Brennan Justice Talk #2 2026 Understanding the Right to Protest
WHEN
1 April 2026
Wednesday
6.00pm - 7.00pm Australia/Sydney
WHERE
Online
COST
Free admission
RSVP
CONTACT
Open to all UTS Law students. Join us for our second Brennan Justice Talk this Autumn session.
Democracy and the right to protest under international and domestic Law
Australian state governments have recently passed laws restricting the right to protest, including in NSW, where reforms limiting protest rights were passed and then enforced against those who demonstrated during the visit of the President of Israel, Isaac Herzog.
How is the right to protest governed under international and domestic law? On what basis have recent legislative reforms limiting the right to protest been challenged in Australian courts?
Join us to hear from international expert, Associate Professor Maria O’Sullivan (Associate Professor of Law, Deakin University) and Research Fellow, Dr Latoya Aroha Rule (Jumbunna, UTS) to learn about the right to protest, its limits under international and domestic law, and current Australian laws.
Maria O’Sullivan is an Associate Professor at Deakin Law School with expertise in human rights law, particularly the law of protest. Her work has been cited by the High Court of Australia, the European Court of Justice and government inquiries. She recently co-edited International Law and the Regulation of Protest (Routledge, 2026).
Dr Latoya Aroha Rule is of Wiradjuri First Nations and Te Ātiawa/Māori descent, and is a Research Fellow (Jumbunna UTS), writer and creative practitioner working at the intersection of justice reform, institutional accountability and human rights on Gadigal Nura (Sydney, Australia).