Bri Lee
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Brianna "Bri" Lee (born 13 December 1991) is an Australian author, journalist, and activist, known for her 2018 memoir ''
Eggshell Skull The eggshell skull rule (also thin skull rule, papier-mâché-plaintiff rule, or talem qualem rule) is a well-established legal doctrine in common law, used in some tort law systems, with a similar doctrine applicable to criminal law. The rule ...
''.


Early life

Brianna Lee was born in
Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...
, Australia.


Career


Writing and journalism

Lee's early writing work included a short story published in Voiceworks, while serving as the founder and editor of the (now defunct) feminist quarterly periodical ''Hot Chicks with Big Brains''. ''Hot Chicks with Big Brains'' ran from 2015 until 2018, spanning seven issues. It featured articles and interviews with diverse women and
non-binary people Non-binary or genderqueer gender identities are those that are outside the male/female gender binary. Non-binary identities often fall under the transgender umbrella since non-binary people typically identify with a gender that is differ ...
, including
Darug The Dharug or Darug people, are a nation of Aboriginal Australian clans, who share ties of kinship, country and culture. In pre-colonial times, they lived as hunters in the region of current day Sydney. The Darug speak one of two dialects o ...
elder Aunty Jacinta Tobin, Isabella Manfredi, Mehreen Faruqi, Ruby Tandoh, and Clementine Ford. Lee's first book, the memoir ''
Eggshell Skull The eggshell skull rule (also thin skull rule, papier-mâché-plaintiff rule, or talem qualem rule) is a well-established legal doctrine in common law, used in some tort law systems, with a similar doctrine applicable to criminal law. The rule ...
'' was published by
Allen & Unwin George Allen & Unwin was a British publishing company formed in 1911 when Sir Stanley Unwin purchased a controlling interest in George Allen & Co. It became one of the leading publishers of the twentieth century and established an Australian ...
in early 2018. It describes Lee's experience as a complainant in the Australian court system for sexual abuse she was subjected to as a child, while simultaneously working as a Judge's Associate working on similar cases. The memoir was well received, winning several awards including the
People's Choice Award The People's Choice Awards is an American awards show, recognizing people in entertainment, voted online by the Fan (person), fans and Public, general public. The show has been held annually since 1975, with the winners originally determined us ...
at the 2019 Victorian Premier's Literary Awards, as well as the
Davitt Award The Davitt Awards are literary awards which are presented annually by the Sisters in Crime Australia association. The awards are named in honour of Ellen Davitt (1812–1879) who wrote Australia's first mystery novel, ''Force and Fraud'' in 186 ...
for debut novel and the Ned Kelly Award for best true crime in the same year. Funding for story development for a film adaptation was granted by
Screen Australia Screen Australia is the Australian Federal Government's key funding body for the Australian screen production industry, created under the ''Screen Australia Act 2008''. From 1 July 2008 Screen Australia took over the functions of its predecess ...
in March 2023. In 2021, passages from '' Eggshull Skull'' were quoted in a parliamentary debate regarding reform to the criminal justice system in Queensland. In 2023, Lee's work was discussed in the
Parliament of New South Wales The Parliament of New South Wales, formally the Legislature of New South Wales, (definition of "The Legislature") is the bicameral legislative body of the Australian state of New South Wales (NSW). It consists of the Monarch, the New South Wa ...
after the second reading speech for the ''Criminal Procedure Amendment (Child Sexual Offence Evidence) Bill 2023''. In October 2019, Lee's essay ''Beauty'' was published by Allen & Unwin. In the essay, Lee examines her struggles with
disordered eating Disordered eating describes a variety of abnormal eating behaviors that, by themselves, do not warrant diagnosis of an eating disorder. Disordered eating includes behaviors that are common features of eating disorders, such as: * Chronic restra ...
. It was praised for its dissection of corporate middle class culture. In 2020 Lee was appointed the Australian Copyright Agency's writer-in-residence at the
University of Technology Sydney The University of Technology Sydney (UTS) is a public university, public research university located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The university was founded in its current form in 1988, though its origins as a Institute of technology, ...
. Her book, ''Who Gets to Be Smart'', was published in 2021 by Allen & Unwin. In 2022, Lee's journalism for ''
The Saturday Paper ''The Saturday Paper'' is an Australian weekly newspaper, launched on 1 March 2014 in hard copy, as an online newspaper and in mobile news format. The paper is circulated throughout Australian capital cities and major regional centres. Since i ...
'' investigated a 'loophole' whereby perpetrators of abuse were able to shield their assets from civil claims brought by their victims, by moving them into their
superannuation A pension (; ) is a fund into which amounts are paid regularly during an individual's working career, and from which periodic payments are made to support the person's retirement from work. A pension may be either a "Defined benefit pension pla ...
. This was followed by further coverage by other outlets such as the ABC, and calls by Australian of the Year, Grace Tame for the government to enact reforms. The Australian Government subsequently pledged to close this loophole. Similarly, in 2023, Lee's investigative reporting into the financial affairs of Australian fashion label Ellery in ''
The Monthly ''The Monthly'' is an Australian national magazine of politics, society and the arts, which is published eleven times per year on a monthly basis except the December/January issue. Founded in 2005, it is published by Melbourne property developer ...
'' sparked further investigation and exposure by the ABC and other outlets. Lee was nominated for a
Walkley Award The annual Walkley Awards are presented in Australia to recognise and reward excellence in journalism. They cover all media including print, television, documentary, radio, photographic and online media. The Gold Walkley is the highest prize and ...
for the piece. Lee's debut novel, ''The Work'', dealing with the development of a long-distance relationship between an art gallery owner in
Chelsea, Manhattan Chelsea is a neighborhood on the West Side (Manhattan), West Side of the Boroughs of New York City, borough of Manhattan in New York City. The area's boundaries are roughly 14th Street (Manhattan), 14th Street to the south, the Hudson River an ...
, and a Queensland country boy turned art dealer, was published in 2024.


