New Dispute Resolution Advisory Council chair appointed
The Council of the Australian Dispute Resolution Advisory Council has appointed a retired NSW Court of Appeal judge as its new chair.

Ruth McColl AO, who served as a judge of the NSW Court of Appeal for almost 16 years, has been appointed as the new chair of ADRAC.
Her other former roles include: president of the NSW Bar Association (the first woman to serve in that role), president of the Australian Bar Association, president of NSW Women Lawyers, president of the Public Interest Law Clearing House and the NSW forerunner of Justice Connect.
Ms McColl has had a “long-term interest” in alternative dispute resolution, ADRAC noted in a statement.
While at the bar, she served as chair of the NSW Bar Association’s Alternative Dispute Resolution Committee for 4 years. She also undertook mediation training, and both conducted mediations and participated in them representing clients. Ms McColl is also concerned with indigenous justice issues, a concern shared by the council of ADRAC, and intends to seek to pursue those issues as part of ADRAC’s dispute resolution advisory work.
Ms McColl has taken over from Jeremy Gormly SC, who said he was “delighted” for her to follow him in the role.
“The council of ADRAC passed a resolution thanking Mr Gormly for his four years of outstanding work as ADRAC’s chair [and] ADRAC offers its full support to Ruth McColl and looks forward to continuing its work in alternative dispute resolution under her leadership,” it concluded.

Jerome Doraisamy
Jerome Doraisamy is the managing editor of Lawyers Weekly and HR Leader. He is also the author of The Wellness Doctrines book series, an admitted solicitor in New South Wales, and a board director of the Minds Count Foundation.
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