Random Banner 2
In Brief Issue #988
6Nov
A collective endeavour
From time to time over the years, I’ve been asked a version of the following question: “what actually is the Victorian Bar?” The answer is much more than the phrase in bold on our website – which recites that the Victorian Bar is “the professional association of Victorian barristers who provide strong, independent legal representation”. This truth is demonstrated every year – and in particular this one – by the many collectives of members with shared interests, who spend a considerable amount of their personal time in ensuring that the Bar provides support to members, and maintains the legacy of service for which we are respected throughout the community.
I’d like to acknowledge in this week’s In Brief the hundreds of members of the Victorian Bar who are active in the Bar Committees, Associations, other bodies like BCL and the Essoign Club and, of course, the Bar Council – those who volunteer to contribute significant amounts of their time in service of the Bar, the legal profession and the wider community. In this, of all years, the work that they have done has been critical in helping to keep our institution intact, in finding innovative ways of supporting the work of the courts and the wellbeing of individual members, in defending the administration of justice, in maintaining our collegiate bonds, and in ensuring that the Bar is soundly governed and well represented.
Necessarily, calling out any of the work of any individual bodies or individuals will leave other important contributors feeling excluded or unappreciated. For that reason, I point readers to the 2020 Annual Report, that is available on the website here. In their own words, the Bar Committees have described their activities last financial year, demonstrating a huge collective effort and commitment to the greater good. I’d like to acknowledge and thank those who have contributed in circumstances where the toll on their practices, family, and other activities has been especially high. It has been a privilege to work with you during this most difficult of years.
It has also been a privilege to work with the CEO, Katherine Lorenz, and her Bar Office team. They have shown resilience and powers of adaptation that have ensured, in numerous ways – most of them unseen – that the wheels of the Bar keep turning, that services continue to be provided to members, that stakeholder relationships are maintained, that no one falls through the cracks. They have my deep gratitude for the fortitude they have shown this year in the face of, at times, intolerable pressure.
But back to the volunteers. While the Bar Committees and Associations are the formal networks that help to glue the Bar together, there are a multitude of informal networks, mentoring relationships, common interest groups, and friendships through the Bar that also sustain our college. These informal communities are crucial in supporting members’ practices as well as their health and personal wellbeing. The myriad ways in which friends and colleagues have found a way to reach across the virtual divide this year to ask some version of “R U OK?” has helped pull someone else through.
As we gradually return to a “post-COVID normal”, there will be changes that we all think about making in our personal and our professional lives. Some people have felt the benefit of the enforced disruption to routine, while for others it has been a disconnecting and unsettling experience. Either way, there is no better time to get involved in the life of the Bar in new ways. I would encourage any member who wants to make a contribution to complete an expression of interest to join one of the Bar’s Committees. EOIs will open on 13 November.
The Bar is greater than the sum of its 2,200 members – it is an institution, it is a career, it is life for many members. It’s a community that I have been proud and humbled to serve as President these past 12 months.
We were delighted to receive news of the appointment of the Hon. Justice Simon Steward and the Hon. Justice Jacqueline Gleeson, both serving Federal Court judges, to the High Court of Australia.
The appointment of Justice Steward was especially significant for our members. His Honour is a former practising member of the Victorian Bar, having signed the roll in 1999, following a successful career at Mallesons Stephen Jacques, now King & Wood Mallesons. His Honour read with Peter Cawthorn QC and took silk in 2009, after only 10 years of practice as a barrister. He was a preeminent tax specialist, appearing in many significant cases in the High Court and elsewhere before his appointment to the Federal Court of Australia in 2018. As an advocate, his Honour combined a natural flair with a much-admired intellectual rigour, a mastery of the law and an ever-courteous mien. These were qualities which fitted Justice Steward exceptionally for judicial office, as his service on the Federal Court of Australia has amply demonstrated. His Honour is an outstanding jurist, and there is little doubt that he will serve the High Court of Australia with distinction, as members of our Bar have done on many occasions in the past, and continue to do.
The Victorian Bar is especially proud of Justice Steward’s appointment to our apex court. We extend our warmest congratulations and best wishes to him in his new role.
The Victorian Bar media release about the appointments is here.
Details of the welcome ceremonies will be advised when they become known.
