Michael James Dodson is an

Aboriginal Australian Aboriginal Australians are the various indigenous peoples of the Australian mainland and many of its islands, excluding the ethnically distinct people of the Torres Strait Islands. Humans first migrated to Australia 50,000 to 65,000 year ...

barrister and academic. He was Australia's first Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner with the

Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission The Australian Human Rights Commission is the national human rights institution of the Commonwealth of Australia, established in 1986 as the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission (HREOC) and renamed in 2008. It is a statutory body ...

. His brother is Pat Dodson, also a noted Aboriginal leader and from 2016 to 2024 a senator in the Federal Parliament, representing

Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...

Early life and education

Michael James Dodson was born in

Katherine, Northern Territory Katherine is a town in the Northern Territory of Australia. It is situated on the Katherine River, after which it is named, southeast of Darwin, Northern Territory, Darwin. The Northern Territory#Cities and towns, fourth largest settlement in ...

, Australia. He is a member of the Yawuru people in the Broome area of the southern

Kimberley Kimberly or Kimberley may refer to: Places and historical events Australia Queensland * Kimberley, Queensland, a coastal locality in the Shire of Douglas South Australia * County of Kimberley, a cadastral unit in South Australia Ta ...

region of

. Following his parents' death, he boarded at Monivae College,

Hamilton, Victoria Hamilton is a city in south-western Victoria, Australia, Victoria, Australia, at the intersection of the Glenelg Highway and the Henty Highway. The Hamilton Highway connects it to Geelong. Hamilton is in the Australian House of Representatives, ...

. He graduated with degrees in jurisprudence and law from

Monash University Monash University () is a public university, public research university based in Melbourne, Victoria (state), Victoria, Australia. Named after World War I general Sir John Monash, it was founded in 1958 and is the second oldest university in the ...

in 1974, as the first Indigenous person to graduate from law in Australia.

Career

Following graduation, Dodson worked as a solicitor for the Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service from 1976 until around 1980. He was admitted to the Victorian Bar in 1981, and commenced work as a barrister. In 1988 he was appointed as Counsel assisting the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody, remaining in that role until 1990. He has worked extensively as a legal adviser in native title and human rights.

Academia

Dodson has lectured as a visiting academic at the

University of Arizona The University of Arizona (Arizona, U of A, UArizona, or UA) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Tucson, Arizona, United States. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, it ...

and

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

. He was Professor of Law at the

Australian National University The Australian National University (ANU) is a public university, public research university and member of the Group of Eight (Australian universities), Group of Eight, located in Canberra, the capital of Australia. Its main campus in Acton, A ...

and director of its National Centre for Indigenous Studies until his retirement in March 2018.

Other roles and activities

Dodson has been active in politics of Australian government, justice, and

crime prevention Crime prevention refers to strategies and measures that seek to reduce the risk of crime occurring by intervening before a crime has been committed. It encompasses many approaches, including developmental, situational, community-based and crimin ...

. He has been a prominent

advocate An advocate is a professional in the field of law. List of country legal systems, Different countries and legal systems use the term with somewhat differing meanings. The broad equivalent in many English law–based jurisdictions could be a ba ...

land rights Land law is the form of law that deals with the rights to use, alienate, or exclude others from land. In many jurisdictions, these kinds of property are referred to as real estate or real property, as distinct from personal property. Land use ...

and other issues affecting

Indigenous Australians Indigenous Australians are people with familial heritage from, or recognised membership of, the various ethnic groups living within the territory of contemporary Australia prior to History of Australia (1788–1850), British colonisation. The ...

. His efforts for the rights of

indigenous people There is no generally accepted definition of Indigenous peoples, although in the 21st century the focus has been on self-identification, cultural difference from other groups in a state, a special relationship with their traditional territ ...

around the world in 2005 made him a member of

United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues The United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII or PFII) is the UN's central coordinating body for matters relating to the concerns and rights of the world's indigenous peoples. There are more than 370 million indigenous peop ...

. In 2015 he was the Chief Investigator for the ''Serving Our Country: a history of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the defence of Australia'' project, an Australian Research Council-funded research project based at The Australian National University. On 10 October 2023, Dodson was one of 25 Australians of the Year who signed an

open letter An open letter is a Letter (message), letter that is intended to be read by a wide audience, or a letter intended for an individual, but that is nonetheless widely distributed intentionally. Open letters usually take the form of a letter (mess ...

supporting the Yes vote in the Indigenous Voice referendum, initiated by psychiatrist Patrick McGorry.

Honours

* Australian Living Treasure, 1997 *Distinguished Alumni Award,

, 1998 *

Member of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an Australian honours and awards system, Australian honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Monarch ...

(AM), 2003 *Member of the Order of Indonesia (PM), awarded on

New Year's Day In the Gregorian calendar, New Year's Day is the first day of the calendar year, January 1, 1 January. Most solar calendars, such as the Gregorian and Julian calendars, begin the year regularly at or near the December solstice, northern winter ...

2003 * Australian of the Year * Chairperson of the

Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies The Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies (AIATSIS), established as the Australian Institute of Aboriginal Studies (AIAS) in 1964, is an independent Australian Government statutory authority. It is a collecting, ...

*Fellow,

Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia The Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia (ASSA) is an independent, non-governmental organisation devoted to the advancement of knowledge and research in the social sciences. It has its origins in the Social Science Research Council of Aus ...

, 2009

Honorary doctorates

*Honorary Doctor of Letters,

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, ...

, 1998 *Honorary Doctor of Laws,

University of New South Wales The University of New South Wales (UNSW) is a public research university based in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It was established in 1949. The university comprises seven faculties, through which it offers bachelor's, master's and docto ...

, 1999 *Honorary Doctorate,

University of Canberra The University of Canberra (UC) is a public university, public research university with its main campus located in Bruce, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory. The campus is from Belconnen Town Centre, and from Canberra's Civic, Australian ...

, 2010

Controversy

It is alleged that Mick Dodson verbally abused a woman at an NTFL game. The incident was investigated by the NT government but the outcome was not disclosed.

References

External links

ANU College of Law profileSelected publications and presentations
Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies {{DEFAULTSORT:Dodson, Mick 1950 births Living people Australian barristers Lawyers from Melbourne Australian legal scholars Australian lobbyists Australian indigenous rights activists Australian of the Year Award winners Indigenous Australians from Western Australia Monash Law School alumni Members of the Order of Australia People from Broome, Western Australia People from the Northern Territory Fellows of the Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia Academic staff of the Australian National University Indigenous Australian academics Australian republicans