Elizabeth Broderick AO is an Australian lawyer, who was the Australian Sex Discrimination Commissioner for over eight years from 2007 to 2015[1] and has been a United Nations special rapporteur for Discrimination against Women and Girls since 2017. She is a former partner and head of legal technology at Ashurst Australia (then called Blake Dawson Waldron), a global commercial law firm.[2]
Broderick grew up in Caringbah, New South Wales as the daughter of a doctor and physiotherapist, Frank and Margot. She has two sisters including an identical twin, emeritus Professor Jane Latimer AO.,[3][4] and Carolyn Broderick. Elizabeth Broderick was Head Girl in 1978 at Meriden School, Strathfield while Jane Latimer was Head Girl at MLC School in neighbouring Burwood in the same year.[2]
Broderick is trained as a lawyer. She has spoken publicly about her own experiences of sexual harassment by a client as a young lawyer.[5]
At law firm Blake Dawson Waldron (now Ashurst), Broderick worked part-time for twelve years while she was a partner - the first partner at the firm to work part-time.[6] She also created a database giving people legal advice at low cost. Broderick was named "Telstra NSW Business Woman of the Year" (2000–2001).[2]
Broderick was appointed Sex Discrimination Commissioner by Prime Minister John Howard in 2007. Her term was extended by the Rudd government and again by the Abbott government.[4] As Sex Discrimination Commissioner, Broderick worked on equal-pay cases, "proposed a model for the paid parental leave scheme", and commented publicly on sexual harassment cases.[2]
Broderick persuaded some of "the most powerful men in the country" to publicly commit to being part of a group called Male Champions of Change (MCC) and take action on gender inequality.[5] The group is still active and has inspired the creation of many MCC groups in other sectors, including architecture,[7] property,[8] elite sports[9] and in Victoria.[10] Current members of the Founding MCC group include, Alan Joyce, Kevin McCann, Martin Parkinson, David Thodey and Lieutenant General David Morrison.[11]
The Male Champions of Change have released progress reports in 2011,[12] 2013[13] and 2014.[14] They also partnered with Chief Executive Women to develop a model for leaders to use in order to examine their own actions and 'Leadership Shadow'.[15]
In 2014, Broderick published a fourth and final report on gender-discriminatory practices in the Australian Defence Force.[16]
Broderick finished up as Sex Discrimination Commissioner in 2015 and was succeeded by Kate Jenkins.[4][17]
Broderick established her own consultancy specialising in gender equality and was then appointed by the United Nations as a Special Rapporteur for the Working Group on Discrimination against Women and Girls in 2017.[4] She works alongside four other female experts to report to the Human Rights Council in Geneva on discrimination against women around the world.[4]
In 2018, Broderick launched Male Champions of Change globally.[4]
Broderick won in the Diversity category as well as recognized as the overall winner in the 2014 Women of Influence award.[18] She was also an Impact 25 winner in 2015.[19] On November, 2015, the University of New South Wales-Sydney conferred upon her an honorary degree honorary Doctorate of Laws for her "eminent service to both the Australian and international community".[20]
In 2016, she was awarded the New South Wales Australian of the Year for her being a "powerful and influential voice in the struggle for gender equality enlisting both women and men as agents of change."[21] She received the Australian Award for Excellence in Women's Leadership from the Women & Leadership Australia on the same year,[22] and won the 2016 Hall of Fame during the Women's Agenda Leadership Awards.[23]
Broderick was appointed Officer of the Order of Australia in 2017.[24]
