Access to justice

Young lawyer Jyoti (Joy) Jadeja is recognised at the 2017 Justice Awards for her work through the Law Society Pro

Bono Scheme be used to assist people in navigating the legalities of the world. My social justice radar is always on overdrive - I sincerely believe that it is my civic duty to help wherever and however I can.”

BY RITAM MITRA

Last month, the Law and Justice Foundation of NSW recognised the most pre-eminent contributions to the improvement of access to justice in NSW at the 2017 Justice Awards. In a prestigious ceremony held at NSW Parliament House, over 300 attendees celebrated the extraordinary work done by individuals and organisations across the state to help make the law more accessible, particularly to those from socially or economically disadvantaged backgrounds.

One of the youngest honourees this year was Joy Jadeja, a solicitor at Westside Legal who was nominated for the Law Society President’s Award in recognition of her work through the Law Society Pro Bono Scheme.

Joy, one of four nominees for the coveted award, was recognised for her exceptional litigation skill, professionalism and her tireless dedication to advance the fairness and equity of the justice system. She was nominated from over 30,000 solicitors performing work under the pro bono scheme, which refers disadvantaged individuals to solicitors prepared to act on a pro bono basis.

The Law Society encourages pro bono assignments as part of a solicitor’s wider community responsibility - in fact, the National Pro Bono Resource Centre has an aspirational target of 35 hours of annual pro bono work per lawyer. Speaking to Indian Link, Joy says it’s a responsibility that she takes very seriously. “I have always seen it as my duty to help those that can’t help themselves,” she says. “We all need help sometimes and I am lucky enough that my particular set of skills and knowledge can

It’s a testament to Joy’s excellence - and her transcendent awareness of the importance of access to justice - that of the four nominees in her category, she was, by some decades, the youngest.

To Joy, it was a surreal experience to be nominated alongside experienced individuals held in such high regard within the profession. “With the thousands of solicitors who are out there working hard every day for their clients, doing their best to ensure everyone has fair and equitable access to justice who weren’t nominated, I am simply honoured to have been nominated. My fellow nominees are exceptional solicitors with decades of experience and legal knowledge, pillars of the community and an inspiration to all the young lawyers out there including myself. No one dedicates their career to a cause for external validation; we do it because we love it and couldn’t imagine doing anything else. However, it was still immensely gratifying and humbling. I still can’t stop smiling!”

Joy accepts referrals from often desperate individuals facing complex and critical legal problems of an inherently personal nature, including immigration, employment, family and criminal law. She often finds herself - like many others in her profession - sacrificing time and energy that would otherwise be dedicated to family, friends and other personal endeavours. “It’s not a job, it’s a lifestyle,” notes Joy. Preparing for court demands perfect preparation - sleepless nights spent writing submissions, working through several briefs, double and triple checking - all in the pursuit of doing what is best for the client.

“It doesn’t matter to me if it looks like I might not have time for a life outside of work,” says Joy. “You must expect that is

I’m reading > going to happen, especially when what’s at stake is someone’s very livelihood. You just have to make time.”

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak and I absolutely love it. This is the third time I have read this book and yet I still get lost in the pages. It’s written from Death’s perspective which makes it even more intriguing! A great read every time!

I’m listening to > AM radio. It’s good background noise when I’m working as I just cannot work in silence! You’d be surprised at how it grows on you! I love listening to the different opinions offered by talk back radio, as I believe seeing things from a different perspective enhances one’s understanding of the world and oneself.

In such a demanding line of work, with so much at stake, motivation is key - and it often transpires from the most unlikely of sources. Joy notes in particular her interactions with a very elderly client who had been in disadvantaged and maligned circumstances for the majority of his life. His positive attitude and friendly disposition were in stark contrast to what Joy recalls as his “extremely troubling experiences”, including having been taken advantage of on countless occasions due to his inability to read and his difficulties with writing. “He has taught me a lot about resilience and stoicism in the face of great adversity. Together we turned his fortunes around, obtained the justice that was so long overdue, and yet, even though it was he who had gone on this journey, I felt like I was the one who changed. Clients like these teach you more about yourself and help you reflect on what’s really important.”

Important, too, for Joy has been her support network of friends and colleagues guiding her through the more difficult and demanding moments of her young but burgeoning career. In a profession which consistently ranks among the highest for instances of depression, particularly for young lawyers, the role of those mentors and colleagues is even more pronounced.

“I am a big believer in speaking to your colleagues and mentors on a regular basis,” she says. “I call it ‘dial-a-friend’!”

I’m watching > Suits on Net ix. I don’t get much time to relax and watch shows but I always make time for Suits! I love that it’s a dramatic and romantic depiction of the legal profession. Although our work is not at all like that, it makes for great TV!

I’m planning > my wedding to my ancé Brandon Etto in my ancestral home, Dharmadwar in Ahmedabad, Gujarat. Dharmadwar has hosted and celebrated many a wedding of family and global friends, so thankfully it’s been a breeze! I’m very excited to see my Aussie friends at the wedding in India soon!

SBI backs nightclub in Melb

In a refreshing departure from its somewhat strait-jacketed image, the State Bank of India (SBI) is in final talks to back a luxury hospitality chain from India investing in a nightclub in Melbourne.

Sources said that the bank is investing less than 1 million in the nightclub, which is coming up on Little Bourke Street in Melbourne’s CBD.

Confirming this to Indian Link, Pranay Kumar, Chief Executive Officer of SBI Sydney, said that SBI wants to support investments from India and that discussions for this project are on the ‘last mile.’

“We have enough checks and mitigation measures in place to ensure that this is a sound financial decision and that the risk is minimal,” Kumar explained, adding that the most important factor to consider is the reputation of the investor. “We always check the background of the investor or business house, their past success and see how much they are investing in the venture,” Kumar said, adding that the bank will also closely monitor each day’s sale of the business to ensure that it is running viably.

In this case, since this a hospitality chain that has several properties around India, SBI believes it is on a firm footing.

However, this is not the first time that SBI Sydney has supported investment in such a venture. SBI has also backed a highprofile pub in Barangaroo.

SBI Sydney is also in talks to advance loans to people who want to invest in franchises on 7 11 stores and Australia Post.

Kumar also said SBI has tied up with Macquarie and launched Macquarie SBI Infrastructure Fund (MSIF) in India, an unlisted private equity style infrastructure fund with approximately 910 million USD of committed capital. The fund provides its investors located outside of India opportunities to invest in infrastructure and infrastructure-like assets in India. “We invest in small and mid-sized companies in various sectors such as roads and telecom, hospitality and hospitals,” Kumar said.

Similarly, SBI Macquarie Infrastructure Trust (SMIT) is an unlisted private equity style infrastructure fund with approximately 260 million USD of committed capital.

For its customers in Australia, SBI Sydney on 9 November launched two digital products. The first was the SBI Australia Anywhere mobile banking app. The SBI describes the app as a safe, convenient and easy to use application with a host of features to help users manage their banking on the move. The functions that users can do with the help of the app are check account summary, request a cheque

The SBI Australia Anywhere app launch

book, make transaction inquiry, inquire status of requests, change password and so on. The app is available on Apple, Android and Windows platforms.

transactions through the bank’s website. During the launch event, the bank also honoured prize winners who participated in the bank’s Diwali flash sale for remittance business. SBI Sydney also announced that it is now a sponsor of Chatswood West Cricket Club, a club affiliated to North Shore Cricket Club, NSW.