Migration Law Seminar

Justice Natalie Charlesworth graduated from the University of South Australia with a Bachelor of Arts (Journalism) in 1991, the University of Adelaide with a Bachelor of Laws with First Class Honours in 2001 and the Australian National University with a Graduate Diploma of Legal Practice in 2002.

After a decade of working in journalism, Charlesworth J commenced her legal career in 2002 as an Associate to the Hon Justice John Mansfield AM of the Federal Court.  Her Honour was a solicitor and senior solicitor in the South Australian Crown Solicitor’s Office, a solicitor and researcher to the then South Australian Solicitor-General, Mr Christopher Kourakis SC, and a senior associate with Kelly & Co Lawyers prior to signing the Bar roll in 2007 and entering into private practice as a barrister.  Her Honour was appointed to the Federal Court in 2016, sitting in most of the Court’s Practice Areas.  She is an additional Justice of the Australian Capital Territory Court of Appeal, in its Civil and Criminal jurisdictions.

Katherine was admitted to practice in South Australia in 2006 and called to the New South Wales Bar in 2019.  Katherine’s core practice area is administrative law.  She acts for both private parties and government agencies and has considerable experience defending agencies as respondents to judicial review applications. 

Annually since 2016, Katherine has been listed by Best Lawyers in the categories of Government Practice and Immigration Law.  She was recognised by Best Lawyers as the 2023 ‘Lawyer of the Year’ for her work in Immigration Law in Sydney.

Katherine is enthusiastic about giving practical and timely advice that addresses the needs of her clients and about maximising efficiency through the innovative use of information technology.  She is also a passionate advocate for wellness and diversity at the Bar.  When she’s not in court, you will probably find her on the tennis court.

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.

Senior Member Dr Bridget Cullen was appointed to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal in 2017 and sits predominantly in the Migration and Refugee Division. She is the National Practice Leader, Procedure and Practice, for the MRD and is the Chair of the Migration and Refugee Division’s Professional Development Committee.

She also oversights the MRD’s referrals to industry regulators, including OMARA. Prior to her appointment to AAT, Dr Cullen spent 7 ½ years as a Legal Member of the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal. Dr Cullen was admitted to the New York Bar in 1995 and the Queensland Bar in 2000. She is a Nationally Accredited Mediator, and registered Family Dispute Resolution Practitioner, with law degrees from both the State University of New York at Buffalo and the Queensland University of Technology (QUT). She enjoys teaching, and is an Adjunct Professor 

Kate Millar has over 20 years’ experience in government and administrative law with a focus on mental health, social security, disability and migration. She has held positions as the Manager of the Complaints Service at the Equal Opportunity Commission, Member of the Housing Appeals Panel, Deputy President of the Guardianship Board, and Member of the South Australian Civil and Administrative Tribunal. 

Before moving into law, Kate began her career as a social worker where she gained experience in social security, mental health, aged care and policy development.

Kate is currently a Senior Member at the Administrative Appeals Tribunal, with additional responsibilities as an Executive Member for South Australia in the Migration and Refugee Division and Practice Leader in the General Division for the Social Services and Child Support area of practice. She is also a Director of Westside Housing, a not-for-profit social housing provider.

Appointed as a full time member of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) in 2017 and as a Senior Member in 2019. Currently the Practice Manager for the Victorian protection team in the Migration Division of the AAT.

Previously a barrister and accredited mediator practicing in the areas of commercial law, consumer law, equity and trusts and administrative law. Also a former Member of the Victorian Administrative Appeals Tribunal (VCAT) sitting in the Civil Claims.

Ms Garrod has worked with the Department of Home Affairs and predecessor Departments in a number of roles in service delivery, policy and program management. Service delivery roles in the Sydney CBD office included as Director, Client Services, Students and Citizenship and Director, Borders South East.

On return from an overseas posting, Ms Garrod has undertaken a number of roles in Canberra and since February 2022, is now the Assistant Secretary Temporary Visas. Ms Garrod holds a Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Laws and an Executive Masters in Public Administration.

Phillip is the current International Engagement Program Lead . He is an experienced immigration professional with fifteen years of participation in the State Specific Regional Migration Scheme.  He has travelled to over five countries to promote South Australia as a destination for doing business. He is experienced in a number of areas in skilled and business program delivery. 

Ross D'Angelo - Business, Industry and Regional Outreach (BIRO) Officer with the Dept. of Home Affairs, based in the Perth office. Ross recently joined the small team of WA Regional and Industry Outreach officers who works closely with industry and business to provide information on a range of Skilled and Regional Migration programs to address skills and labour shortages. Ross joined the BIRO team earlier this year having spent the previous 18 months managing the Critical Skills Travel Exemption team out of the WA Office. Ross has been with Department of Home Affairs since 2008 and has over 20 years’ experience working across different Government agencies. Ross has exclusively worked with skilled visas within the Home Affairs portfolio, from a visa case officer, trainer for new staff, to managing teams of visa processing officers.