A second-year law student who grew up in Tom Price and Geraldton and has a keen interest in giving back to his regional community has been awarded this year’s Ciara Glennon Memorial Law Scholarship at The University of Western Australia.
Lawson O’Brien, 23, of Highgate, is undertaking a postgraduate Juris Doctor (JD) after completing a Bachelor of Commerce at UWA, which included a semester in Norway as part of Study Abroad.
The Ciara Glennon Memorial Scholarship was established in 1998 by UWA’s Law School, with the support of the Glennon family. It is sponsored by Ashurst (formerly Blake Dawson), the law firm where Ms Glennon worked.
It is awarded annually to a student from the Law School who needs financial help to continue studying, makes a recognisable contribution to the community, demonstrates an active interest in an area outside the practice of law and shows a balanced approach to life and concern for others.
Lawson lived in Tom Price until the age of 10, when his family moved to Geraldton, where he completed his secondary schooling at Nagle Catholic College. He credits teacher Rebecca Forbes-Ritchie, who taught politics and law in Year 11 and 12, for inspiring his decision to apply for the JD.
“I really enjoyed politics and law at school and my teacher was very knowledgeable and passionate about the issues that were going on at the time,” Lawson said.
“So it was really good to be able to debate and discuss those issues further with someone who was very interested in them as well.”
Lawson has been working as an educator for an out-of-hours school care service to support his studies but is grateful the scholarship will allow him to cut back his hours and focus on his studies.
During semester and study breaks he enjoys going home to help his father who manages Foodbank Geraldton.
“When he’s short on volunteers, I help by stacking shelves, doing stocktake or serving customers,” Lawson said.
“Most of the work is menial and repetitive but it’s meaningful to me – I get to help those doing it tough who come in all forms.”
While Lawson hasn’t decided which area of the law he would like to practise in, he’s open to returning to Geraldton at some point in the future.
“I wouldn’t mind at all if the law took me back to Geraldton – there are a few lawyers but they kind of do a bit of everything, which I think would be very interesting because then you’re not pigeon-holed into doing the same thing every day,” he said.