Candidate statement:
As a Councillor of the Law Society, I will:

• consult, listen and understand your issues, concerns and professional support needs;

• ensure your interests as practising solicitors are proactively raised and addressed through the Council.

I will actively:

• encourage solicitor membership of the Law Society;

• ensure your professional development and support needs are addressed promptly, effectively and in your best interests;

• support your community engagement initiatives

I come with:

• over thirty years as a legal practitioner

• many years serving as on Law Society Committees

• a lifetime of community service

My experience in advocacy and representative roles, detailed below, enables me to be your clear and strong voice at the Council table. Thank you for stopping by.

My Background

I have over thirty years as a legal practitioner, initially at the NSW Bar where I practised mainly in crime, equity, commercial and family law. I also gained appellate experience the NSW courts, federal tribunals and the Full Federal Court of Australia.

I have subsequently been employed in NSW Government legal roles including as a Senior Solicitor at NSW Police Legal and as a Principal Lawyer at the former WorkCover Authority.

I am currently a Principal Lawyer with the NSW Department of Customer Service.
Throughout my career I have also served, and continue to serve, in the Army Reserve. Initially, in the Legal Corps I appeared as counsel in trials by courts-martial. Subsequently, as a Major in the Royal Australian Corps of Military Police, I commanded an MP Company and deployed to East Timor in 2002 as a peacekeeper. My current military role is with the Army Compliance and Assurance Unit. I recently deployed as part of the ADF’s Operation COVID-19 Assist.

My Law Society Involvement

I proudly hold specialist accreditation in Government and Administrative Law and have, on occasions, assisted with the accreditation process of fellow public law practitioners.

One of the especially enjoyable aspects of my involvement with the Law Society has been my involvement as a mentor in the Young Lawyers Mentoring Program. There, I have met some very talented practitioners and endeavoured to assist them in evolving into the lawyers they wish to become.

My earliest involvement with the Law Society dates back to the 1980s when I was sitting on the Young Lawyers Community Assistance Committee. We worked together to help develop the Children’s Court Handbook of the time. In the evenings we used to visit the youth detention centres providing free legal advice and support to young offenders in custody.

Up to and including 2021, I have regularly served on various Law Society Committees with the aim of promoting the work or our profession within the community of New South Wales. I sat for many years on the Government Lawyers Committee and especially enjoyed contributing to the planning of the annual government legal conferences.

I have also sat on the Public Law Committee and taken a special interest in the contributions made by the Law Society to advocacy for a human rights act in Australia and a human rights charter for New South Wales.

A special highlight of my involvement with the Law Society was many enjoyable years sitting on the Human Rights Committee. There we contributed to the development of social justice policy papers. For a number of those years I also sat on the NSW Regional Board of Amnesty International and was consistently impressed by the strong and mutually supportive overlap of the great work in the human rights space by both the Law Society and Amnesty International.
While on the Human Rights Committee, we agreed there was an urgent need to develop a community education program on human rights. In collaboration with the Bar Association’s Human Rights Committee, we then approached the Workers Education Association-Sydney (WEA) and offered to design a suitable program for them. That offer was enthusiastically accepted and from there we started what is now a regular part of the annual community education calendar at WEA where I continue to deliver popular programs on human rights, social justice, environmental law and climate change.

My Representative Experience

A vote for me means a vote for someone who can strongly, capably and passionately represent you and advocate for your needs, your support requirements, your developmental goals and your aspirations as a legal practitioner. I offer you the benefit of my considerable experience sitting on peak bodies, including extensive board and committee experience including having sat on the committees outlined above, along with the Board of Shelter NSW, the Board of Cana Communities and both the Board and Council of WEA.

I currently serve on the Board of Directors of Coast Shelter. I also sit on the Policy Advisory Council of Homelessness NSW.

My Promise to You

With your vote I will be your empathetic listener and your strong, loud, and clear voice at the Council Table.

I will enthusiastically promote the Law Society and you as its valued members as a professional group dedicated to meeting the needs of your clients in all ways and at all times.

In addition, I will contribute to facilitating the Law Society’s ongoing work as a thought leader in key areas of community life.

Areas of particular social and environmental concern to me include:

• Promoting access to justice and pro bono support to marginalised and disadvantaged members of our communities

• Assisting and supporting Australia’s 116,000 homeless persons along with those who are at risk of homelessness or social isolation.

• Promoting solutions to climate change, including the achievement of Net Zero Carbon Emissions by 2050 and optimising our local Australian interim greenhouse gas reduction targets under the Paris Agreement.

If you would like to know more about my background, you are welcome to visit my website: Howard Bell – Candidate for the Council of the Law Society of NSW (drhowardbell.com)

I look forward to hearing from you at any time if you would like to discuss your professional interests, goals, aspirations and how I can be of service to you as a Councillor of the Law Society of NSW.