2nd Access to Justice and the Role of the Bar Associations and Law Societies in Asia Conference

On 25-26 August, 2010, the Law Council co-hosted, with the Indonesian National Lawyers Association (PERADI), the 2nd Access to Justice and the Role of the Bar Associations and Law Societies in Asia Conference in Brisbane.

Approximately 30 delegates attended the invitation only Conference, representing 12 peak legal professional bodies throughout Asia, including Australia. The Conference was extremely successful and the Law Council wishes to acknowledge the generous contributions of the Queensland Law Society and the Bar Association of Queensland. The Law Council also wishes to acknowledge the contribution of AusAID, which provided funding to assist 17 delegates from developing bars to attend the Conference.

The theme of the Conference was 'How do bar associations and lawyers uphold their own independence and that of the justice system?' The program focused around the theme of ‘independence' and was structured to ensure that a representative from each country presented a paper.

The Law Council's Access to Justice Committee was invaluable in developing the program together with the Secretariat and PERADI and the Chair of the Committee, Mr Mark Woods, was an excellent facilitator throughout the Conference.

A highlight of the Conference was an outstanding workshop on judicial independence conducted by Justice Fryberg from the Supreme Court in Queensland. Justice Fryberg identified, and clarified, the ‘essentials' for judicial independence and discussed these with the participants.

Comprehensive country reports were prepared by participants responding to questions on access and legal aid initiatives. A copy of these reports are available on request and will be accessible from the Law Council website soon.

At the conclusion of the Conference, Mr Woods oversaw the drafting of ongoing principles that were agreed to be shared by the participants regarding access to justice and the need for independence.

The next Conference will be held in 2012.

Conference Papers: