The Team

Dr Livingston Armytage | Technical Director

Livingston is responsible for providing strategic direction and guidance in the design and implementation of the PJSI, as well as quality assurance and high-level stakeholder engagement. Livingston is a barrister and solicitor with more than 40 years’ experience, specialising in justice reform and judicial development. He has worked in more than 50 countries. He is a visiting fellow of the University of Cambridge, and adjunct professor of law at the University of Sydney. Recent publications include: ‘Unseen Faces: Portraits of Injustice’ (IBC, 2018), ‘Educating Judges’ (Brill, 2015), ‘Reforming Justice’ (Cambridge, 2012). Livingston was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia for significant service to civil justice nationally and internationally in 2019.

Mr. Lorenz Metzner | Team Leader

Lorenz is responsible for overseeing and managing the implementation of the PJSI and the remote delivery of learning activities. Lorenz also supports capacity building initiatives to allow development to be led and managed locally. Lorenz is a justice reform and development professional with over 20 years' experience in providing strategic and technical advice, capacity building support, and leadership to rights-based, rule of law and capacity building initiatives. He has worked with a range of donors leading and implementing development assistance initiatives in the Pacific, Asia, and Africa.

Ms. Helen Burrows | Director, International Programs | M&E Adviser

Helen is responsible for the PJSI contract with New Zealand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, and delivering on the Initiative's monitoring and evaluation strategy. Helen is a qualified solicitor with 20 years' experience directing, managing and delivering bi/multilateral judicial development projects with over 50 countries across Asia, the Pacific and Africa.

Ms. Cate Sumner - Accountability Adviser

Cate is responsible for assisting courts with their annual reporting processes, including the collection and reporting on gender disaggregated data and client perception surveys. For over 20 years, Cate has worked in the Middle East, Asia and the Pacific, focusing on access to justice, human rights and judicial reform. Cate worked as an adviser on PJDP and has worked in a number of international law firms and NGOs. Cate has recently launched a research publication on Women and Children's Access to the Formal Justice System in Vanuatu, commissioned by UN Women.

Dr. Carolyn Graydon | Human Rights Adviser | Legal Aid & Bar Associations Adviser

Carolyn is responsible for adapting and integrating norms of International human rights law with local customary values and practices to assist PJSI partner courts in formulating local approaches to human rights. In addition to this, Carolyn works to develop and build the capacity of Bar Associations and Legal Aid providers within PJSI partner countries. She is a barrister and solicitor with more than 20 years' experience, specialising in human rights, refugee law, justice reform, community and customary legal empowerment, and gender justice. She has worked with a range of United Nations organisations and a number of international NGOs, and on developing legal aid models and the capacity of Bar Associations in under resourced environments. She has a PhD in Law from the University of Melbourne.

Ms. Jennifer Akers | Efficiency Adviser

Jennifer is responsible for supporting partner courts in implementing management strategies, and administering tools and mechanisms for efficient case management. Jennifer is a court management and administration specialist with over 35 years' experience in justice system development and courts. She has worked with numerous government bodies and NGOs in over 20 countries across Europe, Asia and the Pacific. Jennifer is a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Management, Adjunct Fellow of the Courts and Tribunals Academy at Victoria University and holds qualifications in social science and law. Jennifer worked with the PJDP as the Judicial Administration Adviser.

Ms Margaret Barron | Training Adviser

Margaret was responsible for delivering Training-of-Trainer workshops and remote support to regional and national trainers to implement local training activities. Margaret’s work was aimed at building the capacity of judicial and non-judicial officers to design, deliver, assess, and evaluate training activities for their courts. Margaret holds qualifications in law and education. She has fifteen years' experience working in rule-of-law development programs in South East Asia and the Pacific (in legal advice, drafting and training roles). Margaret returned to PJSI to continue her role as Lead Training Adviser in Phase I, which she commenced with PJDP Phase 2.

Mr Enoka Puni | Training Adviser

Enoka was responsible for delivering judicial development and Training-of-Trainer Workshops. Enoka, who is well known across the Pacific region, is a former Samoan judge and a respected judicial educator.

He has designed, developed and delivered a range of judicial development and training activities for both legally-trained and lay judicial and court officers under Pacific Judicial Education Programme, PJDP, PJSI (Phase I) and also independently.

