Royal Commission welcomes new appointment

Today the Minister for Families and Social Services, Senator the Hon Anne Ruston MP, announced the appointment of a seventh Commissioner, the Hon Roslyn Atkinson AO, to the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability.

Chair of the Royal Commission, the Hon Ronald Sackville AO QC, welcomed the new appointment.

"Commissioner Atkinson brings to the Royal Commission a wealth of experience in law reform, human rights and anti-discrimination law, and issues of injustice and inequality in Australia. She will be extraordinarily valuable member of the Disability Royal Commission," he said.

"A second Commissioner with extensive judicial experience will also give us significantly greater flexibility in how we plan and conduct the many hearings that will take place around the country over the course of the Disability Royal Commission."

Commissioner Atkinson was a Justice of the Supreme Court of Queensland from 1998 to 2018, and was co-editor of the Equal Treatment Bench Book of that court. She served as member (1992-94) and inaugural President of the Queensland Anti-Discrimination Tribunal (1994-97), Hearing Commissioner of the Human Rights and Equal Opportunities Commission (1994-97) and Chair of the Queensland Law Reform Commission (­2002-2014). Her Honour is a Member of the National Judicial College of Australia's National Indigenous Justice Committee. 

Commissioner Atkinson will attend the first public sitting of the Disability Royal Commission, will take place in Brisbane on Monday 16 September.

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