Voting for the Bar Council elections takes place through a secure online portal.
Instructions on how to vote are here.
Voting closes at 5:00pm, Wednesday 11 November 2020.
Notice is hereby given that the annual general meeting of the Commercial Bar Association of Victoria (CommBar) will be held via Zoom on Thursday, 26 November 2020 at 4:30 pm.
Ordinary Business:
- To confirm the minutes of the annual general meeting of CommBar held on 19 November 2020, which can be found here.
- To receive from the Executive reports regarding the activities and transactions of CommBar during the financial year ended 30 June 2020.
- To elect officers of CommBar and the ordinary members of the Executive. Nominations for these positions are hereby called for.
- To receive and consider a report of the Treasurer on the financial position of CommBar.
Election:
Election to the Executive is for a period of two years. This year, the terms of the following members of the Executive are expiring:
- Stewart Maiden QC, Vice President (Convenor)
- Sam Rosewarne, Treasurer
- Oren Bigos QC, Member
Each of these members of the Executive is free to nominate for a further term should they choose to do so.
The following members of the Executive were elected, and in the case of Raini Zambelli, appointed to fill a casual vacancy last year and so they have another year before their terms expire:
- Claire Harris QC, President
- Paul Hayes QC, Senior Vice President
- Hamish Redd, Member
- Kieran Hickie, Member
- Georgia Berlic, Member
- Jesse Rudd, Member
- Raini Zambelli, Member
Nominations for election must be in writing, signed by two members and accompanied by the consent of the candidate. Nominations must be delivered to Stewart Maiden QC, Vice President (Convenor) via email maiden@vicbar.com.au not less than 7 days before 26 November 2020, being 19 November 2020. Please find nomination form here. If an election is required, it will be an electronic ballot without proxies. A list of candidates and ballot papers will be distributed to members if required after the date for nomination has closed. Only financial members will be eligible to vote.
Meeting details
If you wish to attend the meeting please contact the assistant honorary secretary Veronica Holt via email veronicaholt@vicbar.com.au and the Zoom meeting details will be sent to you prior to the meeting.
Practice in a Pandemic: Challenges & Opportunities for Women at the Victorian Bar
The Women Barristers Association (WBA) (Women in History Sub-Committee) is pleased to invite you to attend two online panel discussions designed to capture and preserve the experiences of women at the Victorian Bar during COVID 19. These sessions aim to be a frank and lively discussion on how our practices have been changed by the pandemic.
In each session, panellists will share their experiences and those of their colleagues during the pandemic. Except for questions and comments at the end, each session will be recorded so as to create a historical record for future women barristers and the legal community at large, and made available through the WBA website.
The last portion of each session will be opened up to the audience, who may ask questions or share their own experiences. This portion of the event will not be recorded and will be conducted under Chatham House rules.
Session 1 – 12 November 2020 at 5:00pm
This session will focus on criminal law, family law, intervention orders and child protection proceedings. Our panellists are Minal Vohra SC, Sally Flynn QC, Katherine Farrell, Samantha Renwick and Laura Johnston. The session will be moderated by former WBA Convenor Diana Price.
Please click here to register for the 12 November 2020 session.
Session 2 – 26 November 2020 at 5:00pm
This session will focus on commercial, common and administrative law, employment and industrial law, wills and estates and planning and environment. Our panellists are Rachel Doyle SC, Susan Brennan SC, Maria Pilipasidis, Kathleen Foley, Eleanor Coates and Serena Armstrong. The session will be moderated by WBA Convenor Jennifer Batrouney AM QC.
Please click here to register for the 26 November 2020 session.
WBA looks forward to seeing many of you at these sessions, and to your contributions about what is undoubtedly an historical event. If you have particular questions you wish the panellists to address, please email them in advance of the events to: wba@vicbar.com.au.
Appearance rates for women barristers in Victorian Courts
Please join WBA for a session to be held on Monday 23 November at 5:15pm, which will examine the statistics collected as part of WBA’s recent research into the number of women appearing in trials in the County Court of Victoria, Supreme Court of Victoria and Court of Appeal. The speakers will be The Honourable Justice Michelle Quigley, Kate Eastman SC and Dr Kylie Weston-Scheuber.
Please click here to register.
