Contextualising Legal Education: The Case of Solomon Islands and Vanuatu

Abstract

Legal educators in the South Pacific, often from outside the region and on short-term appointments, may initially have limited familiarity with some or all South Pacific environments, beyond an understanding that their legal systems are ‘based on common law’. The University of the South Pacific, a regional institution providing legal education for 12 independent South Pacific countries, aims to produce graduates ‘well equipped to enter the legal professions’ of these countries. However, there have been few resources to inform legal educators about the local legal environments in which their graduates will work, and to help educators understand what law graduates require to be ‘well equipped’ for South Pacific jurisdictions. To help bridge the information gap, the research undertaken for this thesis investigates the legal environments and preparatory needs of law graduates in two of these South Pacific jurisdictions: Solomon Islands and Vanuatu. The thesis begins with an overview of the development of state law, the legal profession and legal education in the South Pacific, to provide historical context for the work that follows. A case study of contemporary legal environments is then presented. Set within an interpretive paradigm, this qualitative study draws from 80 interviews conducted within the legal sectors of Solomon Islands and Vanuatu, and from documentary and other sources. The picture which emerges is of an environment in which state law sits uneasily with continuing local traditions and everyday life, and where lawyers and the legal profession as a whole face many challenges in their attempts to meet the legal needs of their communities. The case study demonstrates that to be well equipped to enter the legal professions of Solomon Islands and Vanuatu, law graduates need high degrees of ‘work-readiness’, and legal knowledge, skills and attitudes tailored to these legal environments. Drawing on educational theory and practice, and taking account of the constraints facing legal educators in the South Pacific, the thesis then explores how undergraduate law students might be helped to achieve the preparation required for working in local legal environments. Show more