Lecturer in Law (Teaching & Scholarship)

The School of Law and Politics at Cardiff University is seeking to appoint a Lecturer (grade 6 / 7) in Law to take a leading role in our Pro-Bono activity and/or the Cardiff University Innocence Project.
The successful candidate will be an excellent teacher and have real-client casework experience. They will hold a PhD or equivalent professional experience in Law or an allied field by the time the appointment begins, and have an ambitious scholarship agenda that expands the School's strengths in pro-bono activity.  The candidate will be expected to contribute to teaching in one of our pro-bono-related undergraduate modules and will also be responsible for managing and coordinating pro-bono/clinical legal education activity including real-client casework where appropriate. In particular, but not exclusively, applications are invited from candidates with experience of criminal appeals casework with an interest in contributing to our innocence project student and policy-related activity
This post is full-time and open-ended.
Any queries relating to this post are to be directed to Dr Russell Sandberg, the Head of the Law Department at SandbergR@cf.ac.uk
 

Salary:
£32,548 - £38,833 per annum (Grade 6) or
£41,212 - £47,722 per annum (Grade 7)
 

Date advert posted: Friday, 24 August 2018
Closing date: Monday, 24 September 2018
 

Job Description

Main Function

To deliver high-quality teaching at undergraduate level and contribute to the management and coordination of pro-bono activity and/or the Cardiff University Innocence Project.
 

Main Duties and Responsibilities

• To supervise undergraduate and postgraduate students engaged in real client case work and/or related activity with external partnership organisations. This includes managing student teams (undergraduate and postgraduate) in the process of case review; contributing to the preparation, training and guidance of students in casework tasks; and managing and responding to requests for case work assistance, adhering to ongoing client care and case management best practice
  
• To teach on probono-related undergraduate modules and other relevant modules, working as part of a module team, and to deliver excellent teaching. Grade 7: in addition, to independently contribute to module and curriculum development, develop and lead existing and new modules at undergraduate and postgraduate levels, inspiring students
  
• To undertake administrative tasks associated with pro-bono activity, engaging students in these aspects as appropriate. This includes maintaining suitable records of casework materials in line with requirements of client confidentiality and data protection; being proactive in developing policy-related actions/proposals/submissions; liaising with external agencies and other casework projects both in developing good practice and policy initiatives
  
• To carry out other forms of scholarship including work associated with assessment (setting and marking assessments and providing constructive feedback to students), administration, participation in committee work, and the pastoral care of students of Cardiff University.
  
• To contribute to the operation, development and strategic direction of pro-bono activity at Cardiff in terms of consolidating and broadening its activities and reach. This includes taking a lead in utilising the experiences and resources of the Cardiff pro bono schemes (particularly the innocence project for appropriate applicants) for scholarship, research and policy development, including otherwise contributing to the pro bono/clinical legal education work.  For applicants with a background in criminal appeals work, this includes undertaking in-depth casework analysis of potential miscarriages of justice cases and taking part in the preparation, training and guidance of students in casework tasks
  
• Where appropriate, to supervise the work of students including the supervision of Undergraduate and Master's students, the co-supervision of postgraduate research students and acting as a PGR progress review panel member as required
  
• To act as a Personal Tutor and provide pastoral support to students
  
• To engage effectively to raise awareness of the School's profile, to cultivate strategically valuable alliances, and to pursue opportunities for collaboration across a range of activities, particularly with regard to developing student employability skills. These activities are expected to contribute to the School and the enhancement of its regional and national profile
  
• To undergo personal and professional development that is appropriate to and which will enhance performance in the role of Lecturer.
  
• To participate in School administration and activities to promote the School and its work to the wider University and the outside world
  
• Any other duties not included above, but consistent with the role

 

Person Specification

Essential Criteria

Qualifications and Education

• To have obtained or be near completion of a postgraduate degree at PhD level in a related subject area by the time the appointment begins or to have equivalent legal/professional experience.
  
• Additionally for grade 7:  To have obtained postgraduate Certificate in University Teaching and Learning or equivalent qualification or experience by the time the appointment begins.
  

 

Knowledge, Skills and Experience

• An established expertise and proven experience in relation to pro bono/real client case work and training. For criminal appeals-focused applicants, experience of casework on a student-focused innocence project or equivalent.
• Evidence of a suitably ambitious agenda for employability, clinical and pro bono activities that complements and expands the School's current strengths.
  
• Knowledge of the current status of legal research in specialist field. Additionally for grade 7:  a growing national reputation within specialist field.
  
• Ability to contribute to the delivery and continued development of modules across the School teaching programmes and teaching experience at a high level of quality at undergraduate / postgraduate level. 
• Grade 7: in addition, significant teaching experience of delivering high-quality research-led teaching using excellent communication/ presentation skills.
  

 

Pastoral, Communication and Team Working

• Proven ability in effective and persuasive communication and the ability to present complex and conceptual ideas clearly and confidently to others using high-level skills and a range of media. Evidence of a flexible and co-operative attitude towards colleagues, with a willingness to display citizenship, engage in the life of the School and contribute fully to teaching, scholarship and administrative activities.
  
• The ability to provide appropriate pastoral support to students, appreciate the needs of individual students and their circumstances and to act as a personal tutor.
  

 

Desirable Criteria

• Relevant legal/professional qualification(s).
  
• Proven ability to adapt to the changing requirements of the Higher Education community and evidence of ability to participate in and develop both internal and external networks and utilise them to enhance the teaching activities of the School.
  
• Proven ability or potential to attain competitive funding.
  
• Ability to teach in the medium of Welsh.

 

Additional Information

School of Law and Politics

The School comprises three departments.  The Department of Politics and International Relations, located at the heart of the university campus, prides itself on world-class research and an international reputation for excellence. It has around 650 undergraduates on single, integrated and joint honours programmes in Politics and IR and there is a thriving postgraduate community in the Department, with popular Master's programmes and around 30 postgraduate research students enrolled in the School. Research and teaching in comparative, constitutional and devolved politics, environmental politics, political theory, the politics of international law, critical military studies, international history, post-colonial politics and European studies provides a rich environment for scholarship and teaching.

The Department of Law, which is one of the largest and best-resourced in the United Kingdom, occupies two buildings within the Civic Centre site, close to courts and major legal firms. It has around 900 undergraduate students and nearly 150 postgraduate students enrolled on its programmes, which include Law, Law with another discipline (Criminology, French, Politics, Sociology, Welsh) at undergraduate level, and a Master's programme which enables students to select a specialised ‘route' of study, including in Canon Law, European Legal Studies, Human Rights, International Commercial Law and Legal Aspects of Medical Practice. There are around 30 postgraduate research students enrolled in the School.
The Centre for Professional Legal Studies within the Law School offers the postgraduate routes to professional qualification for barristers and solicitors-the latter on both a full and part time basis. It has validated places for around 300 students. It is the only Russell Group University to offer all the courses which lead to qualification as a barrister or as a solicitor. It also offers nationwide assessment to Duty Solicitors and Police Station Representatives, as well as to expert witnesses. Its courses - which are delivered by professionally qualified staff - are well established, highly regarded within the professions and command excellent levels of satisfaction from their students.