When Casey Minns reflects upon on her law school experiences, one of her most memorable moments was her tutor praising her ‘psycho-killer vibes’ during a cross-examination for a mock-trial assessment in her Evidence Law class.

“I will never forget that class because it was the first time I could truly picture myself being a lawyer someday,” she said. 

Casey’s journey to becoming a lawyer began when she returned to The Australian National University (ANU) to study a Juris Doctor, after completing a Bachelor of Psychology in 2017.

“I was feeling quite lost after I had finished my psychology degree because it didn’t feel like a good fit, and increasingly frustrated by the political landscape (domestically and internationally) at the time,” she said. 

“Studying law in the nation’s capital seemed like a perfect way to combine the things I felt passionate about and to understand people in the context of organised societies (and it has definitely lived up to that).”

Over the course of her postgraduate degree, Casey developed a keen interest in the law related to artificial intelligence (AI).

“I am very interested to see how AI develops in the coming years, particularly as it is presently unclear whether it is possible to adequately regulate the use of AI without significantly compromising individual rights,” she said.

“Determining how to attribute liability when automated systems are involved is also both practically and philosophically significant, and I’m interested to see how legislation and the common law will adapt to deal with this.”

While she was at law school, three of Casey’s favourite classes were taught by Associate Professor Joshua Neoh. 

“Each course had a strong emphasis on legal theory and inspired me to approach all aspects of law from a critical perspective,” she said. “I think that understanding the historical and ideological influences on the development of our legal system is fundamental – not just for valuable context in terms of how the law operates, but also in terms of recognising and navigating structural barriers to change.” 

“I’m very grateful that Dr Neoh taught me to always take the time to reflect on why things are the way they are, and why it’s important to challenge that sometimes.”

Reflecting on her law school journey, Casey has some wise words of advice for future students as she prepares to graduate next week. 

“Law tells stories about human beings, and taking the extra time to learn the background of a case makes it so much easier and more interesting to read,” she said. “It’s easy to get lost in legal jargon sometimes, but the human context of law brings it meaning, and learning is far more rewarding when it has meaning.” 

“Also, just because you used to be capable of writing a quality 2000-word essay in a day, don’t assume that you can write a 4000-word essay in two days. And you will need more time than you think to format your footnotes!”

Following graduation, Casey will continue working full-time at a property law firm while she completes her practical legal training.

“I am hoping to be admitted to practice in mid-2024,” she said. “Most excitingly, now that I actually have some free time, I’m also learning the ukulele!”