For more than 30 years, members of the Victorian Bar and judiciary have assisted the Papua New Guinea legal profession by providing advocacy training to lawyers in PNG. This year, the five-day workshop was delivered remotely for the first time to 82 graduate lawyers in PNG.
The advocacy workshop is a compulsory part of admission to practice in PNG, and provides an important opportunity for the Australian and PNG lawyers to share knowledge and experience, and strengthen ties between the profession in both countries.
The 21 members of the Victorian Bar and judiciary facilitating the workshop were led by Philip Corbett QC, Chair of the Victorian Bar International Advocacy Training Committee, and included His Honour Justice Wilson of the Family Court of Australia, His Honour Judge Christopher O’Neill of the County Court of Victoria, Remy van de Wiel QC, Sally Flynn QC, Benjamin Lindner, Stephen Russell, Ian Percy, Maya Rozner, Bradley Newton, Trevor Wallwork, Anna Robertson, Paul Kounnas, Peter O’Farrell, Aggy Kapitaniak, Diana Price, Nicholas Goodenough, Clare Cunliffe, Daniel Nguyen and Julie Buxton.
More information about the workshop can be found on the VicBar media release here.
Dear Colleagues,
We are delighted to report that our Summer Issue of Victorian Bar News (Issue 168) is ‘in train’. Through all the challenges of 2020, the Bar News Committee thanks our numerous contributors for continuing to share news, views and photos about life at the Bar and in lockdown. A big thanks also to Bar Council and the Bar Office for supporting our desire to bring a hard copy publication to you.
We are now calling for contributions for our December issue. This is your magazine. Please let us know what you are thinking, feeling and doing right now. Whether you give us two sentences or a magnum opus, either is fine.
In the last six months we have been working from home. This is an important chance to share with each other what we have been doing professionally and personally. Bar News serves as a record of our lives during a remarkable time.
We would love your photos. If your photography skills do not rival Slim Aarons, please do not be concerned.
Here is a list of topics designed to assist inspiration:
- (Virtual) court room bloopers / Unwelcome Zoom exhibitionist horror stories;
- How have you survived Stage 4 lockdown (including the school holidays…)?
- What changes have worked this year and are worth retaining, and what should we let go?
- Is Bar collegiality under stress from social isolation?
- Can we create a court room presence, virtually and, if so, how?
- Is virtual communication more intimate or alienating?
- Is the forensic disadvantage between in person and virtual appearances maintainable anymore?
- Could juries work from home if judges can?
Please keep your stories and photos flowing. We can’t wait to hear from you!
Our content deadline is 6 November 2020. Please submit to: vbneditors@vicbar.com.au.
You are also most welcome to contact us directly.
Best wishes,
Natalie Hickey, Justin Wheelahan and Annette Charak
The Editors
The following are highlights of upcoming CPD and events for Victorian Bar members. You must be a member of the Victorian Bar and logged into the VicBar website to view these events.
- Cross-Examination and Re-Examination on Prior Statements is on Monday 9 November, 4–5:00pm. This webinar will consider the applicable law of evidence and provide some practical guidance on improving your skills in this fundamental area. Click here to register.
- Creating Legal Content with Lexology is on Thursday 12 November, 4:30–5:30pm. This webinar is about the functionality of CommBar subscription with Lexology and how barristers can create targeted legal content and blog posts that reach a wide international audience. Click here to register.
For more upcoming CPD events, please visit our listings here.
To ensure the safety and security of all chambers during this challenging time, BCL Property and Technology Services will update their service delivery as of Friday 17 April 2020 until further notice. For information about this update, please see here or contact the BCL Service Desk on 9225 8888.
Cyber Security Awareness: What you need to do to keep your practice safe
In these current uncertain times, the increased use of video conferencing, reliance on email, the use of home internet services, SMS’s from our governments, and the sudden shift into paperless practices all make it easier to fall victim to a costly scam.
In recent months we are aware of successful scams within the community, leading to significant financial and operations impact. There are some simple things you can do to help protect your practice:
- Using BCL corporate-grade technology and network services (Internet & email) provides you with a managed enterprise environment with corporate-grade security platforms and sophisticated network practices.
