News
Father Frank Brennan to speak at Qld law conference
10th Feb 2017
Catholic priest and human rights lawyer Father Frank Brennan SJ AO will be the keynote speaker at the upcoming Australian Lawyers Alliance (ALA) annual Queensland Conference being held on the Gold Coast next week.
Father Brennan, recently appointed CEO of Catholic Social Services Australia, will speak on the change in community expectations around institutional child abuse, the Royal Commission's recommendations, the response from institutions and what this means for survivors.
The winner of the ALA’s prestigious Queensland Civil Justice Award will also be announced during the conference. This award recognises individuals or organisations who have displayed outstanding advocacy in their support for human rights and social justice in Queensland.
With issues such as public liability, medical negligence, workers compensation, and the NDIS on the agenda, members of the Queensland legal profession are strongly encouraged to attend this conference to stay abreast of the latest developments in these fields.
The two-day ALA Queensland State Conference is being held at the RACV Royal Pines Resort on the Gold Coast from Friday 17 February, 2017 from 8:30am.
ALA Queensland President Michelle James said the ALA Qld State Conference 2017 would be an outstanding networking opportunity for the nearly 250 personal injury, human rights and criminal law lawyers and other legal professionals who had already registered to attend.
Ms James said that this year’s conference had a packed program, demonstrating the commitment that the ALA has to the professional development of its more than 1,400 members.
“This year the Australian Lawyers Alliance’s Queensland Conference will focus on giving personal injury and compensation lawyers across Queensland the tools and knowledge they need to successfully seek justice for their clients,” Ms James said.
“Having Catholic Social Services Australia CEO Father Frank Brennan SJ AO as keynote speaker demonstrates the quality of this year’s conference and the issues to be discussed.”
Ms James said Father Brennan’s Keynote Address would discuss the ‘legal and social responses to the Royal Commission’.
“With hearings at the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse revealing the true number of people who deserve justice and the complexity of the issues involved, Father Brennan’s perspective on the issues will provide invaluable insights for anyone who attend,” Ms James said.
Other conference highlights will include:
- Sex Abuse Claims and Limitation of Actions – Past, Present and Future Developments – Dr Andrew Morrison RFD SC will discuss legislative responses to the Royal Commission into Institutional Abuse in light of the proposed reforms in Queensland.
- Class Action Regime, Queensland – Ready for Action – Charles Wilson, Inns of Court will discuss Queensland’s class action regime.
- Katrina Pedersen and Carolyn Howe of Shine Lawyers present Stuff They Don’t Teach You at Law School.
- Assessment of Damages for Overseas Claimants – Michael Lee, Vincents Chartered Accounts will cover the crucial issues lawyers need to consider when dealing with an injured client from overseas.
- Opting Out of Long-term Care– an investigation of when and where evidence matters with Gerard Mullins, Darrow Chambers.
- Alameddine v Glenworth Valley Horse Riding: ACL and Thinking Outside the Square – an in-depth case analysis by Laura Neil, Endeavour Chambers.
- NIIS and NDIS updates including the recent implementation of the motor accident and workplace NIIS schemes, delivered by Rod Hodgson, Maurice Blackburn.
- PLUS sessions on ethics, motor accident, public liability, workcover, medical negligence and TDP/Disability.
The conference attracts up to 10 CLE/CPD points and is attended by plaintiff and defendant lawyers as well as representatives of the various regulators and insurers.
The Australian Lawyers Alliance is a national, non-profit association that promotes justice, freedom and the rights of the individual.
The full conference program can be found here: http://www.lawyersalliance.com.au/documents/item/767
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Journalists and other media are encouraged to register and attend the conference.
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