Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Justice Lawyer

About Moray & Agnew

Moray & Agnew is one of Australia’s leading specialist insurance law firms with over 700 employees nationally. We have offices in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Canberra, Newcastle, Perth and Cairns, and have an unrivalled reputation in our market. Over the last decade, the firm has tripled in size to support the growth of our Australian and international clients.

Moray & Agnew are proudly committed to fostering a flexible, inclusive and diverse environment for our employees. In 2020 we were named one of the 25 most attractive firms to work at in Australia, and with the fourth highest percentage of female Partners according to the AFR Law Partnership Survey as at July 2022, we were identified as Australia’s most female-friendly firm by the Australian Financial Review.

We are passionate about what we do and want you to be too. We value technical excellence and the ability to function independently or in a team. We offer a unique workplace culture and excellent opportunities to further your personal and professional development.

About PIAC

The Public Interest Advocacy Centre is a leading social justice law and policy centre. We build a fairer, stronger society by helping to change laws, policies and practices that cause injustice and inequality. On First Nations justice issues, we partner with Aboriginal organisations, bringing our strategic expertise to issues like child removals, over-policing and the need for truth-telling.

Culture & benefits of working with us

We celebrate diverse thinking and experiences. We encourage our employees to bring their true and authentic self to the workplace. To help support you in achieving this, we offer our employees a wide range of benefits and we are confident that you will find something to love at Morays:

• Flexible working arrangements to help you balance your work and personal commitments.
• Dress for your day because we trust our employees to make choices which appropriately represent the firm.
• Continuous learning and development programs to ensure that you are always being challenged, engaged and encouraged to grow.
• Health and wellness initiatives, including an Employee Assistance Program for yourself and your family, and corporate discounts at over 400 leading fitness and wellbeing brands across Australia.
• Paid parental leave policy, and in addition, we are now accredited as a Breastfeeding Friendly Workplace.
• Mentoring program to support your professional development.
• Diversity, inclusion and equality – we have a comprehensive Diversity and Inclusion policy, and a number of employee reference groups (LGBTIQA+, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander, Gender, Parents & Caregivers, Mature Workers, and Health & Wellbeing) to ensure that the firm continues to live its values.

Aboriginal &Torres Strait Islander Justice Lawyer – Secondment to Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC)

About the role

We are seeking a Lawyer with 0-3 years’ PAE to undertake public interest casework and legal policy and advocacy to advance PIAC’s priorities and strategy for working with First Nations people and communities. The role will be a two (2) year fixed term contract.

Reporting to the PIAC Principal Solicitor and working as part of PIAC’s strategic litigation team, the Lawyer will:

• Help identify barriers to justice and fairness facing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and communities, and implement legal and policy advocacy strategies to address those barriers.
• Provide legal assistance to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander clients, including undertaking strategic litigation under supervision to effect systemic change.
• Research and plan policy positions on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander justice issues.
• Contribute to the drafting of submissions, reports, articles and media releases to communicate PIAC’s policy positions on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander justice issues to decision-makers and the community.
• Support best practice at PIAC for working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander organisations, communities and clients.
• Support the successful implementation of PIAC’s Reconciliation Action Plan.
• Other duties as reasonably required. 

About you

To complement your strong legal skills, you will be a team player who enjoys problem solving. We are seeking an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander Lawyer with:

• Outstanding written and verbal communication skills
• Strong legal, technical and drafting skills
• The ability to deliver excellent client service
• The ability to work well under pressure to meet deadlines
• Maturity, initiative and good judgement

This position is only open to Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander people. It is intended as a special measure to promote substantive equality for the purposes of s8(1) of the Racial Discrimination Act 1975 (Cth), and the subject of an exemption granted under s126 of the Anti-Discrimination Act 1977 (NSW).

In the spirit of reconciliation Moray & Agnew acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to elders past, present and emerging and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.

If you require any adjustments to participate in our recruitment process, please let us know in your application.

Why You'll love working here

How to apply