- SMS verification for passwords is now available. To enhance the security of barrister passwords, we have introduced SMS verification for password resets. Login to http://id.vicbar.com.au, select the “Profile” tab and click “Edit” to enter your mobile number. All password reset requests will now require this information.
- Always check the “From” address in emails, particularly those from external parties. A difference in the Senders name compared to the From address is a clear indication of a scam email.
- Look for suspicious characteristics in an email such as unprofessional emails with typos and spelling mistakes, or requests for ‘click here’, pay now, requests for funds, bank account details or an unnecessary sense of urgency.
- Always use an up to date and valid anti-virus product and backup your data as outlined in the Victorian Bar Technology Minimum Standards.
- If you are ever unsure, DO NOT open it and contact the BCL Service Desk.
- Improve your cyber security awareness by taking a short 5-minute quiz provided by the Australian Government here.
Sally Flynn QC, Chair of the Health & Wellbeing Committee, has had many encouraging responses about floors and practice groups that have organised get-togethers over Zoom and in private Facebook groups, as part of the initiative to remain socially connected and check on the emotional well-being of our colleagues when we are not working from chambers.
The Committee is seeking expressions of interest from barristers interested in setting up a WhatsApp group to connect those barristers who are carers. The group is for barristers who care for elderly or disabled parents or relatives and will allow members to offer each other support by sharing information or resources for various issues, including finding alternative living arrangements or home assistance. Please contact Sally Flynn by email if you’re interested.
Other groups you may wish to join:
- Probate Law Group (contact Eleanor Coates ecoates@vicbar.com.au)
- Bar Mums WhatsApp group (contact Emily Porter eporter@vicbar.com.au)
- Pets of the Victorian Bar (contact Ashleigh Morris a.morris@vicbar.com.au)
- Health & Wellbeing Committee’s private LinkedIn group for barristers - click here or search “VicBar Community” in LinkedIn to join.
- LGBTQ+ People at the Bar (contact John Heard john.heard@vicbar.com.au or Beth Warnock beth.warnock@vicbar.com.au)
- Victorian Bar Nationally Accredited Mediators private LinkedIn group for barristers who are nationally accredited mediators – click here to join.
Darren Ferrari is organising a Zwift group for members of VicBar. Zwift blends the fun of video games with the intensity of serious training, helping cyclists get faster. Level up in the virtual worlds of Zwift with a group that motivates each other. To join or find out more, contact Darren Ferrari on 0412 124 076 or by email at clerks@svenson.com.au.
We want to make sure no barrister is left behind, so please contact Sally at sallyflynn@vicbar.com.au to let her know what your group is doing, or if you need a hand starting a new group or finding one to join.
The Amicus Curiae project is delighted to convene a panel of brilliant legal professionals to celebrate the admission of Victorian lawyers in 2020.
An online celebration is planned for Friday 20 November at 1–2:00pm to recognise this momentous milestone!
Meet the illustrious panel consisting of:
- Julian Burnside AO QC - Julian is a decorated Commercial Barrister and Human Rights and Public Law advocate, with a particular focus on the treatment of Asylum Seekers. He is also a published author and a strong supporter of the Arts.
- William Lye OAM QC - William is the first Malaysian born and one of a handful of barristers of Chinese descent to be made silk in Australia. He is a Commercial Barrister, Mediator, Educator and champion of cultural diversity in the law.
- Anna Brown OAM - Anna is a pioneer of LGBTIQ+ rights and is the CEO of Equality Australia. She played a critical role in the campaign for marriage equality co-chairing the Equality Campaign and running the challenge to the postal plebiscite in the High Court.
- Jill Prior - Jill is the Principal Legal Officer of the Law and Advocacy Centre for Women, providing legal services for at-risk women in Victoria. Jill has a long career in community law serving those most vulnerable in society.
Former Justice of the High Court of Australia and human rights advocate, The Hon Michael Kirby AC CMG, will also be giving a special message.
Join the online celebration which is open to all in the legal profession, including students, friends and family of those who have been or are to be admitted in 2020 'on the papers'.
Please note: Closer to the date, all registered attendees will be sent a Microsoft Teams link to tune in to the live event.
Click here to register.
Dear Essoign Club Members,
We are open daily from 7:00am – till late.
Breakfast – see our Breakfast Menu here for dine-in or takeaway.
Lunch – available for dine-in, take away or delivery.
