Two end-of-year ceremonies in Adelaide Convention Centre today will see 730 graduating Flinders University students receive their degrees, and honorary doctorates conferred on magistrate Dr Andrew Cannon and water resources reformer Karlene Maywald
Flinders Chancellor, Mr Stephen Gerlach, said the honorary degrees acknowledge two major contributors to the public life the South Australia.
“While from very different spheres, Dr Cannon and Ms Maywald have both brought tangible benefits to the community through their record of public service in the respective areas of civil law reform and community leadership,” Mr Gerlach said.
“Their close links with Flinders are ongoing, and the University is proud to recognise and salute their commitment to progressive reform,” Mr Gerlach said.
The award of a Doctor of Laws honoris causa recognises Dr Cannon’s contribution to the law, academia and the community.
Deputy Chief Magistrate of the Magistrates Court of South Australia, Dr Cannon has served as a magistrate since 1979. He has held several leading judicial roles, including Deputy State Coroner, and has presided on commercial, mining and residential tribunals. He is a member of the Order of Australia.
His long and close relationship with Flinders University has been instrumental in enabling world-class empirical research into the Australian court system, and he has taught mining law and civil procedure.
His original double degree in law and arts was followed by postgraduate study at the University of Wollongong, culminating in a PhD in 2001. An experienced and accredited mediator, Dr Cannon is an adjunct academic at Flinders and in Germany. He publishes extensively in scholarly journals and professional practice publications.
He has introduced several important reforms, especially as Senior Supervising Magistrate for civil matters (2002-12), introducing fixed-rate cost scales in civil cases, developing court-provided mediation for small claims and pre-trial matters, and initiating a system of court-appointed experts.
His involvement with Indigenous justice includes work for the Aboriginal Legal Rights movement, promoting judicial understanding of Aboriginal justice issues and a current role in Aboriginal sentencing conferences. He has developed jurisprudence to encourage a culture of resolution by negotiation between landowners and miners in SA.
Through his voluntary role on the committee of the Australian Institute of Judicial Administration (AIJA), he has been active in local, national and international judicial education programs.
Ms Maywald will receive the award of Doctor of the University in recognition of her diverse contributions to the South Australian community, particularly in the area of public policy.
As representative of the seat of Chaffey in the South Australian House of Assembly from 1997 to 2010, she was South Australia’s Minister for Water Security and the River Murray during one of the worst drought periods in living memory. She has served on numerous national ministerial councils and has a proven, long-standing track record in water reform.
In the context of Flinders, Ms Maywald is a member of the New Venture Institute (NVI) Advisory Council and has worked with Flinders University Rural Clinical School as a consultant and adviser since 1997.
Described in the citation as “a visionary with a great blend of tenacity, pragmatism and diplomacy”, Ms Maywald’s recent achievements include leading the community rebuilding effort following the Sampson Flat bushfire and chairing the National Water Commission.
She continues to serve the community holding board-level roles with SA Water, Sturt Fleurieu Education and Training, GPEx and Flinders University NVI. In addition, she is the Chair of water resources training and education broker ICE WaRM, a facilitator with businesswomen’s network Behind Closed Doors, and Managing Director of Maywald Consultants Pty Ltd.