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Law firm offers free development seminars to support government lawyers

Award-winning Australian law firm Gadens is hosting a series of free professional development seminars across the subjects of tech, duty of care, and pro-bono work for government lawyers to earn their full Continuing Professional Development points.

Jul 14, 2021, updated Jul 14, 2021

The event, held between 19 July to 23 July, will allow government and public sector lawyers to earn their full Continuing Professional Development points over a series of 10 seminars.

The seminars run over five days with two presentations per day and are offered for free to public sector lawyers from across Australia in Gadens’ fourth annual legal update for government lawyers.

Gadens Partner Lionel Hogg said that the event will include both online and in-person seminars following the success of last year’s online programming.

“Last year over 2.5 thousand people registered for Gadens’ Legal Update for Lawyers and this year we hope to do even better,” he said.

“We will be offering over 10 hours of content specifically curated for Government Lawyers leveraging off Gadens’ extensive practice in all areas, free of charge and streamed online.”

For more information or to register for Gadens’ Government Lawyer Legal Update 2021, click here. 

This year’s speakers include prominent subject matter experts from the academy, law reform and other professional services, covering all core CPD requirements and addressing a wide range of current legal challenges for the public sector, including:

Duties of care owed by public authorities

Examines the nuanced obligations of public authorities to individuals, as opposed to the public at large, adversely affected by their acts and omissions.

Using technology for better legal outcomes

Technology aids for lawyers have moved from generic applications to targeted solutions that maximise the utility of sheer processing power. A panel of experts regularly applying a variety of innovative solutions will discuss how public sector lawyers can better use technology, proactively and reactively, to improve compliance, decision-making and enforcement.

Penalties in government contracts

Government contracts are not immune from application of the penalties doctrine. Indeed, many agreements entered into by governments seek to exact a pound of flesh in the public interest.  This session will navigate the modern operation of the penalties doctrine and how contracts can be challenged for breach or drafted to maximise compliance.

Witness preparation

This session examines some of the practicalities and challenges of preparing public sector witnesses to give evidence before courts, royal commissions, and integrity bodies.

Principles-based regulation

This panel session brings together a critical law reformer, a leading legal academic and a regulatory lawyer to discuss what these concepts might mean and how best industry and regulators can practically approach the challenges.

Pro-bono in the public sector

The session will consider the conduct of pro bono legal work by public sector lawyers, including: challenges in the conduct of international pro bono work – a case study; ‘new’ areas of work for pro bono lawyers and partnering with the private sector; strategies for the successful conduct of a pro bono matter and practice.

Use of public land assets

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This session will consider the key commercial, legal and process risks in common government land transactions, strategies to mitigate, minimise or share risks, and how to positively utilise land assets even when they are affected by legacy problems, adverse site conditions or community expectations.

The practice and ethics of nudging

In this session, a leading behavioural economist with deep experience working with government joins us to examine the science and practice of nudging interventions through the prism of the lawyer’s view on power, transparency, accountability, and ethics.

A refresher on boilerplate clauses

This session unpacks the role and importance of typical boilerplate clauses, including those unique to government contracts.

10 recent cases all government lawyers should know

A survey of 10 important cases over the last year, covering constitutional, administrative, private law, governance and enforcement issues, and what they mean for government.


All sessions will be live streamed with Q&A. You can also register to attend most sessions in-person if you are in Brisbane.

In-person places are available on a first-come, first-served basis and include a light luncheon.

This is a free seminar open to lawyers working for government at all levels, regulators, other public sector agencies and government owned corporations.

For more information or to register for Gadens’ Government Lawyer Legal Update 2021, click here. 

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