ADRA

2024 - ADRA Monthly Meeting
2024-02-27 17:30 - 19:30 (Australia/Sydney) | https://adra.net.au/event/2024-adra-monthly-meeting/

ADRA CPD Event - Restorative Practice with Astrid Gerrits
2024-03-26 16:00 - 17:30 | https://adra.net.au/event/adra-cpd-event-restorative-practice-with-astrid-gerrits/
ADRA will be hosting an event with Astrid Gerrits as guest speaker. Attendance to this event allows you to earn 1 CPD point. The topic for this event is “Restorative Practice”.

Introducing Astrid, a compassionate professional with a multicultural background and a decade of experience in supporting families through challenges of conflict and separation. Born in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, Astrid migrated to Australia in 2008 and currently resides in the beautiful town of Broome, situated on Yawuru land within the Kimberley region of North West Australia.

For the past ten years, Astrid has played integral roles as a counsellor, child-inclusive practitioner, coordinator, and supervisor at the Kimberley Family Relationship Centre. Today, she operates a private counseling and mediation practice, focusing on relationships with a specialisation in family, couples, and individual counseling, as well as private and corporate restorative practice and mediation.

Astrid’s diverse professional background spans academic hospitals, justice systems, learning/intellectual disabilities, mental health, and separation services. Her journey into Restorative Practice (RP) work began in 2010, driven by a passion to address unresolved hurts and lack of closure in relationships during family mediation. This passion led her to develop a model she refers to as RP-FDR (Restorative Practice in Family Dispute Resolution).

This innovative approach has had a profoundly positive impact, not only within her team in North West Australia but also across the broader Western Australia mediation community. Astrid has presented and conducted workshops, sharing her RP-FDR model, starting in Perth in 2018 and expanding to national and international platforms, including the National Mediation Conference in Wellington, New Zealand. The model has been embraced by fellow dispute resolution professionals, leading to a growing interest in training in this transformative approach.

While Astrid is now a couples therapist, it’s noteworthy that she developed the RP-FDR model when she was not yet in this role. This underscores the adaptability of the model for mediators, whether from a social scientist, legal, or other background.

Join us in welcoming Astrid as she shares her insights and experiences in the transformative world of Restorative Practice in Family Dispute Resolution.

2024 - ADRA Monthly Meeting
2024-03-26 17:30 - 19:30, 2024-05-28 17:30 - 19:30, 2024-06-25 17:30 - 19:30, 2024-07-23 17:30 - 19:30

2024- ADRA Monthly Meeting
2024-04-23 17:30 - 19:30

ADRA CPD Event with Tokunbo Olabinri
2024-05-28 16:30 - 17:30 | https://adra.net.au/event/adra-cpd-event-with-tokunbo-olabinri/
ADRA will be hosting an event with Tokunbo Olabinri as guest speaker. Attendance to this event allows you to earn 1 CPD point. The topic for this event is “Introduction to Incorporated Associations & Governance”

What is an incorporated association and how does it differ from a company? How is it governed? What rules does it have to comply with? What are the powers and duties of ordinary members and committee members of the association?

This seminar is intended to provide members with a general understanding of the legal framework under which they and the committee operate. No prior knowledge is assumed and the seminar will be conducted in an interactive format with members encouraged to participate and ask questions.

Tokunbo Olabinri is the principal of Parity Law, a firm of specialist commercial, intellectual property and technology lawyers based in Sydney. Tokunbo is admitted as a solicitor both in England and New South Wales. He previously practised law in the UK before moving to Australia where he was in-house counsel for the ASX before moving to private practice.

Tokunbo has acted for a broad range of clients from sole traders to large corporates in industries such as retail and manufacturing, technology and consulting, as well as media organisations, universities and public sector bodies. He also advises a number of not-for-profit organisations including sporting and professional associations.

Special General Meeting
2024-08-07 17:00 - 18:00
This is a Special General Meeting to consider the following resolution: that ADRA awards to Katherine Johnson and Margaret McCue life membership of ADRA in recognition of their service.

