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<strong>Annual</strong> <strong>Report</strong> 15/<strong>16</strong> 31<br />
Reflections<br />
Volunteers<br />
“Working at RACS has given me the unique opportunity to<br />
undertake varied and fascinating legal work, and to engage at<br />
all stages with Australia’s refugee status determination process.<br />
It has been nothing short of a life-changing experience to be<br />
able to work closely with people seeking asylum in Australia. It<br />
has also been a real pleasure and privilege to work closely with<br />
a truly wonderful and dedicated group of staff and volunteers<br />
at RACS. I feel very fortunate to have had this opportunity<br />
through the secondment program at King & Wood Mallesons”.<br />
Fiona Chong - King & Wood Mallesons Secondee<br />
“I started volunteering at RACS in late <strong>2015</strong> and volunteered<br />
around three days a week over the summer holidays. I’ve<br />
volunteered at other community legal centres and can safely say<br />
RACS gives its volunteers the most challenging and diverse range<br />
of tasks, as well as an unparalleled work environment. Whilst at<br />
RACS I’ve helped draft submissions, conducted legal search, sat<br />
in on pre-lodgement advice sessions, done statement read backs<br />
and worked with 30+ Tamil clients simultaneously delivering<br />
group advice scripts at Auburn Outreach! These opportunities<br />
to extend yourself are especially available if you can speak<br />
another language. As a student volunteer I’ve worked at both<br />
our Outreach centres, at our clinic advice nights at UTS and the<br />
Randwick office! Through that process I’ve gotten to know the<br />
most welcoming team of lawyers and fellow volunteers. When<br />
I was at Randwick twice a week, all the volunteers would get<br />
lunch together and sit in a big circle and chat or get drinks after<br />
work! The lawyers have also always been genuinely kind and<br />
welcoming, willing to answer questions and have even helped me<br />
with information for an assignment. It’s the perfect environment to<br />
meet amazing people and do genuinely engaging work. It’s not an<br />
overstatement to say my time at RACS has been transformative;<br />
it’s truly changed my worldview and future career path!”<br />
Subeta Vimalarajah – University of Sydney - Legal Volunteer<br />
“I’ve had the pleasure of volunteering with RACS since the end<br />
of <strong>2015</strong> at both the head office and outreach services. I assist<br />
lawyers with a variety of tasks ranging from administrative<br />
tasks to assisting with country of origin research. Every day<br />
is new and challenging, but always rewarding. I have learnt<br />
so much in my time at RACS about the Australian legal<br />
framework, about working with vulnerable clients and about<br />
the importance of the work that is done at RACS. Whether it is<br />
talking on the phone to clients or receiving the exciting news<br />
of a visa grant, the work that RACS does is invaluable.”<br />
Ruby Wawn – University of Technology, Sydney – Legal Volunteer<br />
“Volunteering at RACS opened my eyes to the best and the<br />
worst of the world. On the one hand, the clients that RACS<br />
helps can be traumatised, confused and vulnerable. They seek<br />
RACS’ help to navigate a legal framework that is designed for<br />
their failure. Yet I am constantly amazed and inspired by their<br />
courage and resilience, and by the unwavering commitment<br />
of everyone at RACS—from the Executive Director down to<br />
the volunteers. Volunteering at RACS feels like being part of<br />
a family—something I have never experienced in volunteering<br />
at other legal centres. The amount that RACS manages<br />
to do with such limited resources is a testament to the<br />
dedication and passion of each member of its family.”<br />
Dominic Wilcox – University of Sydney – Legal Volunteer<br />
