Supporting

The Registrar’s functions include supporting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander corporations to succeed and promoting good governance.

Provide corporate governance training

ORIC delivers corporate governance training to corporations that are either registered under the CATSI Act or planning to be. The training supports good governance and works to:
• build knowledge and skills among the directors, staff and members who participate in the programs
• increase the efficiency and accountability of the directors and staff of corporations
• ultimately, strengthen Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.

Training is delivered by ORIC staff and external contractors, who are predominately Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

Scheduled courses are listed on the ORIC website at oric.gov.au/training with an online form to apply to participate. Customised training, that is adapted to the individual needs of corporations, is also available on request. The Registrar encourages directors, members and staff of corporations to apply for corporate governance training.

The range of courses on offer in 2017–18 was:

• Introduction to Corporate Governance (ICG) — a three-day workshop
• Two-day Governance Workshop — a compressed form of the ICG
• Building Strong Stores — delivered in two two-day blocks for corporations that govern community stores
• Certificate IV in Business (Governance) — delivered in four one-week blocks
• Diploma of Business (Governance) — delivered in five one-week blocks
• corporation-specific training (CST) — tailored to the particular needs and circumstances of corporations that request training.

ORIC also offers a Diploma of Business (Governance) but it was not delivered this year.

In 2017–18, ORIC delivered training to 1058 participants from 254 corporations, continuing the steady increase since 2014–15. There were 106 workshops in total (one diploma; one certificate IV; seven Introduction to Corporate Governance workshops; seven Two-day Governance Workshops; one Building Strong Stores workshop; and 89 corporation-specific workshops). Ninety-seven per cent of participants reported they increased their understanding of corporate governance. Ninety-seven per cent of participants reported a significant increase in their understanding of corporate governance— the highest satisfaction rate ever.

Table 8: Participation in training from 2012–13 to 2017–18

	Target	2013–14	2014–15	2015–16	2016–17	2017–18
Number of participants	1000	1015	886	865	943	1058
Number of corporations	162	194	169	208	260	254
Participants that reported a significant or very significant increase in corporate governance knowledge	90%	91.1%	90.0%	88.2%	92.1%	97.42%

Figure 9: Participation in all training, for the last five years

Figure 10: All training courses by state and territory, 2017–18

Training locations

Every year as part of our annual planning for training activities we analyse a range of factors including:

• attendance and retention rates for previous training workshops
• cost-effectiveness
• demand/requests for training
• emerging regulatory risks, priorities and issues.

This year, ORIC continued its focused delivery of Introduction to Corporate Governance workshops in major urban locations and Two-day Governance workshops in regional and remote locations.

A lot of training was concentrated in Queensland. It had the most workshops, the most corporations involved in training and the most participants.

Figure 11: Locations of all training provided in 2017–18

Introduction to Corporate Governance

The Introduction to Corporate Governance workshop (ICG) opens a clear pathway to best-practice corporate governance. It introduces key concepts and principles and invites participants to apply the ideas and practices to their own corporations.

The ICG is the pre-requisite for the Certificate IV in Business (Governance).

ORIC delivered seven ICG workshops across Australia in 2017–18. A total of 162 people, representing 74 corporations, participated.

Table 9: ICG workshops 2017–18

Date	Location	State/Territory	No. of corporations	No. of participants
25–27 July	Townsville	QLD	9	17
26–28 September	Darwin	NT	11	25
6–8 February	Hobart	TAS	10	16
6–8 February	Geraldton	WA	10	30
6–8 March	Cairns	QLD	14	30
15–17 May	Adelaide	SA	11	24
19–21 June	Cairns	QLD	9	20
		TOTAL	74	162

Two-day Governance Workshop

We developed the Two-day Governance Workshop for corporations in remote regions, as well as members who are unable to leave home for an extended period. The program is a condensed form of the ICG. Generally, the workshops take place in community locations and are run by ORIC’s regional officers, with sensitivity to cultural protocols and ways of learning. The two-day workshop was first offered on a trial basis in the 2015–16 year and has proved to be a successful format. In 2017–18 ORIC delivered Two-day Governance Workshops in seven regional and remote locations, as listed in the table below.

