CURRICULUM VITAE: Dr Helen Mary Watchirs, OAM
Years
Employer
Position & Level
2014
(current short-term
appointment)
2004-2013
(current position)
Public Advocate of the ACT
ACT Public Advocate
ACT Human Rights Commission
2002-04
Research School of Social
Sciences, ANU
1997-2001
ANU Law School
ACT Human Rights &
Discrimination
Commissioner
Post Doctoral Fellow
Regulatory Institutions
Network
PhD Student fulltime
1997 & 1999
UNAIDS Geneva
Human Rights Legal Advisor
1996-2002
Social Security Appeals Tribunal
Part-time Legal Member
1990-96 (with
maternity leave 19921994)
1987-90
Federal Attorney-General’s
Department, Human Rights
Branch
Attorney-General’s Department
Legal 2 officer (seconded
project Health Dept 19901992 HIV/AIDS)
Legal 1 officer
1985-86
Senior Tribunal Advocate
1984-85
Dept Veteran’s Affairs, FOI and
Public Law Branch
Administrative Review Council
1983-84
NSW Privacy Committee
Research Officer
1982-83
Australian Law Reform
Commission
Law Reform Officer, Privacy
Reference
Project Officer
Qualifications
 Doctor of Philosophy, Australian National University 2002 - thesis topic: Measuring
Legal Implementation of International Human Rights Norms in the Context of HIV/AIDS
 Master of Public Law, Australian National University 1992 - thesis topic: AIDS, An
Australian Public Law Perspective
 Admitted to practice in NSW Supreme Court and of the High Court of Australia, 1982
 Bachelor of Law, University of Sydney, 1982
 Bachelor of Arts, University of Sydney, 1980
Awards/appointments
 Order of Australia Medal for services to Human Rights in the ACT 2010
 Telstra 2012 ACT Business Woman of Year, award in Community & Government sector
 Member of ANU Chancellor’s Staff Awards Committee (2011 onwards)
 Member, ACT Law Reform Advisory Council (2008 onwards)
 Member of Organ Tissue Authority Advisory Council (2012 onwards)
 Member of National Health & Medical Research Council, Committee to Develop Ethical
Guidelines on Transplant Waiting List Eligibility & Allocation Protocols (2013 onward)
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Member of Federal Ministerial Advisory Council on Blood Borne Diseases, Viruses and
STIs from 2009, & Co-Chair of Legal Working Group (2010 onwards)
Member of Australian National University and Department of Justice & Community
Safety ARC Linkage Grant Human Rights Reference Group on Economic, Social &
Cultural Rights 2009-2010
Member of Australian National University and Department of Justice & Community
Safety ARC Linkage Grant on ACT Human Rights Act 2004 Reference Group 2005-09
Yogie Award, Outstanding Contribution to Youth Sector (Quamby HR Audit) in 2005
Member, WHO Mental Health, Human Rights and Legislation Faculty from 2003
Member, Regulatory Institutions Network, Board of Advisory Fellows, Research School
of Social Sciences Law Program Australian National University 2004-06
Legal member, ANU Human Ethics Committee, 2003-04
Jonathan Mann Health and Human Rights full-time research scholar, 2002-03
National Health and Medical Research Council PhD full-time scholar, 1998-2001
Chair of NGO, ACT Disability, Aged & Carer Advocacy Service (ADACAS), 1997-99
Fellow, Harvard/WHO Collaborating Centre on Health Legislation, 1992
Various health and human rights consultancies: United Nations - UNAIDS, OHCHR,
WHO, ILO and UNDP; and the Australian Government – Attorney-General’s
Department, former Australian National Council on AIDS, Hepatitis C and Related
Diseases, AusAID, and the Australian Health Ministers’ Advisory Council.
