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A decade-long decline in Indigenous solicitor numbers has prompted the Law Society of NSW to launch a new foundation aimed at supporting more First Nations law graduates and strengthening Indigenous representation across the legal profession.
The Law Society of NSW has launched a new foundation to help Indigenous law graduates overcome the barriers to entering the legal profession, offering much-needed support as they transition from university to legal practice.
The newly established Indigenous Solicitors Foundation (ISF) aims to increase First Nations representation within the NSW legal profession by helping graduates overcome the financial and cultural challenges that can hinder their pathway into law.
The initiative will support essential costs associated with launching a legal career, including Practical Legal Training (PLT), IT equipment, textbooks, legal subscriptions, and professional attire for interviews, making the transition into practice more accessible for Indigenous graduates.
Representing more than 47,000 solicitors across the state, the Law Society of NSW said the foundation is an important step towards building a legal profession and justice system that “more accurately” reflects the communities it serves.
Law Society of NSW president Ronan MacSweeney said the foundation comes in response to a decade-long decline in First Nations representation within the state’s legal profession, with Indigenous solicitors now accounting for less than 1 per cent of all NSW lawyers.
“There are now 100 fewer Indigenous solicitors in NSW than there were 10 years ago. In 2014, 477 solicitors identified as First Nations, representing 1.6 per cent of all NSW solicitors,” MacSweeney said.
“However, in 2025, there were only 350 First Nations lawyers in NSW, just 0.8 per cent of the profession.
“At the last census, Australia’s Indigenous peoples made up 3.4 per cent of our population. Applied proportionally to the 45,000 solicitors in NSW, First Nations practitioners should number around 1,500.”
Against the backdrop of the sharp decline, MacSweeney urged the legal profession and the broader community to support the foundation, saying greater backing is essential to help more Indigenous law students pursue careers in law.
“The Law Society of NSW is calling on law firms, practitioners, and the wider community to donate to the ISF so Indigenous law students can overcome the financial barriers that can discourage them from pursuing a life in the law,” MacSweeney said.
The ISF will be led by a board that includes globally recognised Indigenous education advocate Professor Jack Beetson, a Ngemba man, and the Law Society’s First Nations councillor Danielle Captain-Webb, a Wiradjuri and Gomeroi woman.
Serving as a director alongside Law Society of NSW CEO Kenneth Tickle, MacSweeney said he was confident the foundation would help strengthen Indigenous representation while bringing more First Nations voices, lived experience, and expertise into the legal profession and justice system.
“As this year’s president of the Law Society, I’m honoured to be a director of the ISF, serving alongside our CEO Kenneth Tickle,” MacSweeney said.
“Informed by guidance and cultural authority from Ms Captain-Webb and Professor Beetson, I’m confident that the ISF will make significant headway towards bringing more Indigenous lived experience and expertise to our justice system.”
He added: “I acknowledge and commend existing organisations already working on similar goals to the ISF. I encourage donors to these organisations to continue their generosity and to consider also supporting the ISF. We are also grateful for the significant pro bono work Gilbert + Tobin provided in setting up the foundation.”
