Paul Akon and Joe Smith from The New South Wales Law Society
Most of you will know Paul Akon in his role as a lecturer at the UNE School of Law. Before Paul came to academia, he worked as a legal practitioner for 35 years. When The NSW Law Society contacted the UNE School of Law about undertaking an all day workshop for legal practitioners who are working towards becoming accredited specialists, Paul Akon was the obvious person to assist. Our Head of School, Professor Lillian Corbin encouraged Paul to conduct this first ever all day workshop.
70 solicitors from around the state participated in the workshop. All had at least five years’ experience in legal practice and a chosen speciality. Being an accredited specialist with The NSW Law Society is a massive accomplishment. In fact, only 5% of the approximately 25,000 solicitors in NSW achieve specialist accreditation in their chosen fields. Legal practitioners can choose to become accredited specialists in areas such as family law, migration law, and personal injury law.
The NSW Law Society realised that many candidates participating in the specialist accreditation program have not undertaken an exam or written an assignment since they graduated from university. Paul reminded candidates of the skills needed to produce high quality assignments and exams. In addition, he assisted candidates with client interviewing skills. The group discussed some of the key facets of client interviewing which includes empathy, listening skills, ethics, and matters relating to cultural sensitivity.
The participants were placed in groups named after both real and fictitious legal identities. For example, Geoffrey Robertson QC, Mark Tedeschi QC, Dennis Denuto, and Alicia Florrick, would all have been thrilled to know their names were used. During the day the groups workshopped the material that was presented earlier by Paul.
After this workshop, the candidates will be well placed to undertake the assignments and written and oral exams that relate to their speciality. One participant noted: ‘Thanks for a very informative session. It was a great reminder of lots of key skills and strategies to maximise quality of practice.’ Paul also found the experience to be intellectually stimulating and satisfying. He was excited to meet participants from a wide variety of backgrounds and professional roles.
Thank you Paul for sharing your experience with us!