Lunch Dine-In – see our A La Carte Menu here for dining in.
Bar – open till late with light snacks available.
Come in and enjoy all your favourites, wine or something higher up the bar shelf.
Grab a snack or some lunch in the Cafe, or come in and enjoy our new A La Carte Lunch Menu.
All of us at the Essoign Club look forward to having you all back in the Club to continue sharing stories, laughs and giving support to all fellow members.
We appreciate your ongoing support and hope to see you in the Club soon.
Electronic document lodgement, known as eDocs, is being implemented at both Courts across Victoria from November through to January 2021. This is a preliminary first step being introduced as part of a broader new case management system that will be rolled out over the next few years. eDocs includes all jurisdictions across MCV and ChCV, excluding Child Protection. As well as responding to COVID-19 challenges impacting court operations, the eDocs Portal facilitates more timely and efficient interactions with the two courts by enabling legal practitioners and other external users to:
- Submit and manage case documents electronically
- View, track and download documents when needed
- Receive email notifications and updates when documents have been progressed, and
- Lodge payments and process refunds online (where relevant).
eDocs has a staged rollout process. Most forms you use to interact with the courts are included in the first release of eDocs. There are a small number of forms that are not included in the initial eDocs release, and may be included in future releases.
As part of the eDocs Portal enrolment process, Court Services Victoria is creating eDocs Portal user accounts for all external parties to get you up and running in the new system.
The Courts will be in touch to obtain information to create your user account(s), on your behalf.
In the meantime, if you have any questions, view the Frequently Asked Questions here.
On 31 October, the Family Court of Australia and Federal Circuit Court of Australia implemented a new form – the Notice of Child Abuse, Family Violence or Risk.
The form harmonises the approach taken to risk notification in the Family Court of Australia and the Federal Circuit Court of Australia (the Courts).
The new form will replace and consolidate the three existing prescribed forms of the Courts:
- Notice of Risk
- Notice of Child Abuse, Family Violence or Risk of Family Violence (Current Case), and
- Notice of Child Abuse, Family Violence or Risk of Family Violence (Application for Consent Orders).
while ensuring the Courts’ mandatory obligation to report allegations of child abuse, family violence or risks of child abuse or family violence is being fulfilled pursuant to sections 67Z – 67ZBB of the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth). The new form will assist in ensuring that families and their children receive appropriate and targeted intervention in the family law system.
The new form must be completed by all parties filing an Initiating Application, Response or Application for Consent Orders where a parenting order is sought from 31 October 2020.
The new form should be eFiled (along with other documents) wherever possible using the Commonwealth Courts Portal.
The form is available on both Family Court of Australia’s website here and Federal Circuit Court of Australia’s website here.
The International Bar Association (IBA) has embarked on a global project aimed at addressing the mental wellbeing of legal professionals around the world. To lead this work, IBA President Horacio Bernardes Neto has convened the IBA Wellbeing Taskforce, led by IBA Bar Issues Commission Officers, with assistance from the IBA Legal Policy & Research Unit
The key initial phase of the project consists of two global surveys – one for individual lawyers, the other for law firms and other legal institutions, including bar associations, law societies and in-house legal departments.
The surveys are available to both IBA members and non-members, and can be completed in English or Spanish. The surveys are also anonymous, and take approximately ten minutes to complete.
Click here to complete the survey.
On 22 October, the Victorian Legal Services Board + Commissioner announced the seven successful recipients of its 2020 grants program.
The funding is for projects that help ordinary and vulnerable Victorians access simple and affordable legal support services.
More information about the grants and a video that introduces the recipients and the work they do to improve access to justice is available here.
Resources
The Digital Bar Library provides access here to certain licensed resources, structured for ease of access.
In addition to that collection, publishers have made many titles available gratis during COVID restrictions. These are available here.
If you would like help accessing the content you need, or have a research query that you’d like assistance with, please fill in a library request form here.
The Library has launched its 2020-25 Strategic Plan. Please read about its truly digital library service here.
Events
The Library has a number of events coming up. You are welcome to register for any of the following sessions:
A new team of high-profile lawyers, including the current head of the NSW Law Reform Commission, has been chosen to lead the body that regulates lawyers in both NSW and Victoria.
