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Local lawyer
grilled by pupils at Morrison's Academy
Morrison's Academy recently welcomed local lawyer
David Smart to the school for a Question & Answer
session on the Scottish legal system. Around sixty
S.1 pupils participated in the hour-long event.
Mr Smart is a partner in the well-known Crieff law
firm, Graham & Finlayson. He has worked in the town
for many years and provides legal advice on a wide
range of personal and property matters.
However, he had to have his wits about him during
the school visit as he faced a host of questions
ranging from his views on television lawyers through
to citizen's arrests and whether or not today’s
teenagers show enough respect for the law.
Thankfully, his years of experience proved useful
and he coped admirably with all the youngsters threw
at him.
Speaking after the event Mr Smart said, “It was a
pleasure to take part and an interesting experience
for me to deal with a young audience! The children
seemed to enjoy the experience judging by the level
of questions and I would commend them on their
excellent behaviour. This is a very good way of
getting young people to start thinking about the
importance of laws and the legal system."
The visit to Morrison's Academy was one of a series
of similar visits organised by the Scottish Schools
Law Project which has received support over the
years from a number of local law firms including
Miller Hendry, Aberdein Considine & Co. and Jameson
& Mackay as well as Graham & Finlayson.
The scheme has also gained the backing of the Law
Society of Scotland. The Society’s Director of
Education & Training, Liz Campbell commented, “We
are delighted that law firms in Crieff and nearby
have offered their support to this programme over
the years as it helps break down some of the
misconceptions and stereotypes which still persist
about lawyers and the work they do.”
On behalf of Morrison's Academy, teacher Adele
Dickinson said she was very grateful to David Smart
for interrupting his busy schedule to spend time
with the pupils and for providing them with an
interesting insight into his work and the legal
system in general. She also complemented both
the organisers and the Law Society of Scotland for
the teacher-friendly nature of the project.
She continued, "The feedback from pupils was
excellent. They enjoyed speaking to a real-life
lawyer and the opening presentation really made them
think. To quote one pupil, ‘Yeah, it was really
excellent Mrs Dickinson!’"
Afterwards, the Rector of Morrison's Academy, Simon
Pengelley, welcomed the visitors to lunch in the
school refectory. He confirmed he was
delighted things had gone so well and was
particularly pleased to learn the pupils had
impressed both with their intelligent questions and
excellent behaviour.
The Schools Law Project is run by former teacher,
Patrick Gaffney. He has received an award from The
Law Society of Scotland for the success of the
programme, an award which he happily refers to as
his ‘Lawscar’.
Mr Gaffney said, “This project has now reached a
wide range of schools and I am pleased that the trip
to Morrison's Academy proved very worthwhile. The
school and its talented youngsters deserve a lot of
credit. Overall, the success of the Schools Law
Project is due to the support of the Law Society and
more than 200 law firms throughout the country.
I have been extremely impressed by the response of
the legal community when it comes to educating young
people about the importance of laws in our society.”
Anyone wishing to find out more about the Schools
Law Project can do so by visiting the project
website at www.schoolsproject.co.uk.
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For further information on the above article, please
contact:
Patrick Gaffney
Director
The Schools Project
61 Old Abbey Road
North Berwick
EH39 4BP
T: 05601 924975
E: patrick@schoolsproject.co.uk
W:
www.schoolsproject.co.uk
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