Protecting the rights of Australians and understanding federal discrimination laws

LexisNexis® has partnered with the Australian Human Rights Commission to update the publication Federal Discrimination Law, which is being officially launched today by the Commission President Professor Gillian Triggs.

"It is vital that information and resources are available to enable individuals to understand and enforce their rights effectively, and to assist businesses and employers to meet their obligations under federal discrimination laws and support workplace diversity," says Professor Triggs. "The Commission hopes that the content of this publication will play a significant role in helping to educate all Australians in respect of their rights and responsibilities."

The first update since 2011, this edition provides an overview of the federal unlawful discrimination laws and examines the significant issues that have arisen in the federal unlawful discrimination cases. It also contains comprehensive tables of damages awards made since 13 April 2000 when the function of hearing unlawful discrimination matters was transferred from the Commission to the Federal Court and the Federal Circuit Court.

Important new protections against discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity, intersex status and relationship status have been introduced since 2011, when Federal Discrimination Law was last updated. These new protections are in addition to the existing protected attributes including sex, family responsibilities, pregnancy or potential pregnancy, breastfeeding, marital status, disability, age, and race, colour, descent or national or ethnic origin.

Discrimination law is very much on the community's agenda, points out Managing Director, LexisNexis Australia, Joanne Beckett. "Discrimination law remains a challenging and complex area of law. We hope that the content of this publication can play an integral role in educating Australians in respect of their rights and thereby help protect their rights.

"Our global mission at LexisNexis is to expand the umbrella protection of the rule of law to give people equal access to the rights they are entitled to, regardless of their status, which is why LexisNexis is so proud to have partnered with the Commission to produce this important body of work," Ms Beckett added.

This updated and relaunched edition of Federal Discrimination Law is essential reading for a broad constituency including legal practitioners, businesses, employers and members of the public with an interest in the field. Federal Discrimination Law is available for free on the Commission's website: https://www.humanrights.gov.au/our-work/legal/publications/federal-discrimination-law-2016

Media Contact

Adrian Flood, Australian Human Rights Commission
T: 0427 046 676
adrian.flood@humanrights.gov.au
@AusHumanRights

Max Becker, LexisNexis
T: +61 2 9422 2841
max.becker@lexisnexis.com.au
@LexisNexisAus


About LexisNexis Legal & Professional

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