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National firm, Arts Law Centre team up for fundraising trek
Colin Biggers & Paisley Lawyers will once again partner with The Arts Law Centre of Australia to support the latter’s legal services and promotion of indigenous artists.
Jerome Doraisamy
Helping Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists to protect their intellectual property from misuse and appropriation is the foremost objective of the Arts Law Centre’s ‘Artists in the Black’ program, which Colin Biggers & Paisley notes it is a “longstanding” supporter of.
This year’s challenge, which starts next week, will see a team of 13 firm members – together with Arts Law chief executive Robyn Ayres – trek more than 50km across Uluru-Kata Tjuta and Watarrka, in an expedition that will include a range of opportunities for cultural immersion and has been designed to support as many Aboriginal-owned businesses as possible, the firm said.
“Each of us has committed to raising at least $3,000 each and it is our goal to raise enough to allow Arts Law to keep the full-time lawyer,” CBP managing partner Nick Crennan said.
“This program makes such an important contribution to autonomy and resilience in these communities, offering these artists hope and opportunity.”
“It is a wonderful cause and we are very committed to supporting it,” he added.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists’ creations are not only a source of income but an expression of their culture, the firm noted in a statement.
“Unfortunately, solicitors working with ‘Artists in the Black’ have seen exploitation of these artists, including reproduction of artworks without the artist’s permission, withholding of royalties owed and copyright infringement,” the firm said.
“These breaches are not only emotionally devastating, they can also have a profoundly negative effect on their community and bring great shame to the artist and their family.”
Through providing free or low-cost specialist legal resources, ‘Artists in the Black’ can support and strengthen the indigenous arts sector, the firm argued.
Jerome Doraisamy
Jerome Doraisamy is the editor of Lawyers Weekly and HR Leader. He has worked at Momentum Media as a journalist on Lawyers Weekly since February 2018, and has served as editor since March 2022. In June 2024, he also assumed the editorship of HR Leader. Jerome is also the author of The Wellness Doctrines book series, an admitted solicitor in NSW, and a board director of the Minds Count Foundation.
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