The University of Newcastle Justice Clinic

The University of Newcastle Justice Clinic  (UNJC) was established in 2019 and is based in the School of Law and Justice. It is a site for research, engagement, learning and advocacy, where researchers and academics work in collaboration with students to investigate cases for clients of the organisation. The UNJC is a hub to support individuals who have been impacted by issues within the criminal justice system and drive change to reduce issues in the future.

The types of cases we become involved in include:

  • Those for which all appeal avenues have been exhausted.
  • For example:
    • Miscarriages of justice
    • Wrongful convictions
    • Misclassification of death
    • Missing persons
    • Cold cases

We will not accept cases where:

  • There is a risk to the safety of our staff, volunteers, students, university, or individuals involved with the case.
  • Appeals are outstanding

Due to our limited resources, the large number of applications received and our guidelines, some cases may not be accepted.

The UNJC is not a legal practice, nor are our volunteers. We do not provide legal advice or conduct legal advocacy and legal professional privilege will not apply to materials and information sent to us. However, confidentiality is a huge focus for our organisation and all information will be stored securely and under the strictest conditions ensuring confidentiality. When required, we work with lawyers associated with the Justice Clinic.

Mission

Our mission is not to establish innocence or guilt of an individual, but to assess whether the verdict of a case was unsafe because of an administration of justice issue or error of fact, or if there is fresh or compelling evidence, which at the time had the potential to change the outcome of the trial/conviction.

Aims

The aims and objectives of the program are to:

  • Undertake public interest advocacy as well as justice project and human rights cases where there has potentially been a serious failure in the administration of justice, which is unlikely to be redressed by the legal system without public interest advocacy.
  • Develop students' skills, such as research, document drafting, case analysis and collaboration, while displaying high standards of professionalism.
  • Provide real, problem-based learning experiences to enhance the capacity to solve clients' problems.
  • Provide an intensive clinical placement at the UNJC to undertake in-depth client casework.
  • Develop an understanding of how individuals are impacted by our country’s criminal justice system, and gain a thorough awareness of course work integration into real world experiences.

Partnerships

Contact us

The University of Newcastle Justice Clinic
justice-clinic@newcastle.edu.au

Academic contacts

Enquiries about claims of factual innocence

If you, or someone you know, claim factual innocence and wish to have the matter reinvestigated by the Justice Clinic, you may apply by email or post to the address below: