Malcolm D. Broun OAM QC FTIA BA (Hons) LLB CyC, Board Member and Secretary
Sally Nicholes, Board Member and Vice-Chair
Secretariat
The World Congress has organized four successful Congresses at international locations (Sydney in 1993, San Francisco in 1997, Bath in 2001, Cape Town in 2005). In addition, three Members of the Board, Justices Burr and Fowler and Mr Habermann were for many years on the Executive of the Family Law Section of the Law Council of Australia, the pre-eminent legal representation body in Australia. Justices Burr and Fowler were, at different times, Chairs of the Section. The Family Law Section of the Law Council of Australia holds biennual conferences which have the reputation of being the largest legal conferences in the southern hemisphere.
Each of the gentlemen referred to have played important roles in the development of these biennual conferences over two decades and each of them has been Chair of such conferences in their own States (Justice Burr in Adelaide, South Australia, Justice Fowler in Sydney, New South Wales, and Mr Michael Habermann at the Gold Coast Queensland). In addition, these three gentlemen were also inaugural Board Members of the Family Law and Family Rights Section of LawAsia and during their term of office organized international conferences for that body.
Justice Fowler is a former President of the Law Council of Australia and Justice Burr is a former President of the Law Society of South Australia. In those two latter roles, both were instrumental in organizing a number of significant national and state conferences.
Justice Burr is a former Member of the Board of Management of the Australian Institute of Family Studies, a position which he held for 6 years, and in that role he assisted in organizing and hosting international and domestic conferences.
Mr Habermann was a co-founder of the Family Law Practitioners Association of Queensland and its President for a number of years, and had an active involvement over a number of decades in organizing family law conferences for that association.
Malcolm Broun OAM QC was, with Justice Fowler, the co-editors of Australia’s leading Family Law reference work, “Broun and Fowler, Australian Family Law and Practice. Mr Broun is regarded as the father of family law advocacy in Australia. He is the founding president of the Family Law Practitioners Association of New South Wales and has been the outstanding contributor form the profession to post graduate education.
Ms Sally Nicholes is the Principal of a law firm in Melbourne, Australia which apart from its private practice in Family Law dedicates itself to promoting children’s rights by providing substantive pro bono legal services and assisting in projects to various not for profit organizations and foundations dedicated to children and associated interests groups involved in the support of the position of women and the disabled. Ms Nicholes was responsible for developing a project conducted by WC during the 4th World Congress in Cape Town linking enforcement officers of police departments in various parts of the world, NGO’s and lawyers working towards “best practices” in addressing the issue of child sex tourism. In addition to being a member of the Board of WC and CRI, Ms Nicholes is a Board Member of the International Social Services Australia (ISSA), the Lasallian Foundation and a Member of the Children and Youth Issues Committee of the Law Institute of Victoria.
The Hon. Justice Rodney Keith Burr AM
Board Member and Co-Chair
Street Address: Family Court of Australia, 3 Angas Street ADELAIDE SOUTH AUSTRALIA AUSTRALIA 5001
Postal Address: Family Court of Australia, GPO Box 9991 ADELAIDE SOUTH AUSTRALIA AUSTRALIA 5001
Telephone number: (Judge’s Associate) Australia +61 8 82191637
Facsimile: (Judge’s Associate) +61 8 82191655
Email address:
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
The Hon. Rodney Burr was appointed a judge of the Family Court of Australia in 1998. Prior to that he had a distinguished legal career specialising in family law. He is a former President of the Law Society of South Australia, a former Chairman of the Family Law Section of the Law Council of Australia, and Co-convener of the, First, Second, Third and Fourth World Congresses on Family Law and Children’s Rights. He is a former Member of the Board of Management of the Australian Institute of Family Studies, a former Member of the Federal Attorney-General’s advisory Family Law Council, a former Member of the Board of the Law Foundation of South Australia, a former Chairman of the Family Law Section Law Society of South Australia and a former Member of the Steering Committee of Lawasia Family Law and Family Rights Section. He was also a former Member of the Board of Examiners of the Supreme Court of South Australia, a Judicial Fellow of the International Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers, a Member of the Family law Section of the American Bar Association and a Member of the International Law Sub-Committee of the ABA. The Hon Rodney Burr is a Recipient of United Nations Award for services to the International Year of the Family 1994. The Hon Rodney Burr was inducted as a Member of the Order of Australia in the Australia Day Honours List in January 2005 in recognition for his work for and on behalf of children in the establishment of the World Congress.
The Hon. Justice Stuart Fowler AM
Board Member and Co-Chair
Street Address: Family Court of Australia, Lionel Bown Bulding 97-99Goulburn Street SYDNEY NEW SOUTH WALES AUSTRALIA 2000
Postal address: as above
Telephone: (Judges Associate) +61 2 9217 7113
Facsimile: (Judges Associate) +61 2 9217 7138
Email address:
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
The Hon. Justice Stuart Fowler AM was appointed a judge of the Family Court of Australia on November 16 2007. Prior to that he was a senior Sydney solicitor specializing in the practice of family law and is Principal of Stuart Fowler and Partners in Sydney, Australia. He is the founding and current co-chairman of the World Congress on Family Law and Children’s Rights Inc, and a co-convenor of the First, Second, Third and Fourth World Congresses on Family Law and Children’s Rights. After holding a number of positions on the Executive of the Law Council of Australia, Australia’s peak council of Lawyers, he became President of the Council in 1994. In that role he represented Australian Lawyers at a number of international meetings including as a member of the Council of the Commonwealth Lawyers Association. He is a former chairman of the Family Law Section of the Law Council of Australia and the founding chairman of the Family Law and Family Rights Section of the Law Association for Asia and the Pacific (Lawasia ).
He was one of the first Australians to be elected as a Fellow of the International Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers. He is the Vice Chairman of the New South Wales Family Law Practitioners Association. He has served for many years as a member of the Family Law Committee of the Law Society of New South Wales. He was the inaugurator and a founding member of the board of the Australian Institute of Family Law Arbitrators and Mediators. He has served on the advisory committee on the accreditation of Family Law Specialists in NSW. He has been honoured by the United Nations in an Award naming him as a patron of the International Year of the Family for outstanding services to that year. He was Chairman of the Law Council’s Australian Rights Conference examining means to protect human rights in Metropolitan law. He has a strong belief in the ability of lawyers to use their skills to make a real contribution to the promotion and protection of human rights, particularly those of children.
Michael Habermann
Board Member and Treasurer
Street Address: Habermann & Associates Family Lawyers, Ground Level, 193 North Quay BRISBANE QUEENSLAND AUSTRALIA 4000
Postal Address: Habermann & Associates Family Lawyers, PO Box 13027 George Street BRISBANE QUEENSLAND AUSTRALIA 4003
Telephone: +61 7 3223 4000
Facsimile: +61 7 3223 4099
Email:
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Michael is a solicitor in private practise in his own firm, Habermann & Associates – Family Lawyers, in Brisbane, Queensland.
He has practised solely in the family law field for over 30 years and is an Accredited Family Law Specialist.
Michael was a foundation member of World Congress Inc and is its Treasurer. Among other positions held, he was on the Executive of the Family Law Section of the Law Council of Australia for 10 years, on the Executive of the Australian Institute of Family Law Arbitrators and Mediators for 5 years, was a foundation member of the Family Law Practitioner’s Association (Queensland) and its President for 6 years, and he has been on many committees of the Queensland Law Society.
Michael’s memberships include: ABA (Family Law Section), IAML, IBA, Union Internationale Des Advocats, and the Family Law and Family Rights Section of LAWASIA.
Malcolm D. Broun OAM QC FTIA BA (Hons) LLB CyC
Board Member and Secretary
Street Address: Edmund Barton Chambers, Level 44 MLC Centre, Martin Place SYDNEY NSW 2000
Postal Address: as above
Telephone: +61 2 9220 6100
Facsimile: +61 2 9232 3949
Email:
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Malcolm began practise at the NSW Bar in Australia in 1959. He was appointed Queen's Counsel 1982. He has practised extensively in the High Court of Australia, the NSW Court of Appeal, the Full Court of the Family Court of Australia and the Supreme Court of NSW Equity Division. He has been President of the NSW Family Law Practitioners Association. He is Chairman of Lawasia general practise section and a Member of the Organising Committee of the World Congress since its inception, including particularly papers committee for Sydney 1993, San Francisco in 1997 and Bath in 2001. Malcolm has organised international family law and Law Asia conferences in Hawaii, London, Vienna, Hong Kong, Fiji, India and Beijing. He has acted as a consultant to the Parliamentary Committee on Family Law.
Sally Nicholes
Board Member and Vice-Chair
Street address: Nicholes Family Law, Level 3, 224 Queen Street, MELBOURNE VICTORIA AUSTRALIA 3000 Postal Address: as above
Telephone: +61 3 9670 4122
Fax: +61 3 3967 0512
Email:
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Sally Nicholes works at Nicholes Family Lawyers practising in all aspect of family law; with a specialist expertise in international Family law and complex property proceedings.
Sally also acts for the Department of Human Services in their delegated capacity as State Central Authority in Victoria for implementing the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction(the Child Abduction Convention)
Sally is a member of the Law Institute of Victoria and an active participant in the LIV's International Steering Committee and Children and Youth Issues Committee.
Sally has published in family law in the LIV Journal, Family law Journal, Melbourne University law review, and has presented papers at international forums on Australia's obligation under various international treaties including the Inter-country adoption Convention and Child Abduction Convention.
Sally has spoken and participated in resolutions reached various Best Practice Forums for the Child Abduction Convention such as those runs by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children in Alexandria, USA.
Secretariat
The Australian Secretariat for World Congress is:
Ms Gail Fowler, Capital Conferences Pty Limited
Postal Address: PO Box 253 CHURCH POINT NEW SOUTH WALES AUSTRALIA 2015
Telephone: (Australia) +61 2 9999 6577
Facsimile: (Australia)+61 2 9999 5733
Email:
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
