LLB (UNSW) 1976, Hon LLD (UNSW) 1999
Former Magistrate Patricia "Pat" June O'Shane AM is a Kuku Yalanji woman born 19 June 1941 in Mossman, QLD. An activist and trailblazer, O’Shane has a long list of ‘firsts’ to her name. She was the first woman Aboriginal teacher in Queensland before studying law at UNSW and becoming the University’s first Aboriginal graduate. Earning her Bachelor of Laws in 1976, O’Shane went on to become the first First Nations barrister in Australia, working with the Aboriginal Legal Service. She was appointed head of the New South Wales Ministry of Aboriginal Affairs from 1981 to 1986, making her the first woman and Aboriginal person to be the head of a government department. O’Shane was the first Aboriginal person to be appointed as a magistrate in 1986 and served the Sydney local court until her retirement in 2013. Her many accolades and achievements include Lifetime Awards at the Deadly and NAIDOC Awards and an Order of Australia. Pat O’Shane also received an Honorary Doctor of Laws from UNSW in 1999.