List of Publications
 ‘Addressing Discrimination Against People Living with Blood Born Diseases’ in
Legal Issues in Australian Public Health Impact of Discrimination - 7 papers, 2013:
http://www.hrc.act.gov.au/res/September%202013%20legal%20issues%20consolida
ted%20papers%20final.pdf
 ‘Five Years Experience if the Human Rights Act 2004 (ACT): Insights for Human
Rights Protection’ (co-author Gabrielle McKinnon) (2010) 33(1) UNSW Law Review
 ‘The ACT Human Rights Act 2004: an Overview of its Operation’ (2006) Just Policy
(VCOSS)
 ‘The First 18 months of the ACT Human Rights Act 2004’ (2006) Democratic Audit
(ANU Centre for Policy Development)
 ‘The ACT Human Rights Act 2004’ (2005) New Matilda
 ‘A Local Perspective on ACT Human Rights Act 2004’ (2005) Hot Topics (NSW
State Library)
 ‘ ‘Auditing Mental Health and Human Rights: an Australian Model’ (2005) 28
International Journal of Law & Psychiatry 99-125 (author & co-editor special issue)
 ‘Public Health, Criminal Laws and HIV/AIDS in Australian States and Territories’
in Australasian Society for HIV Medicine HIV & Hepatitis C: Policy,
Discrimination Legal and Ethical Issues, Monograph (2005)
http://www.ashm.org.au/resources/publications/hiv-hepc-policy/
 ‘AIDS Audit – HIV and Human Rights: an Australian Pilot’ (2003) 25 Law and
Policy 245-268 (author & co-editor of special issue)
 Cambodian HIV/AIDS and Human Rights Legislative Audit (2003) (co-author Chris
Ward) Policy Project, US Futures Group Washington,
http://www.policyproject.com/pubs/countryreports/CAM_LegAud.pdf
 ‘A Human Rights Approach to HIV/AIDS Transforming International Obligations
into National Laws’ (2002) 22 Australian Yearbook of International Law 77-112
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‘Review of Methodologies Measuring Human Rights Implementation’ (2002) 30
Journal of Law, Medicine and Ethics 716-733
Criminal and Public Health Offences for Disease Transmission or Exposure,
Occasional Paper, Australian National Council on AIDS, Hepatitis C and Related
Diseases (2002) (www.ancahrd.org/pubs/pdfs/op_2_may02.pdf)
‘Measuring Legal Implementation of the International Guidelines on HIV/AIDS and
Human Rights’ Canadian HIV/AIDS Policy and Law Review 2001 (author)
Application of a Rights Analysis Instrument to Australian Mental Health Legislation:
Report to the Australian Health Ministers Advisory Council, Commonwealth
Department of Health and Aged Care, 2000
http://www.health.gov.au/internet/main/publishing.nsf/Content/360B8042750B3170
CA2571F100079B16/$File/rights.pdf
A Rights Analysis Instrument to Measure Compliance with the International
Guidelines on HIV/AIDS and Human Rights: Report to the Australian National
Council on AIDS and Related Diseases, 2000
(www.ancahrd.org/pubs/pdfs/raifinal.doc)
‘International HIV/AIDS Guidelines: Does Australia Comply?’ (2000) 11(1)
HIV/AIDS Legal Link 1
Handbook for Legislators on HIV/AIDS, Law and Human Rights, UNAIDS and the
Inter-Parliamentary Union, Geneva, UNAIDS/99.48E, 1999
‘Law Reform in Australia: The Legal Working Party, Intergovernmental Committee
on AIDS’ in L. Wiseberg (ed) Human Rights and HIV/AIDS: Effective Community
Responses, Human Rights Internet (1998)
A Rights Analysis Instrument for Use in Evaluating Mental Health Legislation,
Report to the Australian Health Ministers Advisory Council, the Attorney-General’s
Legal Practice, 1996 (principal counsel)
(www.health.gov.au/hsdd/mentalhe/resources/pdf/rightsanalysis.pdf)
International Guidelines on HIV/AIDS and Human Rights, UNAIDS and the Center
for Human Rights, UN HR/PUB/98/1, 1996 (principal author & consultant for the
Second International Consultation on HIV/AIDS & Human Rights, Chair Justice
Michael Kirby) (www.unaids.org/publications/documents/human/law/3797.html)