Global Clinical Legal Education

Global Clinical Legal Education is a unique and impressive contribution to our understanding of the importance of clinical legal education’s expanding influence around the world, including its impact on legal education more broadly. Professor Giddings and his international contributors approach the topic through an impressively wide lens, providing the reader with not only a comprehensive review of the goals, challenges, and future of clinical legal education from every region of the world, but also with an invaluable resource for legal educators and researchers through extensive citations to important literature on clinical legal education (“clinical scholarship”) and often otherwise unavailable related sources. A must-read for anyone interested in legal education, global or otherwise.

Frank S. Bloch, Professor of Law Emeritus, Vanderbilt University Law School

A must-read for every legal educator. Backed by his brain’s trust and supported by authors from around the globe, Jeff Giddings makes an eloquent plea for fostering clinical legal education (CLE) in Global Clinical Legal Education. The book presents convincing educational theories and practices and makes the case not for a wave or a tide but for a sea change. Global examples illuminate CLE’s flexibility and adaptability. Global Clinical Legal Education should embolden legal educators everywhere to take performance-oriented experiential learning in law seriously.

Neil Gold, Emeritus Professor of Law, Faculty of Law, University of Windsor, Canada

The global contributions from law clinics representing both the developed and developing world make significant strides in reinforcing effective practices and providing experiential learning opportunities across disciplines. The contributors provide valuable insights into social justice, diversity, inclusivity and transformative approaches. By advocating for innovative educational approaches and the fusion of technology with legal practice, they underscore the importance and impact of professional networks. Congratulations to the editor and all contributors. This book is a must-have for every law clinic's library.

Riette Du Plessis, Associate Professor, School of Law, University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa

Jeff has gathered a great team of leaders in developing clinical legal education around the world. Here is a diversity of approaches to combining education and a social justice mission with distinct identities sensitive to local environments. There’s guidance, rooted in theory, looking to the future as well as presenting historical and current information, explaining how clinics operate, whether under supportive or challenging regimes. It’s a contribution to the networks that enable capacity-building and you’ll find it a fascinating source of ideas and support.

Nigel Duncan, Professor Emeritus of Legal Education, City Law School, City St George’s, University of London

Global Clinical Legal Education aims to capture the unique essence of Clinical Legal Education (CLE) across 42 countries, making it a truly global reference. It highlights the distinctiveness of CLE and amplifies the voices of clinicians worldwide. As a comprehensive global guide, it offers invaluable insights from diverse experiences and is essential reading for clinicians, law teachers, administrators, and legal education regulators. The contributions in the book could significantly advance CLE across the globe. Congratulations to Jeff for bringing this important work to life.

M.R.K.Prasad, Professor, V.M.Salgaocar College Of Law, Panaji, Goa, India

Global Clinical Legal Education is a tremendous resource for anyone seeking to understand the development and contributions of Clinical Legal Education on every continent. The chapters, written by clinical educators in 42 countries, describe how clinical legal education is changing law students, legal education and legal systems worldwide. This is a must read for anyone interested in educating lawyers with the legal and leadership skills to impact and improve the rule of law and justice.

Peggy Maisel, Clinical Professor of Law Emerita, Boston University School of Law

I am delighted to offer my strong endorsement for this forthcoming volume, which represents a highly meaningful and important scholarly contribution. Professor Giddings has been a pioneer and leading voice in experiential legal education in Australia and in the Global Clinical Legal Education movement. This volume is a testament to his leadership and high level of esteem among international colleagues, with contributions from a widely diverse group of close to 70 tremendously accomplished authors from nearly every continent.

Susan L. Brooks, Professor of Law, Thomas R. Kline School of Law, Drexel University

This is an important and timely book. Important because it shares and reflects on global best practice in legal education and timely because it offers inspiration and help in addressing the many challenges that law schools around the world all face, including the cost and funding of higher education, wellbeing and changing patterns of student engagement, review and reform of routes to professional qualification and the disruptive impact of technology on learning and professional practice. It is of practical use to all law teachers interested in experiential and clinical legal education and pedagogic research, from those aiming to start or develop a clinic to those looking to mainstream clinical legal education into their courses. It is highly recommended!

Andy Unger, Associate Professor, Head of the Law Division, London South Bank University

This text brings together a wide range of contributors to present the state of global clinical legal education, comprehensively reviewing the key contemporary issues. It should serve as a necessary reference source for newcomers and those who want to keep up to date on legal clinics around the world. Reading this book prompted me to reflect on my role as a teacher, academic and researcher, and on what I understand to be the Law: how it should be taught in our faculties and how this could impact future jurists. Clinical methodology is increasingly reminiscent of the Enlightenment ideal of teaching the learner a way of thinking rather than teaching a set of techniques.

José García-Añón, Professor, Director at Human Rights Institute, Universitat de València

Anyone with an interest in clinical legal education should add this book to their collection. Jeff Giddings has assembled a truly global team of contributors, that includes both established and emerging scholars in the field, providing a diverse range of voices reflecting upon clinical legal education within their own national context. What emerges is an insightful look at the patchwork of opportunities and challenges influencing the unique development of clinical legal education within different countries whilst retaining common threads of a global movement.

Paul McKeown, President of the European Network for Clinical Legal Education