Table 10: Two-day Governance Workshops in 2017–18

Date	Location	State/Territory	Corps	PPL
19–20 July	Kununurra	WA	3	14
9–10 August	Broome	WA	7	25
10–11 October	Mount Isa	QLD	4	10
20–21 February	Port Augusta	SA	4	14
20–21 March	Coffs Harbour	NSW	9	24
15–16 May	Alice Springs	NT	15	25
13–14 June	Kalgoorlie	WA	6	16
		TOTAL	48	128

Building strong stores

In 2017–18 ORIC reintroduced the Building Strong Stores program. The updated program was delivered in two two-day blocks in Katherine in December 2017 and February 2018. The program was attended by 25 directors and/or members of eight corporations that operate community stores.

Accredited training

To cater for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people who want to extend their corporate governance knowledge and management skills, in 2017–18 ORIC ran two accredited training courses in business governance: the Certificate IV and the Diploma.

For the certificate IV course, students from two states (Western Australia and central and far north Queensland) travelled to Cairns for the four blocks of training and in November, 13 were awarded a Certificate IV in Business (Governance).

The more in-depth and high-level diploma course ran in Sydney in five blocks. In early July 2018, eight people from four states and territories (Queensland, Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales) were awarded a Diploma of Business (Governance) in a ceremony at Tranby College.

Corporation-specific training

Corporation-specific training (CST) workshops are usually held at a corporation’s premises or a central venue within a community. The training is conducted over one or two days and is adapted to meet a corporation’s needs. The standard
workshops are:

• rule design and re-design
• corporation/post-administration governance training
• corporation support and mentoring.

In 2017–18 ORIC delivered 89 CST workshops for:

• 101 corporations
• 715 participants.