“My internship with RACS was very rewarding. The opportunity<br />
to work in multiple facets was beneficial in exposing me to the<br />
full scope of a solicitor’s role. Everyone was extremely helpful<br />
and assisted me with learning the law. The various assignments<br />
I received increased my cultural and global competence in<br />
allowing me to interact with clients and other trainees. These<br />
assignments also exposed me to various aspects of the<br />
protection visa process. Assignments included assisting with<br />
weekly clinics, researching country information for submissions,<br />
preparing client statements for visa applications as well as<br />
preparing briefs for the judicial review project. Working with<br />
RACS was an invaluable opportunity and contributed a wealth<br />
of knowledge towards my maturation as an attorney.”<br />
Anesha Parker - University of Santa Clara, School of Law, California<br />
- Legal Intern<br />
Volunteers for the Legal<br />
Help for Refugees Clinic<br />
Aarthi Sridharan<br />
Aarti Gautam<br />
Abarnaa Mahendran<br />
Abdul Alizada<br />
Abdul Karim Hekmat<br />
Adam Abboud<br />
Adam T Murphy<br />
Aditya Gaur<br />
Adrian Rook<br />
Adrienne Jansen-Howard<br />
Ahmad Khalil<br />
Ahmad Reza Khedry<br />
Ahmad Seddiq<br />
Ahmed Naman<br />
Ahmed Rahman<br />
Ahsan Ali Khan<br />
Akhgar Amena<br />
Akhtar (Ozzie) Azhar<br />
Alan Dadban<br />
Alana Pike<br />
Alex Horne<br />
Alex Vaughan<br />
Alexandra McCosker<br />
Ali Ali<br />
Ali Aziz<br />
Ali High<br />
Ali Honardost<br />
Ali Merhab<br />
Alia Saab<br />
Alice Gardoll<br />
Alice Winter-Irving<br />
Alicia Wells<br />
Alison Saunders<br />
Alvina Hill<br />
Amanda Underwood<br />
Amelia Avery Williams<br />
Amelia Carew-Reid<br />
Amilee Myson<br />
Amritha Thiyagarajan<br />
Ana Pararajasingham<br />
Anastasia Krivenkova<br />
Andrea Carnuccio<br />
Andrew Dickson<br />
Andrew Wright<br />
Angela Tan<br />
Angelique Wanner<br />
Anita Joseph<br />
Anna Spies<br />
Annabel Davis<br />
Annas Nadeem<br />
Anne Himmelreich<br />
Annie Casper<br />
Annie McCluskey<br />
Anthea Burton<br />
Antonella Barry<br />
Antonina Pilat<br />
Antonio Hernandez<br />
Anwer Jabeen<br />
Anzer Khan<br />
Aparna Nanayakkara<br />
Aravin Selvan<br />
Arif Nabizadah<br />
Arnjali Amara<br />
Ashby Bueno<br />
Atina Tavan<br />
Aurora Pack<br />
Awaz Ali Moradi<br />
Ayesha Saeed<br />
Babu Chokkappa<br />
Barbara Guthrie<br />
Bashir Hadafmand<br />
Bashir Hamidi<br />
Basireh Heidari<br />
Batool Haidary<br />
Behzad Hajari<br />
Bei Wang<br />
Ben Fisher<br />
Ben Parkin<br />
Ben Williams<br />
Benjamin Goodyear<br />
Bernard Khoshaba<br />
Bernard Noel<br />
Bill Gerogiannis<br />
Brian Lee<br />
Brian Moir<br />
Bridie Norman<br />
Brienna Anderson<br />
Brindha Thiru<br />
Britt Smith<br />
Caitlin Whale<br />
Carly Bower<br />
Carmel Hanson<br />
Caroline Dimond<br />
Catherine Ding<br />
Charlie Ralph<br />
Charlotte Chompff<br />
Charlotte Gjedsted<br />
Charlotte Ng<br />
Charlotte Saunders<br />
Chitta Ranjan Mylvaganam<br />
Chloe Johnco<br />
Chris Chi Wong<br />
Christine Asani<br />
Christine Bourke<br />
Christine Keogh<br />
Christine Noel<br />
Ciara Gaffney<br />
Claire Burke<br />
Claire Guilfoyle<br />
Clementine Rendle<br />
Coral Dixon<br />
Dale Mundey<br />
Daniel Garan<br />
Daniel Vicano<br />
Daniela Fazio<br />
Dave McMillan<br />
David Jones<br />
David Kennedy<br />
David McCredie<br />
Debbie Anderson Lazarus<br />
Debbie Xu<br />
Deepak Shankar<br />
Deshana Barua<br />
Dharshi Harindra<br />
Diana Tang<br />
Dilini Withanage<br />
Dinusha Wijesuriya<br />
Dominic Eberl<br />
Edwina Kwan<br />
Edwina Tidmarsh<br />
Elahe Rafiee<br />
Elizabeth Bioik<br />
Elsa Loekito<br />
Elspeth Carruther<br />
Emily Collett<br />
Emily Hunter<br />
Emily Klotz<br />
Emily Rayner<br />
Emma Macintosh<br />
Emma Uptin<br />
Enayatullah Jamal
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