Background and context

Abstract

The Introduction sets the scene for this book. It asks and attempts to answer the questions: why is public legal education (PLE) so important? What do we mean by PLE? Who is responsible for providing PLE? And what relevance does all of this have for law schools? The chapter then outlines what follows in the rest of the book, including the various models that are and can be used to design, deliver PLE and how a law school can move in a structured and sustainable way to incorporate PLE into its portfolio whether as a credit-bearing study or as extracurricular activity. Also discussed in the book are approaches that can be taken for assessing the value of PLE from different stakeholder perspectives and recommendations of ‘best practice’ in meeting educational and public service needs. The Introduction highlights the use throughout the book of templates that have been tried and tested in practice and that can be adapted for use by readers. The relevance and utility of the book for academics, students, practising lawyers and not-for-profit organisations internationally is also pointed out.