FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Newly accredited law degree raises questions about faith, justice and the future of legal education.
Sydney, 24th October 2026 — What place does a Pentecostal Christian institution have in educating Australia’s future lawyers?
It is a question Alphacrucis University College is inviting Australians to consider as it prepares to launch its new Bachelor of Laws, now accredited by the Legal Profession Admission Board of New South Wales.
For an institution founded in 1948 to train Pentecostal ministers, establishing a law school represents a significant development.
But the leadership of Alphacrucis believes the connection between faith and legal education deserves serious attention.
“Some people may find it surprising that a Pentecostal university college is establishing a law school. We welcome that conversation.”
“Christian institutions have a long history of contributing to education, public life and the development of legal and ethical thought. We believe there is a valuable place for rigorous legal scholarship informed by a clear understanding of our institutional identity and values.”
The new four-year Bachelor of Laws is intended to prepare students for professional legal pathways while encouraging deeper engagement with questions of ethics, justice, law and human responsibility.
Professor Augusto Zimmermann, Foundation Dean of Law, believes that legal education should encourage students to explore the principles underpinning the law, not simply its application.
“A law school should teach students to examine arguments critically, engage seriously with different perspectives and understand the foundations of legal reasoning.”
“Our Christian identity does not diminish the importance of academic rigour. It gives us a distinctive perspective from which to engage with the important legal and ethical questions facing contemporary society.”
The launch of the School of Law continues Alphacrucis’s development from a specialist theological institution into a Christian multidisciplinary university college.
With its first student intake planned for 2027, the College hopes its new School of Law will contribute to conversations about the purpose of legal education and the responsibilities of those entering the profession.
Interview opportunities: Professor Stephen Fogarty and Professor Augusto Zimmermann, subject to availability.
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