Susan Hunt joined the Law Department in 1973. She replied to an advert in the Evening Standard specifying vacancies in all departments. In typical fashion, Susan comments “so you can see it was dead competitive!” She was a secretary and her job as she describes it was helping academics by typing up their books and worksheets. She enjoyed the job and felt she was assisting academics in their work.
What she most liked about working in the department was the opportunity to meet so many different kinds of people. Although she called herself “a humble typist”, she was working (as she puts it) with lords, MPs, judges, professors; people with whom she would have had little in common outside the confines of ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳. “Everyone was nice, there was no snobbery.”
As for the academics, she fondly remembers Cedric Thornberry (father of Emily Thornberry MP). The person who had the most effect on her was Rosalyn Higgins (now Dame Rosalyn), Professor of International Law. Susan helped Professor Higgins in her private international law cases and sometimes stayed with her in The Hague during the court hearings. She even visited Chad as a guest of the government, “grateful for her invaluable help in getting the Ouzou Strip back from Libya.” During her long career, Susan dealt with requests and expectations that, she said, wouldn't be appreciated nowadays: “Could you go to Wrights and get me a bag of chips?”, Professor Higgins would ask. But she never minded. She also has fond memories of working with Professors Simon Roberts and Rick Rawlings.
One of the highlights for Susan was her MBE. This was the result of Professor Christopher Greenwood’s efforts when he was head of department. Susan reveals: “We had a splendid party.”
Susan retired in 2011, at age 65. That was the age ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳ expected employees to retire. Susan remembers receiving a letter explaining that she could stay on if her continued employment was essential to the promotion of the aims and ambitions of ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳! It was a prohibitively high bar but, arguably, if anyone had a chance of clearing it, it was Susan.