professional legal practice, indeed, the emphasis in Irish law schools is laid on the theoretical to the detriment of the practical. In order to better prepare our students in the School of Law and Government, Dublin City University, for life after graduation and to provide them with an insight into the practical side of the law, it was decided to organise a Tour of Legal Dublin, whereby students would visit legal institutions such as the Law Society, King's Inns, The Four Courts and one of the major solicitors' firms in the country, and be provided with an opportunity to see the Law in action. It was decided to offer places on the tour to 20 of our first year BCL students who had attained the highest marks in semester 1 exams, in order to instil in them an enthusiasm for the legal world outside of books from the beginning of their university experience. As part of the tour, appointments were made in each of the institutions with senior employees who could explain about the history and work of the institution and could provide information on the life of a legal professional. After the tour, the students were asked to fill in a survey on the experience and their ideas of learning law. This poster details the learning outcomes of this exercise and provides conclusions on the incorporation of such experiential learning activities in undergraduate, especially first year, law curricula.