International Mediation Conference
2024-08-15 09:00 - 2024-08-16 21:00 | Royal Automobile Club, 89 Macquarie St, Sydney, NSW, 2000, Australia
Gain valuable insights from Special Guests: The Hon Terry Sheahan AO Patron of ADRA The Hon. Cameron Lionel Murphy, AM. MLCAustralian experts:Dr Rajesh Sharma, Dr Peter Condliffe, Professor Tania Sourdin, Professor Laurence Boulle, Mary Walker OAM, Allan Parker OAM, Dr Katherine Johnson, Jennifer Scott, Joe Harman, Ruwan Wathukarage, Helen Miedzinski.International Guests:The Hon.Justice Ambeng Kandakasi, Dr. Sabela Goya, Linda Heng – CEO (ResoX) , Dr Konstantin Pavlidis, Dr. Evi Avlogiari, Dr. Mian Sheraz Javaid, 9 Mongolian delegates and Mongolian Interpreter: Enkhee Sharav. Hear the voices of young people about tomorrow’s world: Elli Kozicki, Theodore Johnson & Hai SonConnect with professionals Live-streamed and in-person! – Enjoy a jazz band Welcome dinner and a Farewell dinner with Mongolian music, singing and dancing to support ADRA, a non-profit VOLUNTARY organisation fostering growth in dispute resolution.Gain 16 CPD points, a recording of the proceedings, and both welcome and farewell dinners for the very affordable early-bird price of $350 for ADRA members and $450 for non-ADRA members with one year’s practitioner membership included.Shape the future of tomorrow’s world of mediation with us!

Event Programme – Use the scroll bar on the right of the window below to move up/down. The embedded PDF can be saved / printed using the document controls located in the top right hand corner of the window.

2024 – ADRA AGM meeting
2024-08-27 17:00 - 21:00 | The Law Society of NSW, 170 Phillip St, Sydney, NSW, 2000, Australia
The Governance Committee has resolved that the dinner at the Palace Restaurant will be cancelled and that the AGM will take place on 27 August at 5.00 pm via TEAMS at the Law Society, Room 301 and will be recorded.

As we have had two dinners at the International Conference this year and our membership is scattered over several Australian States, the Governance Committee resolved that the AGM meeting would be best served online and a dinner was deemed unnecessary on this occasion.

The TEAMS links for this meeting will be sent in a followup message closer to the event date.

Scroll to the bottom of this event to read the agenda or to purchase tickets.

Below are the minutes from the 2023 AGM

Below is the agenda for the 2024 AGM

And below is the President’s and Officers’ Reports for 2024

2024 – ADRA Monthly Meeting
2024-09-24 17:15 - 19:15 | The Law Society of NSW, 170 Phillip St, Sydney, NSW, 2000, Australia
Election of Office Bearers after August AGMZoom Link:https://zoom.us/j/98354329593?pwd=[REDACTED] Included in email alert.

Board Meeting held on 27 August 2024Download

ADRA Presidents and Officers Reports for 24 September 2024Download

2024- ADRA Planning Meeting
2024-10-22 17:30 - 19:30
Planning session for 2025 and last formal meeting for 2024

2024 - ADRA Christmas Party
2024-11-26 18:00 - 21:00 | Palace Chinese Restaurant Sydney, Shop 38, Level 1, Piccadilly Tower, 133-145 Castlereagh St, Sydney, NSW, 2000, Australia
ADRA welcomes you to celebrate 2024 with a dinner at the Palace Restaurant.

The board are invited to attend at 5.30pm for a short meeting, all other attendees are invited to a 6pm start for dinner.

There is a 3 course dinner included in the ticket price.

ADRA February Meeting with Guest Speaker Kim Howatson
2025-02-25 16:00 - 18:00
Please join us at 4pm on Tuesday the 25th of February to hear from Kim Howatson from the Attorney General’s department talking about the latest changes in rules and regulations for FDRPs. This will be followed at 5pm by an ADRA board meeting.

Special General Meeting
2025-03-04 17:00 - 18:00
ADRA is holding a Special General Meeting at 5pm on Tuesday 4 March 2025 to discuss changes to it’s Constitution. All members are welcome to attend.

Attached to this Agenda are firstly the current Constitution, showing in blue, the changes approved by ADRA’s Board of Management. Also attached is a clean version of the changes, which version will be lodged with the Department for Fair Trading. The changes will not come about until registered.

The changes have been made for several reasons:1. To update the Constitution to reflect current practices of ADRA;2. To conform with the Associations Incorporation Act 2009 and Regulations; and3. To include clauses related to good governance.

The changes are placed before the members at this Special General Meeting in order to pass a special resolution adopting the changes. This requires a 75% vote in favour of those present in person or by Zoom. The special resolution requires 21 days’ notice to be given. Accordingly, this Special General Meeting has been called for Tuesday the 4 March 2025.

https://zoom.us/j/92687343683

This is the Constitution with proposed changes highlighted in blue

And this is the final version of the Constitution with changes integrated.

Mongolian Delegate Dinner
2025-03-10 18:30 - 21:30 | Hurricane’s Grill and Bar Restaurant, Top Ryde City Shopping Centre, La Piazza, Shop R 3006 Ground Level Cnr Blaxland Rd & Devlin St, Ryde, NSW, 2112, Australia
ADRA invites the Board members and their partners to attend the welcome dinner to celebrate the momentous occasion of the establishment of a separate Family Court in Mongolia, opening in January 2026.

