If you run an immigration practice, don’t miss the opportunity to unpack conducting migration and protection visa reviews and judicial review matters plus appeals in the AAT in this practical program. Navigate changes in the Administrative Appeals Tribunal, how to run a character case and effective strategies for representing your client in a myriad of appeal matters at the Tribunal. Additionally, hear an analysis of crucial decisions including the fall of Al-Kateb and implications of NZYQ.

Presenters

Roz Germov, Barrister and Registered Migration Agent, List A Barrister
Roz is an expert in Immigration and Refugee Law. She is one of the few members of the Victorian Bar who is also a registered migration agent. She handles a full range of immigration and refugee matters from the primary decision through to merits and judicial review. This gives her an in-depth and practical understanding of the field. Roz also provides strategic immigration advice for individuals and businesses. Roz has over 30 years of experience in these areas, including working at the Immigration Department, sitting as a Full-time Member of the Refugee Review Tribunal (as it was then) in Sydney from 1993 to 1996, and as the co-author of Refugee Law in Australia published by Oxford University Press in May 2003. Prior to coming to the Bar, Roz worked as a solicitor in the litigation section at Mallesons Stephen Jaques (now King & Wood Mallesons) and in the Employee Relations section at Freehills (now Herbert Smith Freehills) in Melbourne. Roz was a principal of Migration Practice Essentials from 2002 to 2014, which was a leading provider of advanced migration CPD programs for senior lawyers and migration agents. Roz is a contributor to the Australian Immigration Law Service published by Lexis Nexis. She is often asked to be a guest speaker at various immigration conferences and CPD programs. Roz has been listed in Best Lawyers for her recognised industry experience in migration law and practice.


Nicholas Poynder, Barrister, Frederick Jordan Chambers
Consistently recognised in the Immigration Category of the Australian Financial Review Best Lawyers in Australia from 2012 to 2017, Nick maintains a solid migration law practice. He also practises in the areas of anti-discrimination law and family law. Nick has appeared as junior counsel in notable decisions in the High Court of Australia and provides high quality advice and representation as sole counsel in other courts and tribunals, including the Federal Circuit Court, Federal Court of Australia, and the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (General Division and Migration & Refugee Division). The nature of these matters ranges from legal issues which might arise during the processing or cancellation of visas, to applications for the review of decisions to refuse or cancel a visa. Prior to being called the Bar, Nick practised as a legal adviser to asylum-seekers in Port Hedland (Western Australia), locum practitioner with the Central Australian Aboriginal Legal Aid Service in Alice Springs (Northern Territory) and later co-ordinator of the Refugee Advice and Casework Service in Sydney. He was also a Senior Legal Officer with the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission in Sydney. Nick is the current author of the Judicial Review commentary in the LexisNexis Australian Immigration Law Service. Admitted to the Bar in both Victoria and New South Wales (and maintaining a practice in both jurisdictions), Nick holds a Master of Laws from the University of New South Wales, a Bachelor of Laws (with Honours) and a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Tasmania. He was one of the first migration agents to be registered in Australia.


Wajiha Ahmed, Partner and Mediator, Buttar, Caldwell & Co. Solicitors
Born in Lahore, Pakistan, Wajiha came to Australia with her family at age five. As a third generation lawyer, Wajiha is committed to the plight of social justice and rights of women in Australia and ensuring access to justice. She joined Buttar, Caldwell & Co. Solicitors in March 2001. She is a NMAS mediator and sits on a number of panels. Her main practice areas are civil litigation, family law, employment and immigration. In 2006, Wajiha was appointed as a part time Commissioner with the Community Relations Commission of NSW for six years. She served on the NSW Police Multicultural Advisory Council for a number of years. Since 2012 she has been a member of the Human Rights committee of the Law Society of NSW. She has served as an Officer for the Human Rights Committee of the International Bar Association since 2018. Wajiha has taught “Business, Law and Ethics” and “Contemporary Business Law” at University of Technology, Sydney from 2005 until 2019 and other private Colleges in Sydney. Wajiha has written opinion pieces in the Daily Telegraph, Sydney Morning Herald and the Guardian with respect to her views on various human rights issues over the years.


Simon Jeans, Principal, Jeans Lawyers
Simon Jeans has been practising law since 1989. He is an Accredited Specialist in Immigration Law and listed by Best Lawyers for Australia in Immigration Law. He has worked as an advocate for refugees and migrants with the Jesuit Refugee Service, RACS, Legal Aid (NSW), UNHCR and in his law firm. He was appointed as a member of the Migration Review Tribunal and Refugee Review Tribunal from 2010-2015. He was engaged by the College of Law in 2019-2020 as an assessor and external moderator for the Capstone Migration Agents Assessment.


Michelle Yu, Barrister, Frederick Jordan Chambers
Michelle practises primarily in the areas of migration law, public/administrative law, family law and children’s care and protection. Prior to being called to the Bar, Michelle practised as a legal adviser to members and staff of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (Migration and Refugee Division). Michelle has also previously worked for the Department of Immigration and Border Protection and community legal centres specialising in migration and refugee law. Due to her experience working with both applicants and government agencies, Michelle has developed a strong understanding of the Australian migration and citizenship framework and their impact on other areas of law.


Alison Battisson, Director, Human Rights For All Pty Limited
Alison Battisson is the founder and Director Principal of Human Rights for All. HR4A is an Australian charitable human rights law firm providing pro bono representation to refugees, stateless people and Indigenous people in Australia’s immigration detention prisons. Alison and her team focus on long term detained and complex case refugees and stateless people to test the principals of liberty in Australia. Alison also assisted female athletes and others escape Afghanistan in 2021 and continues to help Afghans at risk. HR4A represent clients at all levels of the Australian legal system and to various human rights bodies in Australia and internationally.


Sean Kikkert, Barrister, Jessie Street Chambers (SA), List S (Vic)
Sean Kikkert has more than 17 years of experience in immigration law and administrative law. He was admitted in 2007 and worked for the Department of Immigration for eleven years before opening his own law practice. He has appeared in many Federal Court, Federal Circuit Court and Tribunal matters, and provides complex legal advice based on his 16 years of experience in government law. Sean also has considerable experience in dispute resolution and conducted family and personal violence conferences as a Deputy Registrar with the ACT Magistrates Court between 2019-2022. Sean was born in Adelaide, South Australia and spent the early part of his childhood in the Netherlands before his family returned to Australia. He earnt a BA (Hons.) in Psychology in 2002 and an LLB (with Hons.) in 2005 from the University of Adelaide. He married his wife Jaquilyn in Hong Kong, and he is the father of five children. He is also an author and has had eight books published.