Dr. Abby McLeod | Gender and Family Violence Adviser

Abby was responsible for supporting partner courts to improve the accessibility and responsiveness of their services to victims of gender and family violence. Abby is an applied anthropologist, with nearly 20 years' experience in law and justice sector reform in the Pacific. She specialises in the promotion of gender equality, improving state responses to gender-based violence, and strengthening the relationship between state and informal institutions. She has published widely on these and related issues, and has worked for a range of international donors and NGOs on both bilateral and regional projects in the Pacific.

Mr. Tevita Seruilumi | Gender and Family Violence Adviser

Tevita is responsible for supporting partner courts to measurably improve the accessibility and responsiveness of their services to victims of gender & family violence. Tevita has been supporting efforts to address violence against women in the Pacific for the past ten years. He is a male advocate for women's human rights for the Fiji Women Women's Crisis Centre and the Pacific Regional Network on Ending Violence Against Women. Tevita has a law degree from the University of the South Pacific, and has worked across the Pacific to strengthen interventions to address violence against women with community groups, the law-justice sector and governments.

Ms. Megan O'Brien | Performance Framework Expert

Megan was responsible for extending data collection, collation, analysis and reporting, and harmonising new internationally recognised performance measurement approaches with the established Cook Island Indicator Framework. Megan has a Bachelor of Laws from the University of Technology, Sydney, and has over 15 years’ experience working with courts, including projects promoting transparency and accountability, preparing compliance documents and fulfilling reporting requirements. In 2009, she was awarded a Churchill Fellowship to investigate approaches to information privacy in legal bodies in the USA, UK and Canada.

Mr. Joseph R. Sawyer  | Webinar Adviser

Joseph is responsible for developing and implementing remote online webinar’s to support the implementation of PJSI activities. Joseph is the Distance Learning and Educational Technology Director at the National Judicial College, where he specialises in online judicial education and technological infrastructure in courtrooms. Joseph also produces webcasts on criminal evidence, mental competency and electronic discovery. He is a graduate of the Leadership Institute for Judicial Education and has facilitated over 215 educational workshops nationally and internationally. Joseph recently authored ‘The National Judicial College Approach to Distance Learning: Towards a Model of Best Practice’ (2015).

Mr. Tony Lansdell | ICT Adviser

Tony is responsible for the development and strengthening of Information and Communications Technology-related systems and processes in the management of courts and their caseloads. Tony is a court systems and court performance specialist with over 23 years' experience with courts in Australia, the Pacific, SE Asia, Africa and central Asia. His experience includes implementation and ongoing use and management of technologies, and he is well-versed in the challenges of introducing technologies and systems into court environments.

Ms. Nicole Cherry | Project Manager

Nicole is responsible for overseeing administrative, financial, personnel, operational planning and implementation of PJSI. Nicole has 15 years' experience in managing development assistance programs across the Asia Pacific region. She has overseen the design, implementation and evaluation of more than 50 projects, from short-term design missions to complex, longer term, multi-team programs. Nicole holds a Masters of International and Community Development, Bachelor of Business Management and Certificate IV in Project Management.

Ms. Poppy Davies | Project Officer

Poppy is responsible for providing logistical and administrative support to the implementation of all PJSI activities. Poppy is in her final year of a Bachelor of Politics, Philosophy and Economics (Honours) degree. She recently completed an internship with the UNDP, leveraging ICT to improve the quality of education for students in Timor-Leste, and has previously volunteered in Laos, Eswatini, Morocco and Australia. Poppy is passionate about human rights, justice and sustainable development and has a particular interest in governance and accountability.

Ms. Hannah Boyd | Project Officer

Hannah is responsible for providing logistical and administrative support to the implementation of all PJSI activities. Hannah is studying a Bachelors of Laws/Arts at the University of Queensland, majoring in international relations and French. She has experience in legal research, the regulatory industry and has previously worked with the Federal Court of Australia - International Programs Unit as a volunteer. Hannah is passionate about human rights and the environment, and has developed a particular interest in improving access to justice.

Mr. Lorenzo Aventi | Finance Officer

Lorenzo is responsible for monitoring and managing the Initiative’s budget. Lorenzo is a Finance Professional and CPA with more than 20 years' experience in financial management and project accounting, as well as budgeting and forecasting.

He has provided high-quality expertise to successfully manage and monitor budgets of up to $15 million for over 80 projects within both the private and public sectors.