I was very pleased indeed to attend a function in London at which our Bond University Mirvac School of Sustainable Development building received the top international Sustainability Award at the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) Annual Awards.  The RICS Awards are acknowledged among the most prestigious accolades given to buildings which attain the highest standards in four key areas – Sustainability, Conservation, Community Benefit and Regeneration.

Despite strong competition from such notable finalists as the Silberado residential development in Stuttgart, the Council of Europe’s new General Building in Strasbourg, and the Royal Shakespeare Company’s Courtyard Theatre in England’s West Midlands, the RICS judging panel awarded the Bond University building first place in the Sustainability category as the world’s best example of carbon-friendly and sustainable design.

As we celebrate our 20th anniversary, this wonderful achievement is yet another example of the world benchmark Bond is setting to deliver a superior educational experience for its students. In our relatively short history, we have already begun to showcase the calibre of our university through various awards and recognitions worldwide.

Bond University’s skill in the courtroom continues to draw accolades with a pair of law students beating all other Australian universities in the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) mooting competition this month.

Law students Jordan Byrnes and Katherine Mansted defeated fellow national grand finalists from the University of NSW at the AAT mooting competition finals in Sydney.

Acting on behalf of the Commonwealth, the pair convinced a tribunal panel – which included The Honourable Justice Garry Downes AM (President), Deputy President Julian Block and Member Stephen Frost – that a car importer, who disputed the payment of the luxury car surcharge on several imported Hummer vehicles, should indeed pay the Federal tax.

Katherine, who had not studied administrative law before contesting the AAT competition, said the format of the moot was challenging.

“You have to be ready to answer questions at any given point with confidence and accuracy. Really, you want the judge to interrupt you and question your approach because that means you are engaging them in your presentation,’’ said Katherine, a former Somerset College student.

The aim of the AAT competition is to allow students to argue the details of government legislation as it pertains to realistic scenarios they may face as future legal professionals. The AAT typically deals with appeals to bureaucratic decisions such as unpaid tax, cancelled visas and compensation claims.

Professor Geraldine Mackenzie, Dean of Bond’s Law Faculty, said the Administrative Appeals Tribunal mooting competition gave students the opportunity to argue the points of law in a real-life environment.

“The topics they receive are hypothetical issues they could seriously be contesting when they embark on their legal careers,’’ said Professor Mackenzie.

“As seen by our top results over the last few years, Bond takes its mooting endeavours very seriously. We regard it as an excellent way for students to test their knowledge of law and their skill of persuasion.’’

The win in Sydney was the fourth major title Bond Law students have won in the past 12 months. In addition to the University’s landmark victory over world leaders Yale University at the International Criminal Law Moot Final in The Hague in March, Bond also took out the Law Council of Australia’s National Law Moot Competition in Hobart, and the Beijing Foreign Studies/Wan Hui Da Intellectual Property Law Moot Competition in Beijing (both late 2008).

Congratulations to Bond Law alumnus, Hayley Tarr, who recently succeeded in registering as a specialist Patent Attorney – one of only 21 female lawyers in Queensland to achieve this.

Read Hayley Tarr's Story