Submission to the National Inquiry into Equal Recognition Before the Law and Legal Capacity for People With Disability

This national Inquiry was announced by the Australian Government in July 2013. The Inquiry, being undertaken by the Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC) will examine laws and legal frameworks within the Commonwealth jurisdiction that deny or diminish the equal recognition of people with disability as persons before the law and their ability to exercise legal capacity, and consider what, if any, changes could be made to Commonwealth laws and legal frameworks to address these matters. The ALRC’s final report is due in August 2014. This document is WWDA’s formal Submission to the National Inquiry into Equal Recognition Before the Law and Legal Capacity for People With Disability. WWDA’s Submission examines six key priority areas for women with disabilities that are considered crucial in the context of the National Inquiry. These six areas are: 1) Gendering the National Inquiry into Equal Recognition Before the Law and Legal Capacity for People With Disability; 2) Sexual and Reproductive Rights and Freedoms; 3) The Right to Freedom from Violence, Abuse, Exploitation and Neglect; 4) The Right to Found and Maintain a Family; 5) The Right to Work; and, 6) The Right to Participate in Political and Public life. Copyright WWDA January 2014.