About AIFLAM

AIFLAM is the peak industry body representing family law mediators and arbitrators in Australia. AIFLAM works closely with the Courts and Government as a spokesperson for mediator and arbitrator interests, and advocates for its members as being ready, trained and able to provide options for alternative dispute resolution in the family law jurisdiction.


AIFLAM Board Members

In accordance with our Constitution, the AIFLAM Board consists of a representative from each State in Australia, and observer representatives of the Family Law Section, Federal Circuit Court and Family Court of Australia and the Attorney-General's Department.  

Following the AGM held on 6 November 2025, the AIFLAM Board consists of:


Foley's List
205 William Street
Melbourne VIC 3000

P: 03 9225 7777
E: eswart@vicbar.com.au

Emma Swart

Chair

VIC Representative

Emma Swart was admitted to practice as a lawyer in 1986 and qualified as a mediator in 1995.  She has been a barrister since 1998, practicing in family law parenting, property and related debt matters as a member of Foley’s List at the Victorian Bar.  

She is a nationally accredited mediator, a family law arbitrator and registered family dispute resolution practitioner.  

She has completed advanced training in general mediation, transformative mediation and mentalizing in mediation. She assists in coaching and assessing for AIFLAM's mediation training. 


FLB Chambers
Level 10, Quay Central
95 North Quay
Brisbane QLD 4000

Family Law Chambers - Sydney

Holmes List - Melbourne

T: 07 3517 7906

E: colin@colinforrest.com.au
W: www.colinforrest.com.au

The Hon Colin Forrest SC

Deputy Chair

QLD Representative

Colin has spent thirty-six years working as a family lawyer. He spent two years as a solicitor, twenty-one years as a barrister, ten years as a trial judge of the Family Court of Australia and has now been back in practice at the Bar for three years, with chambers in Brisbane and Sydney.  He works principally in alternative dispute resolution, conducting and appearing for clients in mediations and arbitrations throughout Australia. Colin also provides advice to solicitors and clients as required.

Colin is a Sessional Judicial member of the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal having also previously served on the Commonwealth’s Administrative Appeals Tribunal, the Social Security Appeals Tribunal, and the Queensland Anti-Discrimination Tribunal. Colin also served as Queensland’s Public Interest Monitor for several years, monitoring and responding to Police applications for covert surveillance and telephone interception warrants. 

Colin served as President of the Family Law Practitioners’ Association of Queensland after being a Board member for several years. He was the Queensland Bar’s nominated representative on the Queensland Law Society’s Family Law Specialist Accreditation Committee. Colin is a member of the Council of the Queensland Chapter of the Australian Institute of International Affairs and is studying part-time towards a Master’s Degree in International Relations at the University of Queensland. 


Rafton Family Lawyers
PO Box 502
Richmond NSW 2753

T: 02 4578 5611 
E: maurice@rafton.com.au
W: www.rafton.com.au

Maurice Edwards

Treasurer

NSW Representative

Maurice is an Accredited Family Law Specialist (NSW Law Society), a Registered Family Dispute Resolution Practitioner (Attorney General’s Dept.), a Nationally Accredited Mediator (AMDRAS), an Accredited Family Law Arbitrator (AIFLAM) and a trained Collaborative Family Lawyer. He is special counsel at Rafton Family Lawyers and is the team leader of RAMP, the Rafton Arbitration and Mediation Practice. 

Maurice has been working in the family law space for over 40 years, approximately 5 years in Orange in the Central West of NSW and for the last 35 years in Sydney, predominantly as a lawyer but more recently as a mediator and arbitrator. He is a fellow of the International Academy of Family Lawyers and a member of the Family Law, Mediation and Arbitration Committees of the International Bar Association.

Maurice has trained specifically in the mediation of child abduction matters with judges, lawyers and social scientists from both Australia and Japan and is a recommended mediator on the Doyles Guide of Leading Mediators in NSW. He has presented many papers on both family law mediation and arbitration at seminars and conferences over the last 10-15 years


Parker Coles Curtis Lawyers
Level 9, AMP Building
1 Hobart Place
Canberra ACT 2601

T: 02 5114 2660
E: dparker@parkercolescurtis.com.au
W: www.parkercolescurtis.com.au


Debra Parker

ACT Representative

Debra Parker is the Founding Director of Parker Coles Curtis. Debra is a specialist family lawyer and the only lawyer in Canberra with Specialist Accreditation in two areas (family law and dispute resolution). She is a qualified arbitrator and collaborative divorce lawyer. 

