Kent Law Campaign

The Kent Law Campaign is a £5 million project for a new Kent Law Clinic and Moot Court which will ensure that our staff and students can work in an environment which continues to inspire them to excel.

Access to Justice

Kent Law Clinic: the University’s pro-bono legal service

Our award-winning Kent Law Clinic is based in the Kent Law School and is the joint endeavour of staff, students and over 50 volunteer solicitors and barristers in private practice locally (15 of whom are alumni of the Law School and Clinic, now qualified and practising). The Clinic has two purposes: to provide a free legal advice and representation service to those in the community who cannot afford to pay, and to enhance the legal and rounded education of law students through their supervised conduct of cases for clients. The Clinic recently triumphed at an awards-ceremony, winning ‘Ethical Initiative of the Year Award’ at The Lawyer Awards 2014.

The building

The University has drawn up plans to provide accommodation which will not only be functional and flexible but, in keeping with the University's commitment to offer an inspiring student experience, will be an outstanding space in which to work and learn. The design of the building draws on the values and aspirations of the School and takes full account of environmental concerns.

The result will be an accessible, airy and open space deliberately configured to help both formal learning and informal interaction.

The top floor of The Wigoder Law Building will house The Kennedy Wong Mooting Chamber which will have views towards the city of Canterbury. The Kennedy Wong Mooting Chamber will also facilitate the development of other related programmes, such as the Negotiation Programme which Kent Law School introduced in 2011 and which is becoming increasingly popular with students.

Built in the style of a courtroom (complete with a judge’s room), the new space will allow students to hone their advocacy skills in an ultra-realistic setting, complementing the realism already provided by the involvement of the local judiciary in mooting at Kent.

The ground floor will provide extended accommodation for the Law Clinic, with new facilities including a lobby and seating area for clients, an expanded shared working space for staff and students, and a greater number of interview rooms and offices; all designed to complement the friendly and professional approach embodied by the Clinic.

The new building will provide an impressive, striking but subtle presence set down next to the Law School. A bridged walkway from the main path through campus will provide direct first floor access, adding to the feeling of openness generated by the extensive use of glass throughout the construction.

The final push for fundraising for this exciting project took place during the University’s 50th anniversary year, and the new building will leave an important legacy for future students and members of our local community to benefit from.

"I am delighted to have this opportunity to Chair the Kent Law Campaign and to repay the huge debt I owe Kent Law School. I know from personal experience and from the numerous fellow alumni that I’ve met the high regards and great affection in which the Kent Law School is held by its former students, and how much of that is attributable to the Law Clinic."