Carolyn Bond
Carolyn Bond
Carolyn Bond has been a consumer advocate for more than 40 years. For many years she was the CEO of the Consumer Credit Legal Service and then the co Ceo of the Consumer Action Law Centre. Currently she is the National co-ordinator, Economic Abuse Reference Group Project-facilitating the policyresponses of community organisationsto family violence and economicabuse (seewww.earg.org.au)Manywho have heard of Carolynwould be surprised to learn that she is not alawyer particularly as she sat on the Legal Services Board Victoria for 12yearsand given the impact she had and continues to have on policydevelopment for the marginalised in our community.
Carolyn and I talk about
- ·The history of consumer advocacy in Australia:
- How a landlord keeping the bond from a young woman set Carolyn on the path of lifelong consumer advocacy;
- Tenants Union Victoria now Tenants Victoria, Using mops and broomsin a protest outside a real estate agency to highlight poor landlordpractices in the late 1970’s;
- Some early history of Tenants Victoria and her interactions with MichaelSalvaris a barrister disillusioned withtenancy law who quit the bar to setup the Tenants Union
- Understanding how important itisto translate individual experiencesinto advocating for policy change;
- How galvanising social workers and other community workers to havethem write submissionsled to government changing tenancy law in the 1980 so that people had access to a tribunal if they were in dispute withtheirlandlord;
- Early financial counselling in Australia with just a handful of financialcounsellors in the early t980’s without any clear guidelines progressingto a profession within 40 years with approximately 1000 practicing financial counsellors;
- Becoming CEO of Consumer Credit legal service and theampaigngainstthe dodgy practicesof debt collectors.
- The impact of thatcampaign and the Supreme Court case by Collection Houseappealingagainst a win by a consumer led to Collection House making astatement to the stock exchange about the collection of statute barreddebt;
- The development of the ACCC debt collection guideline;
- Making a job share as a CEO work;Managing the risk of defamation actions;
- Effective community management boards and how to put one together;
- The role of the Economic AbuseReference groupprojectas an avenueof raising awareness and advocating for change in family violence andfinancial abuse
- TheNaysay.net website.With the motto “if its too good to be true....Exposing shonky providers such as property investor Rick Otton who was fined 18 million dollars, a record in Australia in 2018.
- Different way women may have to build relationships to be givenopportunities;“My strength is in my experience”. Why longevity in a singlesectorisaneffectivecareer strategy
If you want to find out more about Carolyn check out:
- THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF WOMEN & LEADERSHIP IN TWENTIETH-CENTURY AUSTRALIAhttp://www.womenaustralia.info/leaders/biogs/WLE0005b.htm
- And the transcript of Carolyn’s speech atthe 2013Ruby Hutchisonaddresshttps://www.accc.gov.au/system/files/2013%20Ruby%20Hutchison%20Address%20-%20Carolyn%20Bond%20-%2014%20March%202013_0.pdf
Oryou can contact herthroughlinkedinor drop me a line through the websitewww.lorettakreet.com.
The Collection House case mentioned Collection House Ltd v Taylor[2004]VSC 49 (03 March 2004)
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