Law Annual Lecture
About the Annual Lecture Series
The School of Law's first Annual Lecture took place in 2003, in recognition of the enormous contribution made to the School by Professor Paul Jackson, a founding member and former Head of the then Department of Law.
Entering its ninth year the Annual Lecture Series is still going strong. We welcome staff and students from the School of Law, our alumni and professionals from around the region, with the event providing a good opportunity to build and develop networks and relationships. See previous speakers.
2012 Annual Lecture kindly sponsored by LexisNexis
Akbar Khan, Director of the Legal and Constitutional Affairs Division and the Commonwealth Secretary-General's Principal Legal Adviser, Commonwealth Secretariat
This year's lecture, 'Global Threats and Human Rights: The Commonwealth as an Agent of Change' took place on 15 March 2012 at the Whiteknights Campus of the University of Reading. The lecture was delivered by Akbar Khan, Director of the Legal and Constitutional Affairs Division and the Commonwealth Secretary-General's Principal Legal Adviser. The lecture was attended by students and staff of the University as well as by representatives of local law firms, businesses and the judiciary. A number of alumni were also present. The lecture was followed by a lively discussion.
The lecture examined the role of the Commonwealth to date and how its inherent ability to reinvent itself to meet the growing needs of its membership has secured its place in the 21st century as an agent of change. From its early Empire roots to a 54 member state international organisation today, the Commonwealth has survived many challenges. The speaker addressed the place of the Commonwealth in today's world and reflected on how, with global threats such as climate change, poverty , cybercrime and increasing human rights abuses continuing to blight the lives of millions of Commonwealth citizens, the Commonwealth is able to overcome the challenges it faces in the 21st century and continue to remain relevant to its 2 billion citizens.