Research Network: Mapping Justice

Mapping Justice

We are delighted to invite you to our final Research Network webinar for 2023, Mapping Justice. We will hear from Dr Hugh McDonald, Principal Researcher and Lynne Haultain, Executive Director at Victoria Law Foundation, and Richard Hodge, Director, Innovation & Service Experience at the Magistrates’ Court of Victoria.

In this session, Hugh and Lynne will present findings from Victoria Law Foundation’s Data Mapping Project.

This foundational and expansive work examines how administrative data is collected in the Victorian civil justice system: what data is available, its accuracy and consistency, how it’s used, and what needs to be done to maximise its utility.

The Project generated three reports focusing on key institutions: the legal assistance sector; courts and tribunals; and dispute resolution and complaint bodies.

We then wrote a fourth report, Calibrating Justice, which draws together the findings and implications from the first three.

One of the new innovations in Victoria is the establishment of a service centre for people with matters in the Magistrates’ Court.

Richard will join us to discuss this new service, its data, and what impact the service centre has had on court users.

Presenters

Dr Hugh McDonald

Hugh joined the Foundation in September 2019 as Principal Researcher.  

He previously worked at the Law and Justice Foundation of NSW, on several landmark access to justice and legal need projects.  

Throughout his career, he has worked closely with legal aid commissions, community legal centres, as well as state and federal governments, giving him a deep understanding of legal institutions and access to justice issues throughout Australia.  

Lynne Haultain

Lynne leads the Victoria Law Foundation and was instrumental in building the VLF research function.  

Over the last 25 years, she has been involved with shaping research and reports at a number of agencies, including the ACCC, the Victorian Ombudsman and the Victorian Law Reform Commission, and as an independent Chair on a Victorian Government inquiry. 

Richard Hodge

Richard is a leader in service excellence, with extensive experience in the design, delivery and change practices to support organisations to transform into digitally enabled, user-centre, service providers. An organisational capability enhancement professional with experience in overseeing projects and programs to modernise, recalibrate or accelerate organisational growth to achieve service excellence. Since 2020 Richard has won a state, national and international award for user-centred digital justice service design in the public sector. Richard leads the Magistrates’ Court of Victoria Service Centre which was recognised in June 2023 for its innovation, when it was awarded the Citizen-centred Service Design Award at the Institute of Public Administration Australia’s ‘Leadership in the Public Sector’ awards. The award recognises the MCV Service Centre as “an exemplar of innovation, demonstrable impact and inspirational delivery for the public sector and the Victorian community.” 

About the Research Network

The VLF Research Network connects the justice, community and academic sectors to enable knowledge sharing and encourage collaboration among those working on legal research and related to access to justice issues.

We hold events throughout the year showcasing exciting international and domestic access to justice and legal need developments.

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