On 27 October, NSW Attorney General Mark Speakman and Victorian Attorney-General Jill Hennessy welcomed the new appointees to the Legal Services Council, including new Chairperson Alan Cameron AO.
More information about the team’s appointees is available here.
The Sentencing Advisory Council has just released updated higher courts sentencing statistics on SACStat, the Council’s online statistical database here.
Counting rules – The new data includes the more than 200 higher courts offences for which at least 10 charges were sentenced in Victoria’s County and Supreme Courts over the five years to 30 June 2019.
New offences – Offences included in SACStat for the first time include:
- knowingly possess child abuse material
- home invasion
- aggravated carjacking, and
- accessory to murder.
Magistrates’ Court – SACStat also presents sentencing data for approximately 500 offences sentenced in the Magistrates’ Court of Victoria over the three years to 30 June 2019.
Guides to use:
- Ready reference – Designed to be printed, the two-page SACStat User Guide includes an at-a-glance summary of the counting rules. The guide is available here.
- Comprehensive guides – detailed resources on using, interpreting, and referring to SACStat are available from the SACStat home page as: How to Use SACStat, Technical Notes and Glossary.
Online training – A new Introduction to Sentencing Statistics workshop is almost ready for delivery online via Zoom. Free, public sessions will be scheduled no later than early 2021. Free sessions for your organisation can also be arranged by negotiation for later in 2020 or early in 2021. This activities-based session will:
- improve participants’ ability to find and interpret the Victorian sentencing statistics on our website
- demonstrate the interactivity and data tools available, and
- showcase the range of available data, including but not limited to SACStat.
On 27 October, the Sentencing Advisory Council released a report on sentencing outcomes for image-based sexual abuse offences in Victoria in the four years to 30 June 2019.
Key findings included:
- 54% of cases involving an image-based abuse offence were related to family violence, especially in cases involving actual and threatened distribution of intimate images (offences that came into effect in 2014)
- the number of sentenced cases involving an image-based abuse offence increased from 25 in 2014–15 to 91 in 2018–19, and
- the most common sentencing outcomes for image-based abuse offences were community correction orders (27%), imprisonment (22%) and fines (19%).
Based on the Council's findings and consultations, the report raises three main policy concerns that may warrant further exploration:
- that sentences for these offences are low compared to the available maximum penalties and the severe harm that can be associated with serious instances of image-based abuse, especially in the context of coercive control
- that Victoria's image-based abuse offences are summary offences, unlike most jurisdictions, which limits police search powers, and
- that most image-based abuse is not reported to police, suggesting a need for greater community awareness of these offences.
The factsheet, report and launch video are all available on the Council's website here.
On 22 July 2020, the Bar was notified that Mr Steven Weill had been reappointed by the Victorian Legal Services Board as the Manager to the sole practitioner law practice of Rainer Ellinghaus trading as Law Offices of Ellinghaus & Lindner.
Please be advised that the appointment of Mr Weill as Manager terminated on 22 October 2020.
If you have any questions about this matter, please contact Reshma Pickering on 03 9679 8048 or email rpickering@lsbc.vic.gov.au.
Housing, Homelessness and Human Rights in Australia
The Castan Centre for Human Rights Law, together with Better Governance and Policy presents this Zoom webinar on Housing, Homelessness and Human Rights in Australia on Monday 9 November, 5:00pm–6:30pm.
Adequate housing is essential for human survival with dignity. Without a right to housing, many other basic human rights will be compromised. Yet for several decades in Australia, increasing numbers of people have found themselves without secure housing or in significant housing stress.
Successive governments have failed to make the investment and policy shifts needed to address this wicked problem. What if we considered homelessness not as an unsolvable welfare problem affecting a stigmatised group, but as a human rights breach, which our governments are responsible to resolve?
The panel discussion will consider housing as a human right and what this means for ending homelessness in Australia.
Click here to learn more about the panellists and to register.
National Commercial Law Seminar Series: Model defamation Provision Amendments 2020 - much needed reform or missed opportunity?
The webinar, on Wednesday 11 November at 5:15pm, will examine the Model Defamation Provision Amendments 2020 that have been approved by the Council of Attorneys-General and are expected to be enacted by each of the States and Territories in the coming months.
