Programme at 16 June 2021
The conference will run from Monday 12 to Friday 16 July 2021. Please note that the programme is subject to change.
Please refer here to see a message from the Chair regarding the conference programme.
Day 1 - Monday 12 2021
| Session | Session name | Moderator | Speakers |
| Opening Session | Opening of the World Congress: The Hon Diana Bryant AO, QC, Chair of World Congress on Family Law and children’s | Not required | The Honourable Diana Bryant AO QC |
| Welcome Session | Welcome message from President Halimah Yacob, President of the Republic of Singapore | ||
| Session 1 | Opening session: Envisioning Family Justice through the Eyes of a Child | The Honourable Diana Bryant AO QC | The Honourable Sundaresh Menon SC, Chief Justice of Singapore |
| Session 2 | Harmonisation of the Australian Family Court – the amalgamation including dynamic response to Domestic Violence and Covid – Best practices | Not required |
The Honourable Chief Justice William Alstergren QC, Family Court of Australia and the Federal Circuit Cour |
| Session 3 | Family Justice in Singapore – A Defining Moment |
District Judge Chia Wee Kiat, Deputy Presiding Judge, Family Justice Courts |
Justice Debbie Ong, Presiding Judge, Family Justice Courts
District Judge Yarni Loi, Family Justice Courts District Judge Darryl Soh, Family Justice Courts Ms Leong Shengyu, Senior Court Family Specialist, Family Justice Courts |
| Session 4 | Marriage Dispensation Cases in Indonesia and Malaysia – Determining the Best Interests of the Child |
Cate Sumner, Senior Adviser, Australia Indonesia Partnership for Justice |
Fitria Villa Sahara, Co-Director Pemberdayaan Perempuan Kepala Keluarga (PEKKA), Female-Headed Family Empowerment Organisation
Leisha Lister, Senior Adviser, Australia Indonesia Partnership for Justice Dato’ Setia Dr. Mohd. Na’im Mokhtar, Chief Judge of the Syariah Court of Malaysia Justice Judy Ryan, Appeal Division, Family Court of Australia |
Day 2 - Tuesday 13 2021
| Session | Session name | Moderator | Speakers |
| Session 1 | AFP1: Online Child Sexual Exploitation prevention efforts through education in schools | Sally Nicholes, Managing Partner, Nicholes Family Lawyers | Dannielle Kelly, Prevention and Engagement, ACCCE
Carol Ronken, Director of Research, Bravehearts Simone McKeough, Online Child Safety, AFP |
| Session 2 | AFP2: The important role of collaboration and coordination in the fight against Online Child Sexual Exploitation | Commander ACCCE Hilda Sirec | Detective Inspector Jon Rouse APM, ACCCE or
Detective Superintendent Denzil Clark, Queensland Police Assistant Commissioner Northern Command, Lesa Gale, AFP Michelle DeLaune, National Centre for Missing and Exploited Children |
| Session 3 | AFP3: Theme: The role of the financial sector in Online Child Sexual Exploitation investigations | Commander ACCCE Hilda Sirec | Bindu Sharma, International Centre for Missing and Exploited Children (ICMEC)
Bradley Brown, Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (AUSTRAC) Ms Sarah Napier and Dr Rick Brown, Australian Institute of Criminology |
| Session 4 |
International Justice Mission: Child Protective Strategies in Prosecuting Online Sexual Exploitation of Children |
Not required |
Atty. Maria Laarni Sheila S. Guico, Senior Lead, Prosecution Development, International Justice Mission Philippines |
Day 3 - Wednesday 14 2021
| Session | Session name | Moderator | Speakers |
| Session 1 | AFP 4: The family left behind | Commander ACCCE Hilda Sirec | Sonya Ryan, Carly Ryan Foundation