Table 11: CST workshops, 2017–18

Date	Location	State	Corporations	Participants
1/07/2017	Port Macquarie	NSW	1	8
17/07/2017	Ballina	NSW	1	4
24/07/2017	Sydney	NSW	1	7
26/07/2017	Orange	NSW	1	9
9/08/2017	Tabulam	NSW	1	8
23/08/2017	Dubbo	NSW	1	5
14/09/2017	Walhallow	NSW	1	7
15/09/2017	Ropes Crossing	NSW	1	6
19/09/2017	Albury	NSW	1	9
11/10/2017	Kempsey	NSW	1	9
24/10/2017	Mt Druitt	NSW	1	8
26/10/2017	Katoomba	NSW	1	6
2/11/2017	Lismore	NSW	1	9
16/11/2017	Condobolin	NSW	1	5
29/11/2017	Albury	NSW	1	6
6/02/2018	Maclean	NSW	1	9
7/02/2018	Kyogle	NSW	1	6
11/02/2018	Port Macquarie	NSW	1	10
20/02/2018	Dubbo	NSW	1	8
21/02/2018	Taree	NSW	1	8
26/02/2018	Tumut	NSW	1	10
16/03/2018	Sydney	NSW	1	7
20/03/2018	Eden	NSW	1	9
29/06/2018	Redfern	NSW	1	6
19/07/2017	Alice Springs	NT	1	12
16/08/2017	Darwin	NT	1	6
22/08/2017	Arnhem Land	NT	1	33
22/08/2017	Katherine	NT	1	8
23/08/2017	Darwin	NT	1	5
24/08/2017	Maningrida	NT	1	18
26/09/2017	Canteen Creek	NT	1	7
18/10/2017	Alice Springs	NT	1	7
25/10/2017	Ali Curung Community	NT	1	16
31/10/2017	Jilkminggan Community	NT	1	3
10/11/2017	Tiwi Island	NT	1	8
13/03/2018	Katherine	NT	1	15
10/04/2018	Batchelor	NT	1	8
29/05/2018	Tennant Creek	NT	1	9
30/05/2018	Tennant Creek	NT	1	8
11/07/2017	Woorabinda	QLD	1	10
8/08/2017	Brisbane	QLD	1	9
21/08/2017	Stradbroke Island	QLD	1	5
30/08/2017	Cairns	QLD	1	7
31/08/2017	Cherbourg	QLD	1	6
4/10/2017	Thursday Island	QLD	1	13
24/10/2017	Logan	QLD	1	9
26/10/2017	Stradbroke Island	QLD	1	8
31/10/2017	Cherbourg	QLD	1	7
2/11/2017	Cherbourg	QLD	1	5
13/11/2017	Townsville	QLD	1	7
20/11/2017	Manoora	QLD	1	6
1/12/2017	Yarrabah	QLD	1	5
2/03/2018	Albany Creek	QLD	1	7
2/03/2018	Mt Isa	QLD	1	10
12/03/2018	Rockhampton	QLD	1	6
12/03/2018	Palm Island	QLD	2	8
23/03/2018	Murray Island	QLD	1	12
27/03/2018	Darnley Island	QLD	4	13
27/03/2018	Maryborough	QLD	1	7
10/04/2018	Pormpurraaw	QLD	1	6
11/04/2018	Pormpurraaw	QLD	1	5
16/05/2018	Doomadgee	QLD	1	4
29/05/2018	Badu Island	QLD	2	9
1/06/2018	Yarrabah	QLD	1	10
1/06/2018	Moa Island	QLD	2	6
12/06/2018	Warraber Island	QLD	2	8
14/06/2018	Mt Isa	QLD	1	10
15/06/2018	Mabuiag Island	QLD	2	6
27/06/2018	Hopevale	QLD	4	14
13/09/2017	Manunka Homelands	SA	1	8
6/03/2018	Point Pearce	SA	1	10
20/09/2017	Shepparton	VIC	1	6
28/07/2017	Kununurra	WA	1	3
28/07/2017	Perth	WA	1	5
1/08/2017	Geraldton	WA	1	4
3/08/2017	Halls Creek	WA	1	6
30/08/2017	Kunawarritji Community	WA	1	12
2/10/2017	Kalumburu	WA	1	7
24/10/2017	Perth	WA	2	6
29/11/2017	Perth	WA	1	4
25/01/2018	Halls Creek	WA	1	6
16/02/2018	Halls Creek	WA	1	4
20/02/2018	Albany	WA	1	5
7/03/2018	Derby	WA	1	18
1/05/2018	Narrogin	WA	1	12
8/05/2018	Bidyadanga	WA	1	4
17/05/2018	Broome	WA	1	5
29/05/2018	Meekatharra	WA	1	4
20/06/2018	Brookton	WA	1	6
			101	715

Average costs to deliver training

Table 12: Average costs to deliver training, 2017–18

Training type	Average cost per participant
CST	$129
Two-day	$214
ICG	$1,354
BSS	$1,322
Certificate IV	$10,135
Diploma	$12,153

Publish guidance

ORIC provides corporations and other interested people with a wealth of guidance on the CATSI Act and good governance, including:

• information on starting and running a corporation
• fact sheets
• guides to legislation and reporting
• newsletters
• templates for:
  • rule books
  • a membership register
  • application forms for members and directors
  • meeting notices, minutes and resolutions.

The guidance offers practical advice and tips on various topics. Materials are developed or revised throughout the year in response to trends and issues in the sector identified through complaints about corporations, inquiries, examinations, training activities, local officer engagement, and common issues with lodgement of forms and other information. Guidance is provided in both digital and printed formats.

As a general indicator of demand for general information and guidance, during 2017–18 there were 180,806 sessions on the website (up 7.5 per cent from last year) by 85,543 users (up 10.1 per cent). On average users viewed 2.85 pages per session (up 9.6 per cent).

Fact Sheets

ORIC has 20 titles in its core fact sheet series. We also provide a range of other information sheets that offer guidance on specific matters such as rules required for gift funds. Consistent with the previous year, the two most downloaded fact sheets were ‘A corporation’s rule book: what you need to know’ and ‘Duties of directors and other officers’. Membership-related fact sheets were also popular this year—not surprising given the February 2018 Oracle theme of ‘Managing your membership’.