Speakers are:
- The Hon Justice Michael Wheelahan, Judge, Federal Court of Australia
- Georgina Schoff QC, Barrister, Victorian Bar
- Justin Quill, Partner, Thomson Geer
- Nicholas Pullen, Partner, HWL Ebsworth
Click here to register.
Launch of the Castan Centre’s report ‘Use of Force in Detention and Other Closed Environments’
This launch of the Castan Centre's report ‘Use of Force in Detention and Other Closed Environments’ is on Thursday 19 November, 4:45–6:00pm.
The report addresses concerns for the wellbeing, dignity and rights of persons in closed environments by reviewing relevant legal frameworks in light of international human rights standards. The report contains our recommendations for critical reforms needed to meet Australia's international human rights law obligations, and we highlight some additional concerns arising from the COVID-19 pandemic.
We focus specifically on (a) aged care homes; (b) disability care homes; (c) mental health facilities; (d) prisons; (e) juvenile detention centres; and (e) immigration detention centres.
A panel of experts from the above sectors are invited to discuss the report’s findings from the perspective of their respective sectors, followed by a Q&A session with questions from the audience. Click here to learn more and register.
On 28 November, 9:00am–4:30pm (AEST), ADHD Foundation will be hosting a ‘first of its kind in Australia’ live broadcast conference, bringing together experts across mental health, education, justice and law from Australia and the United Kingdom.
The virtual conference aims to inform and raise awareness around the realities of ADHD, conduct disorders, substance abuse, related conditions and their management, whilst calling for a positive change within the Youth Justice System.
Click here to learn more.
Click here to register.
In October 2020, Francis Gurry concluded 35 years of service with the World Intellectual Property Organization - the last 12 as Director-General.
His achievements with WIPO include the design and implementation of the domain name dispute resolution system, the Beijing and Marrakesh copyright treaties, and the establishment of on-going programs on IP data collection and analysis, the world digital market, the challenges raised by artificial intelligence, and implementation of the Development Agenda.
This webinar on Wednesday 25 November, 6:00–7:30pm, features a free-flowing and candid discussion with Andrew Christie and Michael Caine, Dr Gurry will reflect on his 35 years of work within the United Nation’s multilateral system - and what the future holds for IP.
Click here to learn more and to register.
On Tuesday 10 November, 9–10:00am (GMT), LAWASIA and the Law Society are hosting a free webinar that will discuss the future of UK-Singapore collaboration after the pandemic - what future partnerships may look like, opportunities for UK businesses, and what ‘building back better’ might mean in the legal sector.
Click here to learn more and to register.
‘Indigenous employment’ is a growing, vital discipline within the employment and diversity, inclusion, and human resources landscapes but there are two glaring omissions – there is a notable lack of research that asks Indigenous people what they want and need from workplaces in order to flourish, and what is available has been primarily informed by non-Indigenous voices. To address this gap, DCA and the UTS Jumbunna Institute for Indigenous Education and Research created the Gari Yala project, which means ‘speak the truth’ in Wiradjuri language, to gain an understanding of the diversity of Indigenous workers’ experiences firsthand. On Tuesday 17 November at 2:00–3:30pm, the findings of this project will be released and followed by a panel discussion.
To view this webinar, you’ll need to be a member of Diversity Council Australia. To become a member, please register here and we will forward you the login instructions. You will need to use your VicBar email address. Current members of DCA can learn more about this webinar and register here.
The Australian Bar Review is a highly regarded law journal produced by the Australian Bar Association and facilitates scholarly discussion of current issues in legal doctrine and procedure throughout Australia. Papers dealing with a national perspective of a topic are preferred, but papers of particular interest to a state or territory are not excluded from consideration. If a paper focuses on the legislation of one jurisdiction it should also include, in the text or a footnote, references to interstate equivalents. Professor the Hon. Clyde Croft AM SC is seeking submissions from members of the Victorian Bar. Senior, mid-tier and junior members are all welcome to contribute – the editorial staff are keen to foster the next generation of leaders of the Bar, as well as to acknowledge the expertise of the senior generation.
For submission guidelines and to submit an article, please visit the website here. More information is also available in the Note to Contributors here. If you have any queries about submissions, you may contact Professor Croft via email.
Deadline for the next issue:5pm, 12th November 2020