JEC updates
Updates on Justice and Equity Centre events, work and community.
-
2021 Social Justice Dinner (reimagined!): thanks for your support
Thank you to all of our colleagues, supporters and friends who joined us for the 2021 Social Justice Dinner (reimagined!). Over 200 people gathered in satellite events across the country to celebrate a shared commitment to social justice and human rights, and tuned in at 8pm for an interactive program of speeches and presentations. The…
-
Mandatory blood borne virus testing: a threat to human rights and no guarantee of safety for workers
The NSW Government is proposing to introduce mandatory blood borne virus testing for people whose bodily fluids come into contact with police, corrections officers, doctors and nurses and other frontline workers. Blood borne viruses (BBVs) include HIV, Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C. People who refuse to comply with mandatory testing orders would face up to…
-
PIAC Forum: NAIDOC 2020 – In conversation with Yvonne Weldon
Join us for a very special zoom event in acknowledgement of NAIDOC Week 2020. Wiradjuri woman Kishaya Delaney from PIAC’s Towards Truth project will be in conversation with Wiradjuri woman and Chairperson of the Metropolitan Local Aboriginal Land Council, Yvonne Weldon, as they discuss Australia’s First Nations movements for change, and the confronting truth about Aboriginal deaths…
-
PIAC Climate and Energy Forum – 14 Oct
We must achieve deep and urgent systemic change across our economy and society to prevent catastrophic climate change. NSW has acknowledged this by committing to a net zero emission target by 2050. How do we make this transition in our energy system in a way that promotes and protects social justice and human rights? Join…
-
Statement on the Global Climate Crisis
Climate change caused by human activities is one of the most serious, far-reaching, and urgent challenges faced by people living in Australia and elsewhere. Climate change has, and will continue to increase both mean and extreme temperatures, as well as the frequency and severity of extreme weather events such as heatwaves, bushfires, floods and storms.…
-
2020 Social Justice Dinner
The Public Interest Advocacy Centre invites you to join us, with special guest speaker Ben Quilty and MC Julia Baird, at the 2020 Social Justice Dinner. The Social Justice Dinner is PIAC’s main fundraising event to support our work to create systemic change by tackling barriers to justice for people who are vulnerable and facing disadvantage. Guests…
-
Announcing PIAC’s new Principal Solicitors
We are delighted to announce the appointment of Camilla Pandolfini and Michelle Cohen as PIAC’s new co-Principal Solicitors, following the departure of Laura Lombardo. ‘Camilla and Michelle have significant experience driving successful strategic litigation at PIAC and both bring a depth of experience in achieving outcomes for clients and the community. We are looking forward…
-
Laura Lombardo appointed Principal Solicitor
We are delighted to announce Laura Lombardo has been appointed PIAC’s new Principal Solicitor, following the departure of Alexis Goodstone last month. ‘With a decade of litigation experience, Laura has a long history of providing legal assistance to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and people with disability. We’re thrilled that she will now be…
-
Police misuse of tasers
PIAC has successfully settled civil proceedings against NSW police and Juvenile Justice NSW on behalf of a young man who was tasered by NSW Police while handcuffed and lying face-down on the ground after falling on the stairs at Blacktown railway station. The case, which began in 2013, has raised serious questions about how the…
-
Jonathon Hunyor appointed new PIAC CEO
We are delighted that Jonathon Hunyor will be the new CEO of PIAC, replacing Edward Santow, who is leaving the organisation on 30 June to become the Australian Human Rights Commissioner. Jonathon comes to PIAC from the North Australian Aboriginal Justice Agency, where he has been the Principal Legal Officer for more than six years.…
-
Edward Santow, chief executive officer
Celebrating 30 years of PIAC Edward Santow is PIAC’s chief executive officer. Ed has overall responsibility for PIAC’s work, including defining and pursuing the organisation’s strategic vision and working with partner organisations. Ed has particular expertise in human rights, administrative and constitutional law, discrimination and anti-terrorism law. Ed is a Senior Visiting Fellow at the…
-
Celebrating PIAC’s 30th anniversary: an overview
The Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC) is an innovative and effective non-profit organisation that provides practical solutions to address disadvantage. It works co-operatively with government, the legal profession, individuals and communities, enabling positive change through advocacy, training, and skills development. The then NSW Attorney General, the Hon Frank Walker QC, formally launched PIAC on 29…
-
The launch of PIAC: from dream to reality
PIAC’s launch on 29 July 1982 by the then NSW Attorney General, Frank Walker QC was a significant moment in the history of Australian community legal services and public interest advocacy. The Law Foundation, established a decade earlier to meet broad goals of community legal education and the improvement of the legal system, had been…
-
Peter Cashman, PIAC’s first director, 1982 – 1987
Celebrating 30 years of PIAC Dr Peter Cashman was PIAC’s first director, from 1982 to 1987, and currently chairs the PIAC board. ‘However many lay claim to having brought about the conception of PIAC, I at least had the privilege of being present at the birth,’ he wrote in a letter to guests at PIAC’s…
-
Robin Banks, chief executive, 2004 – 2010
In June 2004, a former co-ordinator of the NSW Disability Discrimination Legal Centre, Robin Banks, became PIAC chief executive officer and director of the Public Interest Law Clearing House. Robin led PIAC for the next six years before she was appointed Tasmania’s Anti Discrimination Commissioner. Homelessness, unlawful detention of young people, human rights, Indigenous justice,…
-
Philanthropy Australia: Frontline sector leaders recognised in Australia Day Honours list 2025
JEC Board Member, Penny Gerstle AM received an Order of Australia for her long human rights and community health advocacy.