Table 13: Most downloaded factsheets from oric.gov.au

Fact sheet title	Total downloads	Unique downloads
A corporation’s rule book: what you need to know	835	757
Duties of directors and other officers	825	763
The CATSI Act and the Corporations Act—some differences	404	367
Becoming a corporation member	372	334
Meetings for directors	371	321
Members’ rights	361	320
Complaints involving corporations	353	323
Meetings for members	317	290
Minutes of meetings	246	223
Corporation size and reporting	244	226
Registers of members and former members	234	205

Note: the overall reduction in downloads of fact sheets may be a consequence of a higher number of fact sheets being available in HTML form, and a shift in preference for reading on screen rather than downloading to print.

Policy statements

ORIC publishes policy statements to provide guidance on the Registrar’s interpretation of or clarity on certain aspects of the CATSI Act.

In 2017–18 ORIC revised the following policy statements:

• PS-01: Providing information, advice and public comment
• PS-04: Registration under the CATSI Act
• PS-29: Disqualified persons and the Register of Disqualified Officers

ORIC ORACLE

We produce the ORIC Oracle newsletter for registered corporations as well as others interested in their work. Each newsletter provides guidance on running an effective corporation and shares knowledge about the sector. It’s published quarterly, online and in print.

In 2017–18 the themes were as follows:

• Making decisions (August 2017)
• Planning and holding directors’ meetings (November 2017)
• Managing your membership (February 2018)
• CEO accountability (May 2018).

You can see back issues—and subscribe to forthcoming issues—at oric.gov.au/oracle.

ORIC Oracle Newsletter
February 2018 issue

ORIC Oracle Newsletter
May 2018 issue

Presentations

As part of contributing to public discussion and education about the CATSI Act, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander corporations and the role of the Registrar and ORIC, staff and the Registrar make presentations and speak at relevant forums. For example, ORIC participated in a series of regional forums for prescribed bodies corporate, led by the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet and the National Native Title Tribunal. We also presented at the Australian Institute of Company Directors’ update in the Northern Territory.

Provide information and advice

Call centre and other inquiries

ORIC operates a call centre offering information and advice to corporations and others interested in the governance and regulation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander corporations. Calls are free from fixed line phones. ORIC aims to immediately answer all calls recognising that many callers in remote or very remote regions have limited telephone access or mobile phone coverage and long wait times or a call back are not viable options. In 2017–18, 185 calls from 7901 calls received (2.3 per cent) that were presented during business hours were diverted to voice mail.

In 2017–18, 7901 unique calls were made to the ORIC’s freecall number, 1800 622 431.

Table 14: Calls to 1800 622 431

Measure	2016–17	2017–18
Total calls presented	8702	8497
Less calls re-presented to a more active phone line	274	596
Total unique calls presented	8428	7901
- Calls answered by an ORIC officer	8261	7605
- Calls referred to voice mail during business hours	38	185
- Calls presented but caller hung up before speaking	67	52
- Calls received after hours	62	59

In 2017–18, ORIC finalised 4253 inquiries from corporations and the public including requests for information, support and referrals.

Table 15: Inquiries finalised by method of inquiry, 2015–16 to 2017–18

Inquiry method	2015–16	2016–17	2017–18
By phone	3051	3364	3224
In writing	1797	1892	989
In person	26	105	40
TOTAL	4874	5361	4253

Provide support services

Local support

ORIC’s regional officers spend a significant portion of their time visiting corporations in person, attending and supporting meetings, and delivering governance training workshops. In 2017–18 ORIC expanded its regional office network to include new temporary offices in the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara lands in South Australia and Thursday Island in the Torres Strait.

Coffs Harbour

Staff of the Coffs Harbour office, Christian Lugnan and Blanche Saunders, look after corporations in New South Wales. (Christian also manages ORIC’s Brisbane and Cairns offices.)

