People continue to suffer at the hands of the carceral system, particularly where the state seeks to further punish individuals by keeping them locked up for longer than their sentence proscribes. In this episode, LLB student, Leah Liu, talks to PhD candidate, Josh Pallas, about how his civil liberties advocacy work and experience in practice, particularly in the post-sentence detention and supervision space, have informed his academic interest in this space. Providing a valuable insight into the connections between theory and practice, this episode is a must listen for students who have an interest in applying their legal skills to the reality of rapidly evolving social justice issues within the criminal justice system.
In 2021, Josh Pallas commenced a PhD at the University of Sydney in criminal law and legal theory concerning the proliferation of preventive justice measures at the margins of NSW's criminal law. He has also assisted Professor Simon Rice OAM in running the Law Reform Support Program and other social justice projects at Sydney Law School.
Between 2017-2021, Josh worked in legal practice, primarily in the areas of criminal and public law. He was formerly a Solicitor and Senior Solicitor in the Criminal Law and Inquiries Division and the NSW Crown Solicitor's Office, a Solicitor at Levitt Robinson, and Tipstaff to the Hon. Justice Megan Latham. Outside of work, Josh has been a Committee Member of the NSW Council for Civil Liberties since 2017 and was elected President in May 2022 after having twice served as Vice President.