Advocacy and media

Together with
Bond University Bond University is Australia's first private university, private not-for-profit university and is located in Robina, Queensland, Robina on the Gold Coast, Queensland. Since its opening on 15 May 1989, Bond University has primarily been a teachi ...
's Professor Jonathan Crowe, Lee co-authored legal research and built ConsentLawQLD.com, a platform for the advocacy which led to the Queensland Attorney-General referring consent in rape and sexual assault to the Queensland Law Reform Commission in 2019. Lee has been featured in advertising campaigns for brands including Sportsgirl, Mimco, Camilla and Marc, and ''Fashion Journal''. Her advocacy has been recognised with a shortlisting for Women's Agenda Leadership Awards and a placement as one of the ''
Australian Financial Review The ''Australian Financial Review'' (''AFR'') is an Australian compact daily newspaper with a focus on business, politics and economic affairs. The newspaper is based in Sydney, New South Wales, and has been published continuously since its foun ...
''s "Women of Influence" in 2019. In 2021, in partnership with the Women's Justice Network and Gleebooks, Lee launched " Inside", an initiative facilitating the provision of books to inmates in women's correctional facilities in New South Wales. Lee hosts the 'B List Bookclub', a monthly bookclub featuring Australian and international authors, with the
State Library of New South Wales The State Library of New South Wales, part of which is known as the Mitchell Library, is a large heritage-listed special collections, reference and research library open to the public and is one of the oldest libraries in Australia. Establis ...
. Lee has made several appearances on the ABC program '' The Drum'' as well as appearing on
Radio National ABC Radio National, more commonly known as Radio National or simply RN, is an Australian nationwide public service radio network run by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). From 1947 until 1985, the network was known as ABC Radio 2. ...
, discussing issues such as law reform, and her written work.


Awards


Honours


Literary awards


Works

* '' Eggshull Skull'' (2018) * ''Who Gets to Be Smart'' (2021) * ''The Work'' (2024)


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lee, Bri Australian women's rights activists 1991 births Living people Writers from Queensland 21st-century Australian women journalists 21st-century Australian journalists Australian fiction writers