Emma Fitch

Experience

Emma was admitted as a solicitor of the Supreme Court of the Australian Capital Territory in August 2016, after graduating from the University of Canberra with a double Bachelor of Laws and Bachelor of Arts with First Class Honours. Emma completed her Masters in International Law in 2020 from the Australian National University, graduating with Commendation, specialising in water law, governance, and peace and conflict. She grew up on Ngunnawal Country (Canberra) and came to TJC to live on Gadigal Country (Sydney) after working for a decade in the public sector, universities and not-for-profits. In government, Emma worked in water, biosecurity and family violence legal policy spaces. Emma is also a published writer and has written articles in a range of peer-reviewed journals and publications, relating to her passions including free, prior and informed consent for First Nations communities, and women and the law.

Recent Projects

Since joining the firm in 2022, Emma has led a number of projects:

• the Independent Review into ABC Systems and Processes in Support of Staff who Experience Racism, producing the ‘Listen Loudly, Act Strongly’ report, and further investigative projects and independent reviews into cultural safety and psychosocial wellbeing,

• serving as an advisor in the Water Governance Co-Design Team on a governance model for a Murray-Darling Basin First Nations enduring water holder,

• developing a governance model for the Great Barrier Reef Traditional Owner Taskforce,

• advising on commissions and inquiries, including on the rights of First Nations people to water,

• drafting agreements to assert the rights of First Nations people to their cultures and knowledges,

• facilitating workshops and developing reports and policies for a range of industries across governments, universities, arts, development, environmental, community, and health sectors,

• facilitating governance training and board evaluations,

• developing Indigenous Cultural and Intellectual Property and Indigenous Data Sovereignty frameworks for government departments and universities, and

• acting as an independent probity advisor for government departments, ensuring rigour in grants and procurement processes.

Community

Emma is a former Board Director and Co-Vice President of YWCA Canberra, and a former Board Director of the Ginninderra Catchment Group. Emma completed a course in marine habitat conservation and restoration in 2020, with a focus on community-led conservation projects. Emma is also a Co-Founder, Committee Member and Public Officer for the not-for-profit Sydney Seals Freediving Club. On the weekends you can find her freediving, swimming and exploring in her 4WD, and with her camp dog, who is originally from Yawuru Country (Broome). Emma was proudly raised by a Queer family with Bundjalung heritage.