13th Austin Asche Oration delivered by Dr Anna Cody

The Austin Asche Oration honours the service of The Hon. Austin Asche AC QC to the people of the Northern Territory and his contribution to the law, tertiary education and to the community.

In 2024, Charles Darwin University will proudly host the 13th Austin Asche Oration. We are honoured to welcome Dr Anna Cody, Sex Discrimination Commissioner, who will deliver this year’s Oration which will be titled, “Gender equality and protection for LGBTIQ+ communities: the role of law and strategies for change”

In Australia we do not have a Human Rights Act, and thus rely on the continuing evolution of law, through legislation and the common law in order to ensure that new ways of including all in our society, and ensuring diverse perspectives, are included and reflected in the law.

While our legal profession, including its leadership, is not reflective of the diversity of our broader community, there are projects and approaches to the law which can provide an avenue for ensuring that those who are most disadvantaged in our society have their ideas and approaches reflected in the law. This speech will discuss concepts of access to justice in a full sense, exploring our legal profession, concepts of intersectionality and some green shoots for expanding how we practise law.

Host or Publisher Charles Darwin University