Federal Agent Brendan Hayler, NSW Joint Anti Child Exploitation Team Natalie Walker, PartnerSPEAK |
| Session 2 | AFP 5: Human Trafficking: the challenges and approaches to combat them | Commander ACCCE Hilda Sirec | Detective Superintendent Paula Hudson, ACCCE, Child Protection and Human Trafficking Operations, AFP
Detective Superintendent Andrew Perkins, International Command (Philippines), AFP Jordyn Francis, Executive Support, ACCCE |
| Session 3 | Hearing from Children | The Honourable Diana Bryant AO QC | Professor Rachel Birnbaum
Professor Marilyn Freeman PhD, Co-Director, International Centre for Family Law Policy and Practice, and Principal Research Fellow, University of Westminster, London, England Professor Nicola Taylor, Director, Children’s Issues Centre, Faculty of Law, University of Otago, New Zealand Ann Thomas, Managing Partner, International Family Law Group UK |
| Session 4 |
Tommy Short Film |
Robert A. Simon, Ph.D., Forensic Psychology Consulting, San Diego, CA & Maui, HI. |
Dr Philip Stahl Darren Mort |
Day 4 - Thursday 15 2021
| Session | Session name | Moderator | Speakers |
| Session 1 | Identity Theft – How I Discovered My Secret Identity, and the Rights of Donor Conceived Children | Sally Nicholes, Managing Partner, Nicholes Family Lawyers | Albert Frantz
Damon Martin, Deputy CEO, International Social Service Australia Fiona Darroch, Clinical Psychologist/ Single Expert, The Relationspace Keturah Sageman, Senior partner, Nicholes Family Lawyers |
| Session 2 |
Gender Based Violence |
Leisha Lister, Board Member, World Congress on Family Law & Children’s Rights | Part one: Sohaila Abdulali Part two: |
| Session 3 | Age of Criminal Responsibility in Australia |
The Honourable Alastair Nicholson AO, RFD, QC |
Paul Grant
Liana Buchanan, Principal Commissioner for Children and Young People Justin Mohamed |
| Session 4 |
Gender Determination – The Tavistock Decision and its Implications |
The Honourable Diana Bryant AO QC |
Eleanor Lau, Partner, Lander & Rogers, Australia Sarah Phillimore, Barrister St John’s Chambers Bristol UK |
Day 5 - Friday 16 2021
| Session | Session name | Moderator | Speakers |
| Session 1 | Companies as weapons in the commission of domestic and family violence: concealing legal systems abuse behind the corporate veil | Keturah Sageman, Senior Partner, Nicholes Family Lawyers | Dr Eamonn Kelly, Barrister, Victorian Bar
Catherine Giles, Senior Associate, Nicholes Family Lawyers |
| Session 2 |
Hague Abduction Convention and the 1996 Convention |
The Honourable Diana Bryant AO QC | Dr Gérardine Goh Escolar, First Secretary, Hague Conference on Private International Law
Philippe Lortie Amanda Humphreys, BA LLB (Hons), Special Counsel, Accredited Family Law Specialist, Taussig Cherrie Fildes, Australia |
| Session 3 | Worldwide Family Mediation |
Prof David Hodson OBE MCIArb, Solicitor, mediator and arbitrator, England and Australia |
Prof David Hodson OBE MCIArb, Solicitor, mediator and arbitrator, England and Australia
Anna Nylund David Truex, Barrister and Solicitor (Australia), NMAS Accredited Mediator, AIFLAM Accredited Arbitrator, Accredited Specialist Family Lawyer (England and Wales) Dr. Esther Erlings |
| Session 4 |
Intractable and Complex Cases |
Not required |
Stephen Parker Professor Lauren Devine |
| Session 5 |
The experience of Children’s Rights International in association with Legal Aid Cambodia: Assisting the Cambodian Government to promote the rights of Cambodian Children |
The Honourable Alastair Nicholson AO, RFD, QC |
Part one: Monika Var will also be on the line to translate Part two: Professor Sue Marshall |