A native title win for Gumbaynggirr people

On Friday 8 December 2017, on country at Urunga, New South Wales, the Federal Court formally recognised a significant native title consent determination covering 48.5 hectares of land for the Gumbaynggirr people. The Gumbaynggirr native title claim commenced 20 years ago, with a number of significant amendments before the first determination in 2014. The corporation established to hold the native title on trust for the Gumbaynggirr people is the Gumbaynggirr Wenonah Head Aboriginal Corporation. Christian Lugnan worked extensively with the group and the native title representative body (NTS Corp) in the areas of good corporate governance to ensure the corporation was well prepared for the outcome. Christian is a traditional owner of the Gumbaynggirr people and also a director of the corporation.

A significant milestone for Coota Girls

A highlight of the year for Christian Lugnan and Blanche Saunders of Coffs Harbour office was working with the Coota Girls Aboriginal Corporation to bed down their governance practices. Its members and directors are all former residents of the Cootamundra Domestic Training Home For Aboriginal Girls 1912–68. The corporation looks after the social, emotional and spiritual wellbeing of all former residents, as well as their families and descendants. One long-held goal for the corporation was to establish an office in Sydney. Sydney Central train station is an iconic place for the Coota ladies—they all passed through there before being taken to Cootamundra. After partnering with the State Rail Authority of New South Wales, the corporation has celebrated the opening of a new office at Central station. A place that once represented their removal has become a place of reunion and care. The opening of the new office was a very special event; Blanche attended along with one of ORIC’s senior managers, Helen Wright. ORIC will continue to support and assist this corporation.

Brisbane

Viaella Aldridge looks after the Southern Queensland and Gulf & North Queensland regions from the Brisbane office.

Viaella continues to assist corporations to remain compliant and to build capacity through governance training as well as support and guidance to directors at board meetings and annual general meetings. This year she also worked with the Queensland government and corporations to make necessary changes to their rulebooks to allow for the transfer of land under the Aboriginal Land Act 1991. Before land can be transferred to a corporation, their rule book must be amended to reflect the corporation’s purpose and role as the trustee of the land. Among other things, the rule book must stipulate the corporation represents Aboriginal interested parties in all matters related to the ownership, use, occupation of and access to land it holds. Transfers of land under that Act enable the corporations to manage the land according to local tradition or custom. It can also open up opportunity for economic prosperity through enterprise development initiatives. From the ‘Agreements, treaties and negotiated settlements’ website at atns.net.au:

The Aboriginal Land Act 1991 (Qld) was passed along with the Torres Strait Islander Land Act 1991 (Qld) in order to provide mechanisms for land to be granted to groups of Indigenous people in Queensland. The Act acknowledges the dispossession of Indigenous people and the effects of past injustices. It expresses parliament’s recognition of the spiritual, social, historical, cultural and economic importance of land to Indigenous people and that these interests have not been adequately recognised by the law.

Cairns

Ray Lennox looks after corporations in north Queensland from the Cairns office.

Meeting the challenges of RNTBCs

During the year, Ray assisted with two registered native title bodies corporate (RNTBCs) under special administration, and experienced first-hand some challenges that directors of RNTBCs face in order to keep their money story on track, manage disputes and ensure proper consultation processes in accordance with the Native Title Act 1993. Ray is also working with native title representative bodies in north Queensland to ensure a coordinated approach to meeting the governance challenges of RNTBCs.

Celebrating achievements and connections

In November 2017, Cairns also hosted the graduation ceremony for students in the Certificate IV in Business (Governance) course at Tjapukai Cultural Centre. For Ray, it was good to see the strong bond that directors of corporations from\ across the country had built, as they celebrated their achievement with dancers from different areas. Participants also commented that it was good to mix with directors from other corporations and hear about the work they are doing.

Alice Springs

Dayna Lister looks after corporations in the southern half of the Northern Territory and all of South Australia, working from the Alice Springs office.

Special administrator for a day

This year, Dayna reports on the unusual circumstances that led to her appointment as a special administrator for just one day.

Anyungyumba Aboriginal Corporation incorporated on 4 July 1988 as a landholding entity, and a couple of years later, the title to a small parcel of land was transferred to the corporation. Fast forward to 2015 and after lodging its 2015 general report, it emerged that the last surviving member of the corporation had passed away. At that point, the corporation’s viability was compromised. Without directors, membership applications could not be processed; and without members, new directors could not be elected. Deregistration was looming for Anyungyumba, which would have meant losing the title to the land.

