University of Queensland Law School Welcomes New Dean

The University of Queensland Law School will build on its research strengths as well as enhance its student experience, says UQ‘s new Dean of Law, Professor Gerard Carney.

Professor Carney began his new role as dean a few days ago and says he looks forward to working with the team at the historic TC Beirne School of Law which is positioned among the top 35 law schools in the QS World University Rankings.

“University of Queensland Law School attracts the brightest students so I want to nurture the University of Queensland Law School‘s close links with the legal profession, commerce and government, both nationally and internationally, to provide the best graduate outcomes, as well as equip our students with the necessary legal and personal skills to pursue successful and satisfying professional careers,” Professor Carney said.

Professor Carney joins UQ from the Bond University Law School, where he was the Deputy Dean, Professor of Constitutional Law and Chair of the Academic Senate.

He holds a Bachelor of Laws with First Class Honours from Queensland University of Technology, a Master of Laws from the University of London and a PhD in Law from the Bond University Law School.

Professor Carney is one of Australia’s leading constitutional experts, particularly in the areas of State and Territory constitutional law, parliamentary privilege, the role of parliament, and public sector ethics.

Over the course of his career, Professor Carney has held consultancy positions with the Legal Division of the Commonwealth Secretariat and the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association in London, the Queensland Electoral and Administrative Reform Commission, the Committee of Privileges of the House of Representatives and numerous State parliamentary committees.

In addition, he is admitted as a Barrister at Law of the Supreme Court of Queensland, the High Court of Australia and the Federal Court of Australia, and has served as Executive Associate to the Chief Justice of Australia, the Hon Sir Gerard Brennan.

 

Coming to UQ

Professor Carney believes this combination of academic and professional experience will be advantageous in the active role he will assume in consolidating the School’s Alumni relationships, and in developing new partnerships with the legal profession.

“I very much hope that the alumni of the University of Queensland Law School will continue to support the School to develop outstanding law graduates and to enhance its capacity for intellectual leadership in a global age,” he said.

He says he also wants to build on the University of Queensland Law School‘s research strengths to consolidate its position as a legal intellectual powerhouse which addresses the contemporary challenges of our age, locally and globally.

“There are real opportunities to further the synergy between the University of Queensland Law School‘s research agenda and the student experience, so that our students are inspired by the noble mission of any good law school, which is to enhance the rule of law within a just society. The University of Queensland Law School‘s Pro Bono Centre is an excellent example of this synergy between research and teaching.”

 

About the University of Queensland Law School

The three-year, graduate-entry Bachelor of Laws degree at UQ is designed to provide students with a comprehensive and deep understanding of legal principles and institutions that is distinguished by its rigour, depth and conceptual sophistication. Your education in the law will include not only a thorough understanding of the concepts, principles, policies and values that underpin and permeate the law both in Australia and in other jurisdictions, but will also see you develop a critical and reflective attitude to the law, and more generally, a capacity for sustained critical analysis, thought and argument.

 

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