Law Council of Australia President, Mr Luke Murphy has congratulated Mr Gerard Brody as the winner of the Consumer Rights Awards at the Consumer Rights Forum in Brisbane tonight.
“Mr Brody is a leading consumer rights advocate and lawyer. He was formerly the CEO of Consumer Action and is currently a board member of Australian Financial Complaints Authority, Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman, Community Legal Centres Australia, and Chairperson of the Consumers Federation of Australia. At Consumer Action, he spearheaded many successful campaigns and supported consumers to have their voices heard – Scams, Stop the Debt Trap, VET Fee help, Junk Insurance and Do Not Knock campaigns to name a few” said Mr Murphy.
“He was instrumental in directing the Banking Royal Commission to financial products exploiting consumers’ vulnerabilities, including the unsolicited selling of life insurance, unconscionable selling of funeral expense plans to First Nations communities, and the hidden sale of consumer credit insurance – all of which have now either been banned, led to class actions or other government reform. Mr Brody is a sought-after speaker, and we had the privilege of his insights into scams and the impact on consumers as part of our expert panel at this event last year.”
The Consumer Rights Award is held annually by the Australian Consumer Law Committee of the Law Council of Australia’s Legal Practice Section. Now in its second year, the Award is conferred upon an individual who champions the rights of consumers in the promotion of consumer protection law in Australia. It recognises the range of skills, interests and contributions of those committed to the development and implementation of the law and practices in this field.
“I also commend Mr Mark Holden for receiving a High Commendation Certificate. Mr Holden is a Dunghutti man and, since 2017, has been a solicitor at the Financial Rights Legal Centre and a key member of the Centre’s “Mob Strong Debt Help” team. He was nominated by the Centre for his outstanding assistance to, and advocacy for, hundreds of vulnerable First Nations’ consumers affected by the collapse of the Aboriginal Community Benefit Fund (Youpla). Mr Holden has also provided valuable legal acumen and support to the Save Sorry Business campaign and works tirelessly to assist First Nations consumers in all areas of consumer protection,” Mr Murphy said.