Descendants of the original members were determined to keep the corporation going, and the only way for the corporation to admit new members and appoint directors was through a special administration. That’s how it came to pass that the Registrar appointed Alice Springs regional manager, Dayna Lister, as special administrator for one day.

The Central Land Council and ORIC worked with the family of the original members of the corporation to identify proposed new members and directors, and Dayna was appointed special administrator on 21 September 2017. As well as admitting new members and appointing directors, the special administration enabled another problem of the corporation to be resolved. Previously, the corporation’s rule book stipulated that only people who came from a particular place were entitled to use or occupy the land. That clause was no longer appropriate, so the rule was revised to recognise entitlement by Aboriginal tradition.

Having admitted new members, appointed new directors and amended the rule book, Dayna returned the corporation to members on the same day, at a meeting in Laramba community. Dayna Lister is not the first ORIC officer to be appointed as a special administrator—Peter Armstrong, a former manager of the regulation team was the first—but she is the first regional officer to perform that role.

Darwin

Staff of the Darwin office, Hannah Roe and Margetta Avlonitis, look after corporations in the Top End and Tiwi Islands, and Arnhem Land and Groote Eylandt. Hannah also manages the Broome office.

For Hannah and Margetta, 2017–18 began and ended with a celebration, and the year will be remembered as that in which Darwin consolidated its status as a hub of activity for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander corporations.

Celebrating the decade

On 5 July we hosted a special and very wellattended celebration of the 10th anniversary of the CATSI Act—and all the work that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander corporations have done during that decade to strengthen communities and culture.

A northern hub

During the above event, the Minister for Indigenous Affairs announced a technical review of the CATSI Act, which inspired the current process of legislative revision. Notably, of the 14 consultation sessions ORIC orchestrated with corporation representatives around the country, the Darwin session involved the most people. We have a very active community of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander corporations in the Top End, including most of the highest-earning.

On 8 May, the federal Budget brought with it the announcement that as part of the government’s agenda to decentralise non-policy entities, 10 Canberra-based staff of ORIC will move to Darwin by June 2019. Ultimately, this decision means we will be better positioned to serve the 1169 corporations based in northern Australia.

The formation of an ORIC northern hub has been welcomed, with positive feedback received from corporations and key stakeholders across the region. The hubs model will provide northern corporations greater access to ORIC support services. Further, the move aligns with the government’s agenda to develop the north and build governance capacity in corporations looking to take up economic development opportunities in their communities.

Celebrating women’s leadership

The last part of the year was taken up with preparations for a NAIDOC Week event in collaboration with Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) and the Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD). The theme for NAIDOC this year, ‘because of her we can’, was a great opportunity to celebrate the strong contribution of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women on boards and in business in the Northern Territory.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women perform active and significant roles in their local communities. For as long as ORIC has tracked the gender split among directors in our top 500 report, women have outnumbered men. The NAIDOC Week event was held to honour women and to encourage the next generation. With the assistance of Aboriginal Broadcasting Australia two videos were produced to showcase Aboriginal women’s leadership at the event. The first video had directors from The Arnhem Land Progress Aboriginal Corporation—the largest corporation registered with ORIC—covering the important role women play on the board. The second video was a powerful compilation of interviews with significant and influential Aboriginal women from the NT who are directors on boards and in business.

Broome

Working from the Broome office, Sid Michels and Jill Rudeforth look after corporations in the Kimberley region.

Pride, commitment and inspiration

Yakanarra Aboriginal Corporation is the governing body for the Yakanarra community, which is 129 kilometres from Fitzroy Crossing in Western Australia’s Kimberley region. Access to the community is along a badly corrugated dirt road riddled with washouts, which in the wet season is often cut off.

In March 2018 Sid Michels was invited to the corporation’s delayed AGM. After the arduous drivehe was greeted by a well-maintained community consisting of houses, a small store and what the community is most proud of: a community school. Owned by the corporation, the school is the
main employer in Yakanarra.

