Solicitor claims Canberra University unfairly terminated contract

A senior lawyer who oversaw a gender equality initiative within the University of Canberra’s business, government and law faculty claimed she was unfairly dismissed.

Amy Kilpatrick, the former deputy general counsel at the Australian National University, told the Fair Work Commission (FWC) that the University of Canberra unfairly dismissed her in March when it refused to extend her maximum contract by another 12 months.

For a two-year term, Kilpatrick was the director of strategy and governance at the university’s 50/50 by 2023 Foundation, a research-based gender equality initiative founded in 2017.

She told FWC she had talked with Professor Geoffrey Crisp, in his capacity as executive dean of the business, government and law faculty, in mid-2023 about transferring her role to the law school and claimed she was appointed a lecturer for term one of 2024.

However, FWC deputy president Lyndall Dean said she was not satisfied these discussions took place, and Kilpatrick’s role ended because of her maximum contract coming to an end.

“The applicant is an experienced lawyer … she ought to have been aware of the process for contract extensions within the respondent, and her emails support a finding she did not … consider her employment had been extended,” Dean said.

In her submissions to the FWC, Kilpatrick said she received mostly positive feedback about the inaugural Pathways to Politics Program for Women from internal and external parties, including Crisp and Dr Robert Rigby, the faculty general manager.

Kilpatrick claimed that in September or October last year, Crisp and Rigby told her the contract would be extended “regardless of whether [or not]” the vice-chancellor granted a funding proposal.

Further, she alleged she was told the faculty had backed a gender equity business plan “and has included your salary and the costs of the gender economist into the faculty budget”.

Then, in January 2024, Kilpatrick claimed Professor Uwe Dulleck, who took over from Crisp, told her the contract would not be renewed, the funding was not supported, and she could not be a director “because you don’t even have a PhD”.

She added she was allegedly told: “Managing the pathways program is not a full-time job, and a part-time administrator can run it. You might be able to do that, but it would be at a far lower salary.”

Dean accepted the evidence of Crisp and Rigby that “no such representation” about an ongoing role was made.

“I am also satisfied that the contract extension representation was not made given the evidence of the usual process the respondent would follow if it were to extend an employment contract,” Dean said.

“I also accept that Dr Rigby would not have made such a representation given his inability based on the level of his role.”