By Ewen McRae
The western suburbs legal fraternity was left shocked last year by the sudden death of magistrate Steve Myall, but his legacy is set to be celebrated through a new graduate program.
Mr Myall was well known across the western suburbs as a magistrate in Sunshine and Werribee, as well as many years as a criminal lawyer. He was 59 when he died.
The Steve Myall Graduate Program, for students completing legal studies in Melbourne’s west, was launched last week.
The program will offer a work opportunity at Victoria Legal Aid’s Sunshine office for nine to 12 months while students complete post-graduate studies.
Legal Aid managing lawyer Tamsin Mildenhall, who was mentored by Mr Myall, said it was a way of ensuring his memory lived on.
“I wanted to do something that brought attention to the kind of things that I think he believed in and was proud of,” Ms Mildenhall said.
“He provided a lot of mentoring for a lot of the lawyers here (Legal Aid).
“He cared a lot about the clients, took his job really seriously, was very passionate about social justice and making sure that everyone had their day in court and was heard. He was known in our fraternity as someone who was very compassionate.”
Ms Mildenhall said the graduate program would be a hands-on experience for the successful students, giving them the chance to get a foot in the door of the industry and complete vital training while completing their studies.
“What I want is to pick up someone from the western suburbs, who might not have the cultural capital that you usually need to get a job in the law,” she said.
“A lot of students find it really difficult to get the necessary experience you need to be admitted, so this program would basically pay someone while they’re doing that final bit of study. And hopefully that gives them the connections so that once they get admitted they can get a job. Legal Aid has backed the idea … Mr Myall’s wife was very thankful that we’re doing something that she feels he would be really chuffed about.”
The first successful student will commence the program in August.
