New Education Director appointed

Una Doyle, our new Education Director, joined the Judicial Commission in December 2015. Having worked with law students, newly trained lawyers and senior practitioners, she looks forward to facilitating the development of bespoke educational activities for judicial officers.

Una has worked for over 20 years in legal education (both pre- and post-admission); prior to that she was a lawyer. When she moved from Ireland to Australia she became interested in legal education which eventually became her career. Before joining the Judicial Commission, she was the Head of Professional Development, Membership and Communications, at the Law Society of NSW, where she was responsible for the development, improvement and implementation of continuing professional development programs and services for the NSW legal profession. Prior to that, she held the position of Director of Continuing Professional Education at the College of Law, a leading not-for-profit provider of post graduate training and education to Australian legal practitioners. Una’s interest in legal education also spans borders. She maintains a keen interest in the development of legal education worldwide and holds a Masters of International Law amongst other qualifications. Una is currently President-Elect of the International Association for Continuing Legal Education (ACLEA) and co-chaired their International Committee from 2007–2009.

When asked about her new role, Una said that “participating in the work of the Commission’s education committees has given a new perspective on the dimension of judicial learning. Committee members dedicate a generous amount of time to help develop a relevant, practical and varied training curriculum. An excellent example of this is the obvious value of informal learning, clearly demonstrated in the many educational activities undertaken by judicial officers, learning that may, in many cases, prove more valuable than formal learning. Incidental learning such as this, together with seminars, workshops, field trips and formal conferences, enables the curriculum to accommodate all
learning styles.”

“Building on this framework, I aim to expand the educational offerings we currently provide in line with technological advances, with an added emphasis on providing regional support. Another key facet of the education portfolio is a large suite of publications that, together with the Commission’s significant research and sentencing program, forms an integral part of the overall learning experience. These do not only provide judicial officers with valuable resources but also encourage judicial dialogue.”