Speech given by Glenn Ferguson, President, Law Council of Australia at the 2010 National Access to Justice and Pro Bono Conference

Transcription

1 Welcome Speech Speech given by Glenn Ferguson, President, Law Council of Australia at the 2010 National Access to Justice and Pro Bono Conference 27 August 2010 GPO Box 1989, Canberra ACT 2601, DX 5719 Canberra 19 Torrens St Braddon ACT 2612 Telephone Facsimile Law Council of Australia Limited ABN

2 I would like to acknowledge the traditional owners of the land on which we meet and pay my respects to their elders, both past and present. On behalf of the Law Council of Australia, it gives me great pleasure to welcome you all to the 2010 National Access to Justice and Pro Bono Conference, jointly hosted by the Law Council, Queensland Law Society and National Pro Bono Resource Centre. In particular, allow me to welcome: The Honourable Paul de Jersey AC, Chief Justice of Queensland The United States Ambassador to Australia His Excellency Mr Jeffrey L. Bleich The Honourable Justice Margaret McMurdo, President of the Queensland Court of Appeal Dr John Falzon, Chief Executive Officer of the St Vincent de Paul Society National Council Professor Frank Brennan, Professor of Law in the Public Policy Institute at the Australian Catholic University Esther Lardent, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Pro Bono Institute, Washington DC Mark Dreyfus QC, Member of Parliament for Isaac Larissa Waters, Australian Greens Senator, Queensland Peter Stapleton, Chair, National Pro Bono Resource Centre Peter Eardley, President, Law Society of Queensland Rochard Douglas SC, President, Bar Association of Queensland. Before I go into further detail about the purpose of this conference, I have been asked to run through some general housekeeping information Welcome Speech.docx Page 2

3 You should have received a detailed daily program when you registered and this program outlines session room locations. If you have not received a copy, please go to the registration desk for collection. In order to reduce our carbon footprint for paper distribution, papers for the conference, where received, have been ed and also distributed on a usb stick today. Any presentations not received will be ed to delegates after the conference. As a courtesy to speakers and delegates, please ensure your mobiles are switched off or in silent mode. In relation to question time, we ask that questions are directed to the roving microphone. Could I please ask that delegates raise their hands when asking a question and wait for a Law Society staff member to hand you a microphone before proceeding with the question. For delegates who have not already purchased a ticket to tonight s conference dinner with guest speaker the Hon Justice Lex Lasry QC, please see Law Society staff at the registration desk to purchase a ticket. Thank you. Now can I move on to the purpose of the conference. All Australians, regardless of their means, must have access to legal services. Sadly, that is not the case. Cut-backs to funding in the legal assistance sector mean that many citizens find it difficult, if not impossible, to access the legal services to which they should be entitled. It has been well-documented that, since 1996, Commonwealth funding for legal aid has plummeted in real terms. And consecutive Federal Governments have done little to address this decline. Access to justice in this country is clearly at the crossroads and this issue is what this conference primarily seeks to address. As the peak national legal body in this country, the Law Council is extremely pleased to take part in this event Welcome Speech.docx Page 3

4 We view it as an opportunity for lawyers, both national and international, and other participants in the justice sector to come together to discuss the way legal aid and pro bono work is undertaken and how its co-ordination and delivery can be improved. Access to justice is, of course, an issue close to the hearts of lawyers. Through pro bono work, the legal profession makes an enormous contribution to society, ensuring that economically and socially disadvantaged Australians receive legal assistance where possible. Australian Bureau of Statistics figures show that the legal profession contributed more than 96,000 hours of pro bono work in the 2008/09 financial year. That s the equivalent of about 4000 days of work undertaken at no cost. However, as generous as this contribution is, let me stress that the Law Council has long advocated that pro bono work should never be viewed as a substitute for a properly funded legal assistance sector. And right now the funding being allocated to this sector is well short of what is required. Over the next two days you will have an opportunity to hear from guest speakers from Australia and abroad as they address a broad range of issues relevant to access to justice. Importantly, delegates will be given the opportunity to engage in discussions, exchange information and opinions and network with other professionals. I know we will use this time very productively. I would like to thank the sponsors of this conference - the Commonwealth Attorney-General s Department, the Law Council s Family Law Section, and law firms Allen Arthur Robinson, Clayton Utz, DLA Phillips Fox, Freehills, Gilbert+Tobin, Henry Davis York, Mallesons Stephen Jacques and Minter Ellison. Thank you to all of you for your wonderful support. Without it, this conference would not have been possible. I would also like to congratulate members of the Conference Organising Committee, who have worked tirelessly in recent months to Welcome Speech.docx Page 4

5 secure the guest speakers, coordinate the business program and put together a first-class event. Can I make special mention of the Queensland Law Society s Professional Development team for the wonderful work they have done in organising the conference. Well done to all of you. So, on behalf of the Law Council, please enjoy the next two days. Access to justice is an important issue for all Australians and, as I mentioned, we re at the crossroads right now. The decisions we make and pathways we take from this moment onwards are crucial in improving access to justice for so many disadvantaged Australians. INTRODUCE WELCOME TO COUNTRY AND WELCOME DANCE It is now my pleasure to invite Uncle Eddie and the Nunukul Yuggera Aboriginal Dancers to come forward to offer the Welcome to Country and Welcome Dance. THANK UNCLE EDDIE AND DANCERS AND THEN INTRODUCE The Hon Paul De Jersey, Chief Justice of Queensland. Thank you. It is now my great pleasure to introduce the Honourable Paul De Jersey, Chief Justice of Queensland who will offer the Conference Opening Address. While I am sure the Chief Justice needs no introduction, particularly here in the State of Queensland, I will of course provide one. His Honour joined the Queensland Bar in 1971 and was appointed Queen s Counsel in At the Bar his Honour practised in the area of commercial law and also appeared in a number of constitutional cases before the High Court and the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council. His Honour was appointed a Judge of the Supreme Court of Queensland in 1985, was the Commercial Causes Judge between 1986 and 1989 and was appointed Chief Justice in During his judicial career his Honour was also a Judge of the Mental Health Tribunal between 1994 and 1996, President of the Industrial Welcome Speech.docx Page 5

6 Court of Queensland between 1996 and 1997 and the Chairman of the Queensland Law Reform Commission during the same period. The Chief Justice has also held a number of extra judicial positions including chairing of the Queensland Constitutional Convention, Supreme Court Library Committee and Attorney-General's Consultative Committee on Computerised Legal Information Retrieval. His Honour is the recipient of the Australian Defence Medal, Centenary Medal, Companion of the Order of Australia and holds an Honorary Doctor of Laws from the University of Queensland. Chief Justice de Jersey has written extensively in the area of alternative dispute resolution and court resolution trends in commercial disputes and the roles and functions of the Supreme Court and the judiciary and has given countless speeches during his judicial career. So please join me in welcoming the Honourable Paul de Jersey, Chief Justice of Queensland. ON CONCLUSION OF THE HON PAUL DE JERSEY S SPEECH - THANK HIM and INVITE TO THE STAGE AMBASSADOR BLEICH and JUSTICE McMURDO. Thank you Chief Justice. I would now like to invite His Excellency Mr Jeffrey Bleich and the Honourable Justice McMurdo to the stage for the first plenary session of the conference. Disclaimer: This document remains the property of the Law Council of Australia and should not be reproduced without permission. Please contact the Law Council to arrange a copy of this speech. Vanessa Kleinschmidt Director, Communications and Stakeholder Relations m e. vanessa.kleinschmidt@lawcouncil.asn.au Welcome Speech.docx Page 6