Participant details
Hugh M. McDonald
Studying legal need and capability from every angle, Hugh has worked on several landmark access to justice and legal needs projects.
Previously at the Law and Justice Foundation of NSW for 15 years, Hugh joined Victoria Law Foundation in September 2019 as Principal Researcher, taking on the Research Director role in August 2024. He led the Foundation’s Data Mapping Project, a sustained examination of the use and utility of Victoria’s civil justice data and continues to work on the Public Understanding of Law Survey.
Throughout his career, Hugh has worked closely with legal aid commissions, community legal centres, and state and federal governments, giving him a deep understanding of legal institutions and access to justice issues throughout Australia.
Richard Hodge
Richard is a leader in service excellence, with extensive experience in the design, delivery and change practices to support organisations to transform into digitally enabled, user-centre, service providers. He is an organisational capability enhancement professional with experience in overseeing projects and programs to modernise, recalibrate or accelerate organisational growth to achieve service excellence.
Since 2020 Richard has won a state, national and international award for user-centred digital justice service design in the public sector.
Richard leads the Magistrates’ Court of Victoria Service Centre which was recognised in June 2023 for its innovation, when it was awarded the Citizen-centred Service Design Award at the Institute of Public Administration Australia’s ‘Leadership in the Public Sector’ awards. The award recognises the MCV Service Centre as “an exemplar of innovation, demonstrable impact and inspirational delivery for the public sector and the Victorian community."
