Tackling crime the smart way

Pauline Spencer was appointed as a Magistrate in 2006. She currently sits at Dandenong Magistrates’ Court, one of Victoria’s busiest mainstream courts.

Pauline previously worked as a lawyer in private practice, and in the community legal centre movement. Prior to her appointment, Pauline was the Executive Officer of the Federation of Community Legal Centres, the peak body for over 50 community legal centres in Victoria.

Pauline has an interest in solutions-focused sentencing practices, improved responses to family violence and improving connections between the court and the community. She is a member of the Advisory Group for the International Therapeutic Jurisprudence in the Mainstream.

Marlene is the former Corrective Services Commissioner for Queensland. She has worked across the breadth of probation, parole and prisons including as a forensic psychologist, General Manager and as Director of Prisons in Corrections Victoria. In Queensland she led a cultural approach to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander prisoners, a differentiated management approach to high risk and low risk offenders and prisoners, a focus on maximising low security for women in prison, and the strengthening of parole and probation capability.

Marlene has a Masters in Psychology and is currently completing a Masters in Law, focusing on human rights.

Rob Hulls is the former Victorian Labor attorney-general and deputy premier. As attorney-general, Rob instigated significant changes to Victoria’s legal system which saw the establishment of the state’s first Charter of Human Rights and reform to Victoria’s Upper House.

He established specialist courts in Victoria including for Victoria’s Indigenous community, for people with mental health issues, and for victims of family violence and introduced an open tender process for applicants to Victoria’s judiciary.

In October 2012 Rob was appointed adjunct professor at RMIT and was invited to establish the new Centre for Innovative Justice as its inaugural director. The Centre’s objective is to develop, drive, and expand the capacity of the justice system to meet and adapt to the needs of its diverse users.

Eddie Cubillo is an Aboriginal man with strong family links throughout the Northern Territory. His mother is of Larrakia/Wadjigan descent, and his father is Central Arrente. Eddie’s family has experienced the intergenerational effects of the policy of forced removal of children of mixed descent from their family and country.

In 2001 he obtained a Bachelor of Laws Degree and in 2002 he was admitted as a Barrister and Solicitor of the Supreme Court of the Northern Territory. In 2009 Eddie completed a Masters of Laws (International Law and International Relations) at Flinders University.

Eddie has over 20 years’ experience working at the grass roots of Aboriginal affairs. Eddie started his career working as a solicitor with the Northern Territory Legal Aid Commission, and went on to work as a solicitor for the Northern Territory Government. Eddie has also served as Chairperson of both the North Australian Aboriginal Justice Agency (NAAJA) and the Aboriginal Justice Advisory Committee (NT).

In 2010 Eddie was appointed the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner of the Northern Territory, and following his term he took on the role of Executive Officer with NATSILS in October 2012. As the Executive Officer he championed the rights of Indigenous Australians in a legal context. In 2015 Eddie was announced as the National Indigenous Legal Professional of the Year. 

Damien, a qualified lawyer, joined the ABC in 1996 as the producer of ABC Radio National’s Law Report and in 2001 became the presenter. In the past he has worked as a legal writer for the Victorian Equal Opportunity Commission and written for Australian Lawyer magazine.

Before his career in the media, Damien worked as a solicitor in various glass towers in Melbourne’s CBD and was a long-time volunteer solicitor at his local community legal centre in St Kilda.

Damien is fascinated by the inner workings of our legal system and by how individuals grapple with its complexities as they strive to achieve ‘justice’.