Bringing justice to life
Law Day Out Excursion
Guided court excursions for Year 11 and 12 Students to the Downing Centre Courts, Sydney
What is a Law Day Out?
Building trust in our legal system
The judiciary relies upon public trust to function effectively. It requires confidence in the independence and impartiality of the judiciary and acceptance of judicial decisions. The Rule of Law Education Centre runs Facilitated Court Excursions to the Sydney Courts for year 11 and 12 High School students doing Legal Studies. Excursions are run on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays during school term time.
“In my opinion, improving public understanding of the role and operations of the judiciary across the community is essential to building trust. We build trust in the competency of the courts when we directly engage with members of the public..”
–The Honourable T F Bathurst AC, former Chief Justice of New South Wales
“Just wanted to say a quick but sincere thank you for your guidance and assistance yesterday at the Law Day Out. Both the boys and myself really enjoyed the day- so much so that the boys wanted to go back in after lunch (which I was not originally expecting). They could not stop talking about what they saw, how “cool’ and interesting it was and they were so engaged!
Thank you from me as a teacher new to Legal Studies whose first experience of Law Day Out was mindblowing and amazing. This was my first visit and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Thank you for spurring on more interest and fascination in the legal system. I think you’ve really rejuvenated us all!”
– Teacher email
Guided Excursions
At the end of June 2025, the Downing Centre’s electrical systems suffered significant damage as the result of a burst watermain. Initially it was estimated that the Centre would be closed until the end of the winter holidays, however, the Department of Communities and Justice (DCJ) has advised that the Downing Centre will not be reopening until at least late 2025 while repairs are undertaken. (Click here to see the advice from the DCJ.)
As you can imagine, this has caused significant issues with court proceedings and will impact on schools wishing to visit the Downing Centre and those attending our Law Day Out program. While many Local Court matters have been relocated to the nearby John Maddison Tower (JMT), in our experience there are logistical issues involved in having school groups visit this location. There is very limited space in public areas and courtrooms in the JMT, facilities are not available on all floors, moving between levels is limited to lifts and security checks at the building entry are substantially smaller in scale and can be slow. In addition, the reshuffling of court matters to other courts around the metropolitan area impacts on the availability of judicial officers to speak with groups.
We believe a visit to the courts is an extremely valuable experience for students and we are keen to be able to still offer the program and make your experience run as smoothly as possible.
The team will continue to try to create the best learning opportunities we can for our groups, however, the flooding has had a significant impact on our program and means that there are many uncertainties for our programs and staff while the Downing Centre remains closed.
We ask for patience from attendees as our staff do their best to navigate the challenges that the present limitations will generate regarding court observations each day.
Law Day Out Court Excursion Program (LDO)
NOTE: We are fully booked for 2025 and 2026.
A Court Experience facilitated by a Rule of Law Educator with the opportunity, where possible, to meet a Judicial Officer. LDO’s are limited to 45 students and cost is group based pricing based upon the number of students per group.
Virtual Law Day Out
A free online court experience that includes pre-recorded videos with 2 Judges, Sheriffs and a tour of a NSW Court Room.
Court Excursion Documents
The Rule of Law Education Centre has put together a pack of information to help your excursion to the Courts run smoothly. The pack is free of charge and includes an information pack for teachers, risk management proforma and student workbooks.
Court Excursion Payments
Payment is required 45 days before a school can attend a Law Day Out Court Excursion Program which includes facilitation from a Rule of Law Educator. Payment can be made via EFT as per the details on the invoice or by Paypal/Credit Card.
General information
- Due to urgent repairs, the Downing Centre is closed until late 2025.
- 2025 and 2026 Law Days Out are now fully booked. Schools are able to join the waitlist in case of cancellations via the link in the ‘Do you have a waitlist?’ tab on the Bookings page.
- Schools in the Sydney metropolitan area are able to seek permission to observe proceedings at a Local Court closer to their school by making direct contact with the court Registrar of the relevant complex. The list of courts and assciated contact details can be found at https://localcourt.nsw.gov.au/cl-2.html
- The courts have requested that schools outside the Sydney Metropolian area wishing to book a court experience should contact their nearest large court complex that houses both District and Local Courts, such as Campbelltown, Penrith, Wollongong or Newcastle. Contact details for these complexes can be found at https://localcourt.nsw.gov.au/cl-2.html
- The Supreme Court is available to schools for faciltated and unfacilitated visits. Bookings are not required for an unfacilitated visit, and as it is self-guided, there is no fee associated. The Journey Walks also offer a facilitated visit of the Supreme Court and and can be booked through the Supreme Court Website at https://supremecourt.nsw.gov.au/about-us/visits.html.