Litigation Funding in Native Title Compensation Claims: Ethical and Practical Challenges

Tuesday, 3 March 2026
Description

Attend and earn 1 CPD unit in Ethics & Professional Responsibility
This program is applicable to practitioners from all States & Territories

* This interactive online recording includes questions and quizzes requiring critical thinking about the topics, so you have no annual limits to the number of points/hours you can claim with this format of learning. Please verify with your CPD rules 

Chair

Greg McIntyre SC, Michael Kirby Chambers

Ethics and Professional Responsibilities
Litigation Funders and Native Title Compensation Claims

 

  • Native title compensation claims are expensive to prepare and protracted, but awards of compensation may be beneficial
  • PBC’s and First Nations groups are being approached by litigation funders regarding financial assistance from them rather than NIAA
  • Litigation funding may be encouraged by the Commonwealth
  • Recent class actions by First Nations people for stolen wages highlight how litigation funding may provide access to justice for socially disadvantaged people yet a large proportion of the award may go to the litigation funder
  • Considerations about taking instructions and the supervisory powers of the Federal Court

Presented by Tina Jowett SC, Windeyer Chambers, Sydney, and Francis Burt Chambers, Recommended Senior Counsel, Doyle's Guide 2025

Presenters

Greg McIntyre SC, Michael Kirby Chambers
Greg McIntyre SC was admitted to practice in 1974. He gained extensive experience in the first 15 years of practice in criminal law and also practised between 1984 and 1988 in Family Law. Greg was Principal Legal Officer, Aboriginal Legal Service of WA, 1988-90. From 1990-92 he worked in general litigation at Corser & Corser. He has practised solely as a Barrister since 1993. Greg has developed a High Court and Federal Court advocacy practice in the fields of Native Title, Human Rights, Immigration, Environmental law and Administrative law generally. In recent years he has also been engaged in commercial litigation, personal injury cases and legal professional conduct cases. He was appointed Senior Counsel in 2002 and since that time he has been a member of the Professional Affairs Committee of the Legal practice Board. He was appointed as an Adjunct Professor of Law at the University of Notre Dame in 2001 and the University of Western Australia in 2016. He at the University of Notre Dame between 2000 and 2012 and in 2011 lectured at the University of WA on the subject of Indigenous Peoples and the Law and in 2007 lectured in Constitutional Law at Notre Dame. He was awarded the Australian Human Rights Commission Law Award in 2011. Greg was President of the Law Council of Australia in 2024 and now Chairs its Legal Practice Section and sits on its Indigenous Peoples and the Law, Human Rights and Access to Justice Committees. He was President of the Law Society of WA in 2019 and Chairs its Indigenous Peoples and the Law and Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Committees and is deputy-Chair of its Access to Justice Committee.


Tina Jowett SC, Windeyer Chambers
Tina Jowett SC has been briefed in numerous native title trials, appeals and advice work for over 20 years. Tina is ranked as a recommended senior counsel in Doyle’s Guide and as a Band 2 senior counsel in the Chambers and Partners rankings. Tina has appeared in important native title determination trials and appeals that include Fortescue Metals Group v Warrie on behalf of the Yindjibarndi People (2019) 273 FCR 350; CG (Deceased) on behalf of the Badimia People v State of Western Australia (2016) 240 FCR 466; Banjima People v State of Western Australia (2015) 231 FCR 456; Blackburn v Wagonga Local Aboriginal Land Council (2021) 287 FCR 1; Wyman on behalf of the Bidjara People v State of Queensland (2015) 235 FCR 464; Stuart v South Australia [2023] FCAFC 131; Mace v State of Queensland (2019) 274 FCR 41; and Bodney v Bennell (2008)167 FCR 84. She has appeared for, or has advised, most Australian Native Title Representative Bodies, a number of government parties and mining proponents, and has been briefed to appear in all States and Territories. Tina also appears before the High Court in native title appeals. More recently, Tina has appeared and advised in compensation claims including the controversial Yindjibarndi Ngurra Aboriginal Corporation v State of Western Australia and Fortescue Metals Group trial. Tina’s expertise in native title issues is applied to her position as the General Editor of Australia’s only native title quarterly publication: LexisNexis’s Native Title News. She also regularly presents at Legalwise seminars and trains lawyers and anthropologists at the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies workshops. In 2009, Tina was recognised by the NSW Women’s Lawyers’ Association as their ‘Woman Lawyer Advocate of the Year’. She was also a member of the NSW Equal Opportunity Tribunal from 1993 to 2003.

INT263V014

Litigation Funding in Native Title Compensation Claims: Ethical and Practical Challenges

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Single Session
Tuesday, 3 March 2026
to Australia/Sydney
CPD Points 1
$160.00
On Demand 20260526 20260303

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