The corporation’s AGM was held on an undercover basketball court and attended by members and visiting service providers. Sid was on hand to provide guidance to the directors and members on how to run the meeting, and advice on the rules governing the AGM and election of directors. The meeting was well run and successful. Afterward, Sid met with the directors, provided guidance on their roles and responsibilities, and offered to return to deliver governance training.

ORIC staff are privileged to travel to locations such as this and to meet people like the members of Yakanarra Aboriginal Corporation. The pride and commitment they have for their community and school is inspirational.

Assets of a deregistered corporation

Formerly operating in the town of Yalgoo in Western Australia, Marddu Council Aboriginal Corporation was deregistered for failing to comply with its reporting requirements and because the Registrar had no reason to believe that the corporation was carrying on a business.

At the time of deregistration, the corporation held two properties in Yalgoo. Under section 546-20(2) of the CATSI Act, any property of a deregistered corporation is vested in the Registrar, and unless a property is held on trust, the Registrar may sell it. After weighing up the costs of doing so—given Yalgoo’s remoteness; fees for conveyancing and a real estate agent; the condition of the properties; and the amount for which they might be sold—the Registrar decided to sell. Expenses incurred from the sale will be covered by the purchase price, and the remaining funds will be transferred to the Commonwealth. At the time of writing, one of the properties is listed for sale and awaiting a buyer; the other will soon be.

Disposing of property vested in the Registrar can be complex and expensive. It is always the Registrar’s preference that corporations remain operational and make full use of their assets.

Perth

Arthur Hyde looked after the Greater Western Australia region from the Perth office and recently retired after six years service. George Donaldson moved from Alice Springs to Perth in January 2018.

 

A wheatbelt corporation steadily strengthening

Seabrook Aboriginal Corporation in Brookton, Western Australia (a rural town 140km south-east of Perth) was registered in 1992. In 2000, after amendments to its rule book, the Indigenous Land Council (ILC) recognised Seabrook as representing the traditional owners from the Brookton Noongar community, and purchased Glenroy Farm for the corporation. A few years later the Aboriginal Lands Trust transferred management responsibility to Seabrook for a parcel of land previously known as Brookton Aboriginal Reserve. In addition, Seabrook owns its own community centre, administration centre and other assets in the community.

The corporation leases Glenroy Farm for cropping, which provides a steady income stream for community development programs focused primarily on the local Aboriginal community.

Programs include:

• a playgroup
• a youth club
• a sewing and mosaic club
• payment for parent helpers at the local school
• a housing assistance program
• family bereavement assistance
• yearly Christmas coupons for member families.

The lease has also enabled Seabrook to construct a state-of-the-art playground next to their community centre, as well as ablution facilities at the reserve.

Seabrook operates as a sustainable business. A key strategic focus for the corporation is to provide opportunities for skills training and employment for local Aboriginal people. Seabrook see huge potential in cultural tourism in the region and is currently developing a blueprint to focus on this
area of opportunity.

In recent times, the Perth regional office has lent support to the corporation, attending meetings, hosting a rule book redesign workshop so the corporation could better align its rules to its objectives; broaden the board’s representation of the member families; and make other improvements to the corporation’s governance processes. The corporation is now very wellpositioned to support the town of Brookton, and looking to the future to seize more opportunities for the town and its people.

Apy Lands

From October 2017 ORIC deployed a governance support officer, Carolyn Joske, to work on the APY Lands to identify needs and strategies for improving the governance and sustainability of Aboriginal corporations in the region, and to train and mentor their board members as well as the APY Executive Board. From her base in Umuwa, Carolyn Joske worked collaboratively with directors and their source communities for nine months, until June 2018.

Torres Strait Islands

Working from Thursday Island, Kerry Lui supports corporations throughout the Torres Strait.

A new focus

This year, ORIC introduced a new focus on the Torres Strait, which includes over 100 islands. There are 79 registered corporations in the Torres Strait, including 22 RNTBCs, many of which have rights and interests in islands that are uninhabited.