Debra is a member of the prestigious international Academy of Family Lawyers. She currently chairs the ACT Law Society’s Alternative Dispute Resolution Committee and sits on the International Law Committee. Debra is an expert on all areas of family law including matters such as surrogacy, adoption and child abduction and served a 10-year appointment as a Registrar of the Family Law Courts. Debra made the Australasian Law exclusive list of top 50 ‘Elite Women’ and is listed by Doyles as ‘Preeminent’ family lawyer & ‘Leading’ Mediator. 


Clairs Keeley Lawyers
PO Box 3301
East Perth WA 6892

T:  08 9228 0811
E: vincent@clairskeeley.com.au
W: www.clairskeeley.com.au

Vincent Tan

WA Representative

Vincent was admitted as a legal practitioner in 2008 and has practiced in family law since 2010. He received a masters in family law in 2015, has been an accredited mediator since 2015 and a Family Dispute Resolution Practitioner (“FDRP”) since 2016. He has been a partner of Clairs Keeley since 2019, a firm known for its collaborative and mediation focused approach.

He has co-lectured the NMAS/AMDRAS mediation course at The University of Western Australia since 2019 and helped design the FDRP curriculum at The University of Western Australia. Vincent has provided training in mediation to practitioners in remote and regional Western Australia, for providers such as Anglicare WA and Centrecare in metropolitan Western Australia and regularly presents on mediation and negotiation at the Law Society of Western Australia and the Family Pathways Conference.


Darwin Family Law
Level 3, 9 Cavenagh Street
Darwin NT 0801

T: 08 8946 1666              E: Tessa@darwinfamilylaw.com.au  W: darwinfamilylaw.com.au


Tessa Czislowski

NT Representative

Tessa was admitted to the Supreme Court of the Northern Territory in 2011 and has been practising exclusively as a family lawyer for 13 years. She is a Partner at Darwin Family Law, where her focus is on assisting clients to navigate the family law system to achieve the best possible outcome for their family.

Tessa has been a registered Family Dispute Resolution Practitioner since 2019 and has completed her mediation training through AIFLAM to become a Nationally Accredited Mediator. 

In addition to working in private practice, Tessa is a Commissioner for Legal Aid NT and sits on the Law Society NT’s Family Law Committee.


Dobson Mitchell Allport
1st Floor, 31 Stewart Street
Devonport TAS 7310

P: 03 6424 7588
E: linda.connelly@doma.com.au  W: doma.com.au

Linda Connelly

TAS Representative

I have significant advocacy experience in a range of Family law matters. I am passionate about the need for alternative dispute resolution in Family Law as well as other areas of dispute.

I value, have been involved with, and made contributions to professional and community organisations over the last two decades such as Tasmanian Law Society, the Family Law Practitioner Association of Tasmania, the North West Community Legal Centre, Forth Primary School and the Make-A-Wish Foundation (Devonport Branch).

I spend my time away from the office, cooking, trail running, being dictated to by my dogs and drinking coffee.


Campbell Chambers
Level 1/113 Carrington Street
Adelaide SA 5000

P: 08 8110 4900
E: sstrickland@campbellchambers.com.au
W: campbellchambers.com.au



The Hon Steven Strickland KC

SA Representative

Steven graduated from the University of Adelaide with an Honours Degree in Law in 1972, and in 1979 he was awarded a Master’s Degree in Law from the University of British Columbia. He practiced as a Barrister and Solicitor until 1984 when he joined the independent Bar, and in 1988 he was appointed KC.  

In 1999 he was appointed a Judge of the Family Court of Australia, and in 2009 was assigned to the Appeal Division of that Court. From 2019 Steven was the administrative head of the Appeal Division until his retirement as a Judge on 20 November 2021.   

Steven was a member of the Executive of the Family Law Section of the Law Council of Australia from 1994 until 1998 when he became Chair of the Section. He qualified as an Arbitrator in 1996 and was a Director of AIFLAM from 1998 until his retirement as a Judge.  

He continues to serve as Chair of the Arbitration Committee of AIFLAM and is an AMDRAS accredited Mediator. He is also President of Pacifica Congress Ltd. In addition, Steven holds appointments as an Adjunct Professor at both the University of Adelaide and Southern Cross University.  

