1 
 

Editorial  
 
Dr Lyndsey Bengtsson 

Lyndsey2.bengtsson@northumbria.ac.uk 

The edition invites us to view the multifaceted impacts of clinical legal education.  In 

particular, the impact of clinic activities in developing commercial awareness and 

other vital skills and attributes for the legal profession is explored. We also delve 

into the value of clinic to the wider society and to charities working within 

communities.  

We begin with S McConnell’s important contribution into whether clinical legal 

education develops commercial awareness in law students. By examining the 

perspectives of both those teaching and learning in clinics, she explores the 

importance of this key employability skill and highlights the crucial role that clinic 

plays.  In an interesting conclusion, she explains how there are differences between 

students and clinic supervisors in their understanding as to what commercial 

awareness means and what clinic activities develop this skill. Further, she provides 

valuable recommendations as to how clinicians can best support students.  

In S Nason‘s article, she evaluates the first two years of the project North and Mid 

Wales Law Clinic (NMWLC), which involves a partnership between Bangor 

University and seven local Citizens Advice branches.  She provides a valuable 

insight into this initiative, which aims to provide support and advice to Litigants in 

mailto:Lyndsey2.bengtsson@northumbria.ac.uk


2 
 

Person. She focuses on the student experience and explores the challenges and 

opportunities of online working. She also considers how the project fits within other 

clinical legal education models. She argues that this initiative changes students’ 

perceptions of access to justice and they gain a greater appreciation of 

“empowerment”. She also argues that this model of clinical legal education allows 

students to become aware of the role of new technology. 

Those pondering the question ‘what difference does clinical legal education make?’ 

would benefit from the insights from L Donnelly. He explores this critical question 

in the context of law graduates, using a questionnaire to elicit their views.  He argues 

that although clinic participation equips graduates with the key skills required for a 

career in the law, it does not seem to go as far as creating lawyers who possess the 

mission for serving justice.  

In J Marshall and N Antoniou’s practice report, they provide a fascinating account of 

two outreach projects at Royal Holloway’s Legal Advice Centre.  They explain how 

both projects (the online Being Human Café and the Autism Legal Rights Café) 

enabled different community groups to come together to discuss human rights. The 

authors explore how these events provide an important platform to improve lives 

and enrich communities.     

Continuing the impact theme, in the latest episode of the Clinical Legal Education 

Podcast, our host, Elaine Gregersen, interviews Molly Doyle, a Northumbria 



3 
 

University law student, who has just completed her year in the Student Law Office 

module (The clinical legal education podcast (wordpress.com)). Molly reflects on her 

year in clinic and what she has gained from her experience. She provides essential 

guidance for students embarking on their clinical legal education journey.  If you 

wish to discuss the podcasts further, please do not hesitate to get in touch with 

Elaine or Molly via the twitter account @IJCLE.  

Finally, we are very excited about the 2022 GAJE/IJCLE/SAULCA Worldwide 

Conference at the Faculty of Law of the Stellenbosch University this December. We 

look forward to seeing many of you there!  

https://clinicallegaleducationpodcast.wordpress.com/