Research highlights

Victoria’s first Mental Health Complaints Commissioner

Ms Lynne Coulson Barr, a current doctoral candidate in the Faculty of Law, has been appointed Victoria’s first Mental Health Complaints Commissioner. See details of the new role. Ms Barr is currently enrolled in a Doctor of Juridical Science (SJD) program under the supervision of Associate Professor Bronwyn Naylor. Her research concerns the efficacy of decision making on the suitability of disputes for statutory conciliation.

In 2013, Ms Barr was awarded a Weinstein International Fellowship from the JAMS Foundation in the United States to undertake a study of alternative dispute resolution practices, one of only 12 people selected from around the world.

Ms Barr will apply the insights gained from this study tour, together with the findings from her current doctoral research on conciliation, to develop specialist approaches to complaint resolution in the mental health sector, with a focus on promoting effective access and outcomes for people with mental illness and their families.

Research highlights

We are delighted that Faculty of Law academics have involvement in three new recently awarded Australian Research Council (ARC) Discovery Projects grants and a Future Fellowship. These nationally competitive awards support the highest-quality research leading to the discovery of new ideas and the advancement of knowledge, and are a testament to the creative abilities and skills of our researchers.

Discovery Projects provide funding for research projects that can be undertaken by individual researchers or research teams for up to three consecutive years.