Ceremonial sitting to welcome Judge Goodchild and Judge Lioumis

On 16 March 2023, Law Council President, Mr Luke Murphy, attended a ceremonial sitting at the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia in Sydney for the swearing-in of Judge Louise Goodchild and Judge Constantina (Dina) Lioumis. Mr Murphy presented an oral statement before the Court.

Read Speech here.

Law Council endorses new National Legal Aid report

On 27 March 2023, the Law Council endorses the findings within the PwC report The benefits of providing access to justice commissioned by National Legal Aid, and welcomes this body of work which will assist to build an evidence base for the challenges that we all know exist. 

The civil and family law services provided by Legal Aid Commissions are a bulwark against further hardship and marginalisation. Unfortunately, these services have remained undervalued and underfunded by consecutive governments,” Law Council of Australia President, Mr Luke Murphy said.

This report reinforces previous advocacy from many stakeholders, including the Law Council, for improved funding and highlights the value that investment in the legal assistance sector provides to the Australian community.

Read Media Release here.

Scoping the establishment of a federal judicial commission

The Law Council made a submission to the Attorney-General’s Department in response to its January 2023 discussion paper, Scoping the establishment of a federal judicial commission. The submission was informed by the Law Council’s 2020 Policy Statement, Principles underpinning a federal judicial commission, in addition to significant input from Constituent Bodies.

The submission emphasises that it is critical that there is a well-understood means of fairly and punctually addressing complaints directed to the federal judiciary in an independent and structured manner. At the same time, tailored resources, support and education must be provided to the federal judiciary in conjunction with such processes. The submission also demonstrates that while there is unanimous support for the establishment of a commission, reasonable minds across the legal profession differ in relation to some of the detailed structural elements of a commission. Further, the Law Council has acknowledged possible Constitutional constraints which may impact the membership of the commission.  

The Law Council will further consult with its Constituent Bodies, Sections and Advisory Committees to inform its engagement with the Australian Government as consideration of this significant reform progresses, which the Law Council has been advocating for since 2006.

Targeted review of offences for human trafficking, slavery and slavery like practices

The Law Council recently made a submission to the Attorney-General’s Department in response to its Discussion Paper inviting comment in relation to the targeted review of offences for human trafficking, slavery and slavery-like practices in Divisions 270 and 271 of the Criminal Code Act 1995 (Cth).

Human trafficking, including slavery, slavery-like practices and people- and organ-trafficking offences, are contrary to international law; often target highly vulnerable victims; and involve significant breaches of human rights. The Law Council has expressed strong support for all efforts to prevent such practices and has emphasised the importance of ensuring that Australia’s response to these issues should reflect international best practice and be consistent with Australia’s international legal and human rights obligations.

In its submission, bringing together expertise drawn from the Law Council’s National Human Rights and National Criminal Law Committees, the Law Council highlighted the factors impeding effective investigations and prosecutions of human trafficking and slavery offences. To reduce the barriers impeding effective resolution of these matters, the Law Council considers the role and functions of an independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner should include holistic consideration of improved victim care and support and support for law enforcement efforts and prosecutions. In this regard, a national compensation fund should be established to which survivors of modern slavery can apply and be granted an award irrespective of participation in criminal justice processes.

In relation to organ-trafficking, the Law Council reiterated its position that Australia should accede to the 2014 Council of Europe Convention against Trafficking in Human Organs and give due consideration to necessary amendments to the Criminal Code to implement the international obligations required to be introduced into domestic law. Furthermore, there should be further public consultation on the extent to which it may be appropriate to regulate organ transplant tourism.