Constitution in focus in law lecture
First published 31 July 2012
This year’s Mayo Lecture at James Cook University will examine the formal recognition of Indigenous Australians in the Australian Constitution.
The lecture, to be held next Thursday (August 9), will focus on the work and recommendations of the Expert Panel appointed by the Australian Government to consider this formal recognition.
Hosted by the JCU Law Students’ Society and the School of Law, the Mayo Lecture is held annually in memory of the late Mrs Marylyn Mayo, the first teacher of law at JCU, a senior lecturer in law and the inaugural Dean of the Law Faculty.
This year’s presenter is a prominent Australian lawyer, Mr Glenn Ferguson, Managing Director of Ferguson Cannon Lawyers.
Mr Ferguson is also a Past President of the Law Council of Australia, the peak national body representing the Australian legal profession, a Past President of Lawasia, the Law association for Asia and the Pacific, and a Past President of the Queensland Law Society.
The lecture is entitled Constitutional Recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples – Will We Ever Be Ready As A Nation?
Professor Stephen Graw, Head of the School of Law at JCU, said Mr Ferguson was ideally placed to provide an in-depth insight into the issues the Panel faced and its recommendations.
“Mr Ferguson was a member of both the Expert Panel and the Reference Group appointed to advise Reconciliation Australia in the lead up to a Referendum to amend the Constitution to provide formal recognition of the unique culture and heritage of Indigenous Australians and to prohibit racial discrimination,” he said.
The lecture is open to the public and is free of charge.
Background on Glenn Ferguson:
Glenn Ferguson is a Past President of the Law Council of Australia the peak national body which represents the legal profession nationally and internationally, a Past President of Lawasia, the Law association for Asia and the Pacific, and a Past President of the Queensland Law Society.
He is also a Senior Counsellor with the Queensland Law Society and has previously chaired the professional standards committee.
He is a Founding Fellow of the Australian Academy of Law, a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and a Fellow of the Australia and New Zealand College of Notaries.
He is Chair of the College of Law Queensland, a member of the Federal Attorney General’sInternational Legal Services Advisory Council and the Immigration MinistersAdvisory Board in relation to the regulation of migration agents.
The Queensland Premier selected him in 2004 to Chair Smart Exports Queensland. He has beenappointed by both Federal and State Governments to various advisory boards and task forces in the legal, migration and business sectors.
Mr Ferguson has also held or continues to hold a number of board positions in both the public and private sector in the insurance, superannuation, education, sport, charity and information technology areas including chairing a publicly listed company.
The Mayo Lecture has attracted many notable speakers over its 21 years of existence. They have included Sir Anthony Mason AC, KBE, Justice Michael Kirby AC, CMG, Chief Justice Paul de Jersey AC, Justice Margaret McMurdo AC, Justice Kerry Cullinane AM,Justice Stan Jones AO,
Justice Marcia Neave AO, Father Frank Brennan AO, SJ, Professor Caroline de Costa, Senator Bob Brown and the Hon. Robert McClelland.
Details of lecture:
James Cook University Law Students’ Society and the School of Law
Constitutional Recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples –
Will We Ever Be Ready As A Nation ?
Date: Thursday August 9, 2012.
Time: 6pm
Venue: Townsville Campus of JCU - building 45, room 001/002 (medical lecture theatre) video-linked to Cairns – building A3.2
JCU Media contact: Caroline Kaurila (07) 4781 4586 or 0437 028 175