Student Divisions
Our student divisions program has 35 student groups, each of which is an autonomous and self-sufficient entity, officially recognized and licensed by LWOB. Each student division is affiliated with an accredited college, university, or law school, and led by the students themselves. The student divisions play a key role in furthering the mission of LWOB by engaging in community outreach projects, hosting events, enhancing career opportunities and raising awareness of international human rights and rule of law issues with the hope of fostering a culture of pro bono commitment that will follow participants into their legal careers.
ROLIC: Rule of Law Innovation Challenge
A signature program of the student divisions is the annual Rule of Law Innovation Challenge (ROLIC) held in London each spring. It is a high-spirited competition among LWOB’s student divisions in which participating teams design innovative educational mechanisms from a choice of rule of law topics related to on-going LWOB international programs, such as:
- Trafficking in persons: a public service campaign;
- Wildlife crime: an educational story book;
- Trial advocacy: a hands-on learning activity aimed at teaching evidentiary objections.
Each team is paired with a partner law firm for mentorship and coaching. In 2019, the winning ROLIC team created an educational training manual to improve the understanding and awareness of gender-based and domestic violence. The manual was subsequently distributed to prosecutors, magistrates, law enforcement, and community support centers as part of LWOB’s in-country training program. In April 2020, COVID-19 forced the cancellation of an in-person ROLIC. Instead, ROLIC was converted into a two hour live-streamed (Zoom) program which included a video clip of the highlights of each of the Student Divisions’ entries, panel discussion, and announcement of the winners.
If you are Interested in starting a student division at your university or law school, please email STUDIV@lwob.org. The student divisions manager will respond to your query and provide a manual that details the procedure and requirements for becoming a licensed LWOB student division.