Abstract

The existence of a positive nexus between research and teaching has been contested over the last two decades. For instance, a number of studies have highlighted that there may be a negative or a zero nexus between these two activities. In Australia, such a perception has led for a call to create teaching only universities. However, such a call ignores the fundamental link that exists between teaching and research which is learning and the sharing of knowledge. Consequently, teaching and research may be considered as integral activities. This is especially the case in the legal discipline. Law, which can be characterised as a soft discipline (as opposed to a hard discipline), considers knowledge to be recursive and legal academics use new lenses to discover intellectual territories already studied by others. For this reason, this paper discusses the benefits that students and academics may receive if a positive nexus between teaching and research is promoted. The article further considers some of the strategies that may be implemented in Law Schools to support the positive nexus between research and teaching.