Articles

Anti-death penalty and human rights advocate Julian McMahon wins Law Council’s President’s Medal

The Law Council of Australia’s 2016 President’s Medal has been awarded to eminent barrister, anti-death penalty and human rights advocate, Julian McMahon. The Medal, now in its tenth year, is awarded to ‘an outstanding example to the Australian legal profession’ who has ‘brought credit to the profession through a commitment to the law which has…

Law Society congratulates Dr Adam Tomison on Director General Appointment

The Law Society of Western Australia congratulates Dr Adam Tomison on his appointment as Director General of the Department of the Attorney General. The State Government has announced that Dr Tomison will begin his new role on 12 December 2016. Law Society President-elect Alain Musikanth said, “The Law Society congratulates Dr Tomison on his appointment,…

Law Council: Whistleblower protections a major development that paves the way for further expansion

New measures within the registered organisations legislation, passed early this morning, will drastically improve whistleblower protections for those within the private and non-government sectors. The whistleblower protections were inserted into the Fair Work (Registered Organisations) Amendment Bill 2014 by Senators Xenophon and Hinch and passed the Senate with the support of other crossbenchers including Senators…

Law Council: Urgent action needed on Indigenous imprisonment in light of new Productivity Commission report

The Productivity Commission’s latest ‘Overcoming Indigenous Disadvantage’ report has underscored the pressing need for reform to combat catastrophic rates of Indigenous imprisonment. The report has found that while there has been some improvement in the areas of health, economic participation and education, the national imprisonment rate is “alarmingly high” and has increased 77 per cent…

Passed Counter-Terrorism Bill addresses many Law Council concerns, now time to appoint new INSLM

A number of concerns expressed by the Law Council of Australia to the Counter-Terrorism Legislation Amendment Bill (No. 1) 2016 have been reflected in the final version passed by the Senate this morning. Central to these concerns was ensuring that a system of ‘special advocates’ participate in control order proceedings – which can be now…

Law Society congratulates Joseph McGrath SC on Supreme Court appointment

The Law Society of Western Australia congratulates Joseph McGrath SC on his appointment as a Judge of the Supreme Court of Western Australia. The State Government has announced that Mr McGrath will begin his new role on 28 November 2016. Law Society President Elizabeth Needham said, “Over three decades, Joseph McGrath SC has amassed a…

Law Council urges Government to adopt key counterterrorism report recommendations

The Law Council of Australia is urging the Federal Government to adopt key recommendations of the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security (PJCIS) concerning proposed laws that could see individuals detained past the expiry of their sentence. The PJCIS today released its recommended amendments to the Criminal Code Amendment (High Risk Terrorist Offenders) Bill…

Redress Scheme helps to enable access to justice for survivors of child sexual abuse

The Council welcomes the Federal Government’s announcement to establish a redress scheme, which is crucial to ensuring that survivors can access justice for the abuse they have suffered. The approach accords with the recommendations of the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse, which called for a direct personal response to deliver justice…

Huge boost for equality as large firms adopt Law Council’s Equitable Briefing Policy en masse

The Law Council of Australia’s National Equitable Briefing Policy today received a major boost, with a large number of the nation’s leading large law firms, as well as three large corporates, signing up to a commitment to briefing women barristers. The new policy, launched this year, aims to boost the number of briefs to women…

Law Society joins all Australian Law Societies to call on PM to reverse cuts to legal assistance funding

The Presidents of Australia’s eight law societies, representing more than 60,000 legal practitioners, have called on the Prime Minster to return funding to the legal assistance sector in an open letter to be published in The Australian tomorrow (4 November). The legal assistance sector, which includes Legal Aid, the Aboriginal Legal Service and Community Legal…

Law Society response to the Women Lawyers of Western Australia’s 20th Anniversary Review of the 1994 Chief Justice’s Gender Bias Taskforce Review

In September 2014, Women Lawyers of Western Australia Inc. released its 20th Anniversary Review of the 1994 Report of the Chief Justice’s Taskforce on Gender Bias (known as the 2014 Gender Bias Review Report or GBRR). Chapter 2 of the GBRR deals with ‘Career Paths for Women in the Legal Profession’. It contains a total…

Law Society supports ALRC inquiry into incarceration rate of Indigenous Australians

The Law Society of Western Australia welcomes today’s announcement that the Commonwealth Government will ask the Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC) to inquire into the incarceration rate of Indigenous Australians. Law Society President Elizabeth Needham said, “The Law Society has consistently advocated for governments to do more to address the appalling over-representation of Aboriginal and…