ADRA March Meeting
2025-03-25 17:00 - 18:30 | https://adra.net.au/event/adra-march-meeting/
ADRA has a monthly meeting held on the fourth Tuesday of each month. All members are welcome.

This is an online meeting held over Zoom. Please find the Zoom link in the announcement email.

ADRA April Meeting with guest speaker Steven Dikinson
2025-04-22 15:30 - 19:00 | https://adra.net.au/event/adra-april-meeting-with-guest-speaker-steven-dikinson/
Starting at 3.30 pm we have Stephen Dikinson from AMDRAS talking and following on from this at 5pm we have ADRA’s monthly meeting.

All ADRA members are welcome to attend.

ADRA May Meeting
2025-05-27 16:45 - 18:30 | https://adra.net.au/event/adra-may-meeting/
Starting at 5pm is ADRA’s monthly board meeting. All members are welcome. Please join via the Zoom link.

ADRA June Meeting
2025-06-24 17:00 - 18:30 | https://adra.net.au/event/adra-june-meeting/

ADRA Annual General Meeting.
2025-07-22 17:00 - 21:00 | Palace Chinese Restaurant Sydney, Shop 38, Level 1, Piccadilly Tower, 133-145 Castlereagh St, Sydney, NSW, 2000, Australia
Meeting agenda included below.To purchase tickets to this event, please scroll to the bottom of this page.

AGM Agenda for 2025Download

ADRA August Board Meeting
2025-08-26 17:00 - 18:30 | https://adra.net.au/event/adra-august-board-meeting-2/

ADRA September Board Meeting
2025-09-30 17:00 - 18:30 | https://adra.net.au/event/adra-september-board-meeting-2/

ADRA October Board Meeting
2025-10-28 17:00 - 18:30 | https://adra.net.au/event/adra-october-board-meeting/

ADRA 2025 Christmas Party
2025-11-25 17:30 - 19:30 | Palace Chinese Restaurant Sydney, Shop 38, Level 1, Piccadilly Tower, 133-145 Castlereagh St, Sydney, NSW, 2000, Australia
ADRA welcomes you to celebrate 2025 with a dinner at the Palace Restaurant

Please attend at 5.30pm, there will be a 3 course dinner provided with your ticket.

February ADRA Monthly Meeting with guest speaker Mark Rogers
2026-02-24 16:00 - 18:30 | https://adra.net.au/event/february-adra-monthly-meeting-with-guest-speaker-dr-amanda-white/
Mark will be speaking from 4 to 5 on the topic of “Discover how mediation is transforming the disability and education sectors in this insightful web event. Mark will unpack the unique power of mediation to strengthen communication, build trust, and resolve complex challenges with clarity and empathy. You’ll also explore why mediation skills—especially active listening—are increasingly sought after by senior leaders and future employers.”

ADRA’s monthly board meeting will follow after, all members are welcome to join

March 2026 Board Meeting with guest speaker Dr Ivana Damjanovic
2026-03-24 16:00 - 18:30 | https://adra.net.au/event/march-2026-board-meeting/
Ivana will be speaking from 4pm to 5pm on the topic of “Investor-State Dispute Settlement and Prospects for Mediation.”.

Dr Ivana Damjanovic is an Associate Professor of International Law at the University of Canberra Law School and a Jean Monnet Research Fellow at the Australian National University. Her expertise includes international investment law and dispute settlement. She is the author of The European Union and International Investment Law Reform: Between Aspirations and Reality (Cambridge University Press, 2023). Dr Damjanovic leads the EU Centre of Excellence in Critical Minerals at the University of Canberra and collaborates on a range of research projects across Australia and Europe. Before joining academia, she served as a member of the Croatian diplomatic service, and later as a trade adviser to the Delegation of the European Union in Australia.

Dr Damjanovic holds a PhD from the Australian National University, and master degrees from the University College Dublin and the University of Zagreb. She qualified as an Australian lawyer. She is a non-practicing mediator, a member of ADRA and a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Law.

All ADRA members are welcome to participate in ADRA’s March meeting.

For more information on this event or to contact ADRA please see contact details below.

April 2026 Board Meeting
2026-04-28 17:00 - 18:30 | https://adra.net.au/event/april-2026-board-meeting/
All ADRA members are welcome to participate in ADRA’s April meeting

May 2026 Board Meeting with guest speakers Dan Sheptooha and Dr. Robyn Goodwin
2026-05-26 16:00 - 18:30 | https://adra.net.au/event/may-2026-board-meeting/
Dan Sheptooha and Dr. Robyn Goodwin will be presenting on the topic of “What’s happening in the mediation room’ and will focus on relevant psychological concepts and conflict (predominantly in family disputes). The slides for the presentation are below:

Following on at 5pm is the monthly board meeting. All ADRA members are welcome to participate in ADRA’s May meeting
