About us The Indigenous Law Centre was previously the Aboriginal Law Research Unit which was established at University of New South Wales on 23 April, 1981.  This was the year the Aboriginal Law Bulletin (Indigenous Law Bulletin) was born.  Emeritus Professor Garth Nettheim was the first chairman of the Unit.  The origins however go back to early 1970 when the first Aboriginal legal service was established.  Professor Hal Wootten was its first President and he operated the ALS from the Law School in its early years.  When the Whitlam government finally funded Aboriginal Legal Services, the ALS’s found their time taken up with criminal representation and had no time for law reform advocacy.  Thus UNSW Faculty of Law members found themselves still being contacted to give advice on legal issues such as land rights claims, environment law and administrative law matters.  A small group of academics – Professor Garth Nettheim, Richard Chisholm, Pat O’Shane and Neil Rees worked to establish a “back-up centre” or legal research centre that could assist the frontline Aboriginal Legal services and Aboriginal Land Councils.  Thus in 1986 the Aboriginal Law Research Unit became the Aboriginal Law Centre.  The work of the ILC has been important to the Indigenous community and has been involved in High Court cases such as Koowarta v Bjelke-Peterson (1982) 153 CLR 168, Mabo v Queensland [No 2](1992) 175 CLR 1 and international indigenous rights advocacy such as the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.  The Indigenous Law Centre has become an integral part of the life of the Faculty of Law. Megan Davis is the Director of the Centre and is a Senior Lecturer in the Faculty of Law, UNSW.   The Centre publishes two major journals the Australian Indigenous Law Review and the Indigenous Law Bulletin. Mission statement The goal of the Indigenous Law Centre is to contribute to the advancement of Indigenous peoples rights and social justice in Australia and internationally.   We aim to achieve this goal by conducting innovative  multi-disciplinary research on Indigenous legal issues and providing important legal resources for advocates, policy makers, researchers and others who will be able to effect better legal, policy and program outcomes for indigenous peoples. The ILC is based on core values of respect and excellence: Demonstrating respect for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures Strive for excellence in our work Effective dissemination of high quality information about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander legal issues Fostering a respectful working environment Promoting Human Rights Commitment to reconciliation between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australia  Our objectives are to: To conduct legal research into Indigenous peoples and the law, emphasising the core ILC areas of research and publish and disseminate ILC research throughout Australia and internationally; To publish the Indigenous Law Bulletin and the Australian Indigenous Law Review To participate in national and international law and policy discussion and debate about Indigenous peoples and the law To develop curricula and teaching materials on domestic and international Indigenous legal issues and encourage and foster student research in domestic and international Indigenous legal issues.   Community legal education. Core areas of research: Indigenous peoples and public law: Focuses on legal issues related to the recognition of Indigenous rights and constitutional reform; extra parliamentary representation of Indigenous peoples; stolen wages; “democracy” and Indigenous peoples; intellectual property reform; the nexus between public law reform and health; human rights impact of climate change on Indigenous communities. Indigenous peoples and international law: Focuses on Indigenous legal issues in international law; United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples; Indigenous peoples advocacy at the UN; UN human rights treaties, treaty bodies and indigenous specific jurisprudence; Convention on the Rights of the Child and Indigenous children; Indigenous peoples, trade and WTO; Indigenous peoples and WIPO. Indigenous women and Australian democracy: A study of how Indigenous women fare in contemporary democracies, in particular Aboriginal women in Australian democracy; Indigenous women’s issues and Australian public institutions; Aboriginal women and the legal system; Aboriginal women, human rights and aboriginal law; Indigenous women and the right to self-determination; Indigenous women and extra-parliamentary representative structures.