In August 2017 ORIC signed a memorandum of understanding with the National Native Title Tribunal (NNTT) and the Torres Strait Regional Authority (TSRA). The three parties agreed to work together to assist Torres Strait RNTBCs to review their rule books and bed down processes for dispute resolution. TSRA also agreed to provide office space for an ORIC regional officer on Thursday Island.

As a result of the agreement, every RNTBC in the Torres Strait has had a rule book workshop. They have also each received support to strengthen their process for consulting with traditional owners, and for identifying and resolving disputes.

One of the leading RNTBCs in the Torres Strait is Mer Gedkem Le (Torres Strait Islanders) Corporation RNTBC. Located on Murray Island (Mer), Mer Gedkem Le holds native title to the land that was the subject of Eddie Mabo’s case, which succeeded at the High Court of Australia in overturning the longstanding legal fiction of terra nullius. The chairperson and other directors welcomed ORIC’s support and guidance, and they are on track to present the revised rule book to members at the AGM.

Another highlight from the Torres Strait is that seven new corporations have registered, focusing on issues such as health and religion, activities such as sport and fishing, and services catering specifically for women and men. This figure represents 3.82 per cent of all new registrations, and translates to a 9.75 per cent growth in the number of corporations in the Torres Strait.

Lawhelp

ORIC created LawHelp to provide access to pro bono legal assistance to:

• not-for-profit Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander corporations
• other entities seeking to transfer their registration to the CATSI Act.

Corporations can access a wide variety of legal assistance, such as tax issues, employment contracts and intellectual property rights.

When we receive an application for LawHelp, we review it for eligibility, then forward it to the independent LawHelp assessment panel for action. In 2017–18, ORIC received 18 LawHelp applications, in comparison to the 20 applications received the
previous year. Of the 18 applications:

• one was withdrawn or rejected by the assessment panel
• one was accepted but ultimately not referred to a law firm
• 15 were successfully referred to a law firm.

Figure 12: Number of LawHelp applications received by state/territory 2013–14 to 2017–18

Figure 13: Number of LawHelp applications received by subject 2013–14 to 2017–18

ORIC recruitment assistance

ORIC recruitment assistance (ORA) provides help and guidance through the process of recruiting to corporations to fill their senior positions. It encourages best practice—and helps build capacity—by supporting corporations to follow a clearly defined process with established guidelines.

The service is free to corporations (although they must meet their own advertising costs). Corporations also remain responsible for all decisions, including selecting the successful candidate and negotiating a suitable salary package.

In 2017–18 ORIC received 10 requests through ORA, and six senior staff positions were filled in this period. Note that:

• in the case of three of the six positions filled, the recruitment assistance was requested in the previous year
• four of this year’s requests were withdrawn
• one request was closed due to funding not being approved.
• two recruitment processes remained in progress at 30 June.

Figure 14: Number of job assistance requests accepted through ORA and senior positions filled from 2013–14 to 2017–18

Note: The outcome of requests for recruitment activities is not always the position being filled—for example, some corporations withdraw from the recruitment activity part way through and some determine that there were no suitable applicants.

Corporation jobs

From 2009 ORIC has offered corporations the chance to advertise their employment vacancies free of charge on the ORIC website. Since then, 407 corporation jobs have been advertised.

In 2017–18, Corporation jobs advertised 88 job vacancies, which is more than double the previous year’s figure of 40 advertisements.

Independant directory

Independentdirectory continues to have modest uptake:

• nine individuals registered as candidates for directorship positions
• six more corporations set up an account to advertise a directorship or other position
• 21 directorships have been advertised through the site to 30 June 2018.

Because the website is designed to match candidates to corporation without ORIC’s intervention, we do not monitor the number of appointments made as a result of the service.

Figure 15: Corporation jobs advertised on the ORIC website by state/territory, 2013–14 to 2017–18

In recognition that not all corporations take up the offer to advertise on the ORIC website, and to add value to our web page, the Corporation jobs page includes a link to ‘related vacancies’ (in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander corporations) on the EthicalJobs website.