The Chief Justice met local legal practitioners alongside the Law Institute of Victoria.
The Chief Justice visited Bendigo last week to meet local legal practitioners with the Law Institute of Victoria (LIV) and Victorian Legal Services Commissioner Fiona McLeay.
Chief Justice Richard Niall met with local Magistrates, toured ARC Justice at Loddon Campaspe Community Legal Centre and the local Victorian Legal Aid office.
“Legal practitioners are vital contributors to, and members of, their local communities,” he said.
“I think it’s important to see the law in action across the state as the Supreme Court is a court for all Victorians.”
Chief Justice Niall said access to justice was one of his priorities in the role and that it is important to harness technology without losing the vital connection to the local community.
Chief Justice Niall also praised the Bendigo courthouse, opened in 2023, as integrating the needs of the court and the community with the influence of the Dja Dja Wurrung.
The Bendigo visit followed a visit to Warrnambool and Colac in June where Chief Justice Niall met with Warrnambool court staff and local practitioners and toured World Heritage Listed Budj Bim with Uncle Michael ‘Mookeye’ Bell and Aunty Denise Lovett.
Chief Justice Niall thanked LIV and LIV CEO Adam Awty and the Courts’ Dhumba Murmuk Djerring Unit for organising the visits and local practitioners, and court staff for their warm welcome.