Since his retirement as a Judge, Steven has returned to practice as a Barrister, Arbitrator, Mediator and Consultant.   

Separately, Steven is a member of the National Sports Tribunal, and a Commissioner with the Disciplinary Tribunal of the Adelaide Football League.


Lander & Rogers
Level 11, 1 Eagle Street
Brisbane QLD 4000

P: 07 3456 5150
E: kalroe@landers.com.au
W: landers.com.au


Kate Alroe

Family Law Section Representative

Kate works exclusively in Family Law at Lander & Rogers. She has been in practice for over a decade, working across Queensland in Brisbane, Gold Coast, Toowoomba and Townsville, and has a deep understanding of the challenges and opportunities facing family law practices in both major cities and regional areas.  

Kate has an interest in legal reform and community. She volunteers for the WLSQ, LGBTI Legal Service and Pyjama Foundation. She has previous board experience as a committee member of Althea Projects, was shortlisted for Lawyers Weekly Senior Associate of the Year, and was named a Rising Star by Australasian Lawyer.


27 Surflen Street
Adelaide SA 5000

P: 08 8212 7583
E: ajames@mitchellchambers.com.au
W: mitchellchambers.com.au


Alison James

Family Law Section Representative

Alison's family law experience spans 30 years now. She is a barrister, Advanced Family Law Arbitrator, Accredited Family Law Specialist, Family Dispute Resolution Practitioner, and Accredited mediator. 

Alison appears regularly as counsel in the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (FCFCOA) and handles briefs in property and parenting trials and appeals as well as interim defended hearings. She has a particular interest in a diverse range of property settlement cases involving trusts and equity, as well as family businesses. In parenting matters, Alison works with families affected by violence, mental ill health, addiction and substance abuse to final resolution. 

Alison is Chair of the Member Services Committee of the SA Bar Association, and is a member of the Resolution Institute and currently one of the Family Law Section's representatives on the AIFLAM Board.




The Hon Justice Jarrett

Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Division 1) Representative

Justice Jarrett was admitted as a solicitor of the Supreme Court of Queensland on 8 April 1989 after completing five years Articles of Clerkship first with Clayton, Murrell & Woolmer and then Hopgood and Ganim (as it then was). Between his admission and April 1991 he was employed as a solicitor with the firm of Hopgood and Ganim in the firm's commercial litigation section. 

On 8 April 1991 Justice Jarrett was admitted as a barrister of the Supreme Court of Queensland. He practiced as a barrister from chambers in Brisbane in a wide range of civil litigation including vendor and purchaser actions, landlord and tenant actions, employment related litigation, insolvency litigation, product liability claims, and actions under the Trade Practices Act. Justice Jarrett also practiced, although not exclusively, in matrimonial litigation, including disputes relating to children, maintenance and property. 

Justice Jarrett was appointed to the Federal Magistrates Court of Australia (as it was then known) on 2 February 2004. He became a Judge of the Federal Circuit Court of Australia on 12 April, 2013. He presided over cases across all areas of the Court’s jurisdiction including the administrative law, bankruptcy, consumer law, intellectual property, child support, human rights and equal opportunity, migration, industrial and (occasionally) admiralty jurisdictions exercised by the Court. On 15 October, 2021 Justice Jarrett took up his appointment to the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Division 1) (formerly known as the Family Court of Australia).


Judge Suthers

Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Division 2) Representative

Judge Suthers is one of two representatives of the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (‘the Court’). 

Prior to her appointment to the Court, Judge Suthers practised in the family law jurisdiction for over 25 years, working in Central and North Queensland and then in Newcastle and Sydney.  During that time, Judge Suthers has practised as a nationally accredited mediator (NMAS), nationally accredited arbitrator (AIFLAM), registered family dispute resolution practitioner, registrar of the various iterations of the Court, counsel and accredited family law specialist.

These roles have enabled Judge Suthers to participate in and/or facilitate various dispute resolution events including arbitrations, conciliation conferences, property mediations and family dispute resolution events.

Judge Suthers has been a member of the Australian Institute of Family Law Arbitrators and Mediators (AIFLAM) since 2019.


AIFLAM Secretariat

Executive Officer - mail@aiflam.org.au 




EMAIL

mail@aiflam.org.au

CALL US

1300 511 916

ADDRESS

c/- 82-84 Melbourne Street, North Adelaide SA 5006


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