“Aim high and don’t be afraid to dream!” What Canberra’s Debra Parker has learnt in her three-decade legal career
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Sometimes, the most extraordinary stories begin with the simplest motivations.
For Debra Parker, Founding Partner of Parker Coles Curtis and recent recipient of the 2025 ACT Law Society Award for Leadership and Excellence in Family Law and Dispute Resolution, it all started with being encouraged to speak up.
“I’m an extrovert, and I love people, and I’ve always loved to speak up,” Debra says.
“My parents encouraged me to speak up and have an opinion. It gave me a desire to work hard, make a difference, and help people – particularly those who were less fortunate than me and who were going through a time of crisis.”
That drive has shaped an extraordinary career spanning more than three decades, during which Debra has worn many hats: solicitor, judicial registrar, partner, mentor, board member, advocate, and community leader. Debra is now the elected ACT national board representative for the Australian Institute of Family Law Arbitrators and Mediators. And her peers have recognised this remarkable contribution with one of the ACT’s most prestigious legal honours.
Breaking barriers in the 1990s
Back in 1991, when Debra became the first female partner at Snedden Hall & Gallop, the legal landscape looked vastly different. She’d just become a mother, and the expectations were, frankly, impossible.
“The expectation upon women who were mothers and professionals was that you had to be ‘super mum’,” she recalls.
“You had to do everything at 150 per cent – 150 per cent a great mum and 150 per cent a great professional. If there was any hint of weakness, you were regarded as a total failure. It was an unforgiving time!”
The workplace flexibility we take for granted today simply didn’t exist. Leaving court early to collect a child from childcare? Not acceptable. The rules, as Debra puts it, “had all been made by men”, from courtroom timing to business hours. Yet these challenges only fuelled her determination to advocate for gender equity and create pathways for future generations.
“I dealt with personal scepticism about my own abilities – the old ‘impostor syndrome’ – and I had to work twice as hard to prove my worth to myself,” she admits.
“But all of these challenges shaped my leadership by instilling in me a strong focus on creating pathways for women and non-binary individuals to thrive.”
Long before alternative dispute resolution became mainstream, Debra was championing mediation and collaborative practice. In the 1990s, suggesting mediation to a colleague was almost seen as admitting weakness.
“The assumption was that there was something wrong with your case, or you must have a weakness you were wanting to overcome, or you just weren’t up to the fight,” she explains.
“All that has thankfully changed.”
Today, Debra holds the unique distinction of being the only legal practitioner in the ACT with dual accreditation as both a Family Law Specialist and a Dispute Resolution Specialist. During her decade as Judicial Registrar in the Family Court and Federal Circuit Court, she presided over more than 2,500 mediations, developing an intimate understanding of how to achieve resolution from both sides of the bench.
Today, mediation and Alternative Dispute Resolution is a much more established practice and are permanent features of Australia’s civil litigation and legal systems and a permanent part of dispute resolution practice. Courts now prioritise child-focused resolutions, and there’s greater recognition of mediation as an effective, trauma-informed alternative. However, she’s quick to point out that work remains to be done.
“Systemic barriers remain. There’s still unequal access to ADR for low-income families and inconsistent training standards,” she notes.
“We still need more funding for community legal-based ADR services and mandatory ADR education for practitioners.”
From pandemic to purpose
Perhaps nothing exemplifies Debra’s resilience more than founding Parker Coles Curtis in September 2020 – right in the middle of the pandemic. What could have been a disastrous time to launch a new firm instead became proof of what’s possible when values meet innovation.
“Launching a firm during COVID certainly required a resilience that I didn’t know I had,” she admits.
“Our rapid growth and recognition, with more than 50 five-star Google reviews in just over four years, has exceeded all my expectations.”
Under her leadership, the firm has built a reputation for combining legal excellence with compassion and trauma-informed care. They’ve also become champions of diversity, winning the inaugural Champions of Pride Award from Lawyers Weekly in 2023, presented by the Honourable Michael Kirby.
Debra’s commitment extends far beyond her legal practice. From her early work helping women at local refuges like Doris and Beryl in the 1990s to her current involvement with organisations including Karinya House, Menslink, and the Women’s Legal Centre, community service has been a constant thread.
“As someone who has worked hard and been successful, I believe it’s a privilege to give back to our community,” she reflects.
A five-year diplomatic posting in Paris with her husband only reinforced this resolve, showing her how global inequities intersect with local challenges.
Her advice for legal professionals wanting to engage in community service is refreshingly simple: “Start small and lean into your strengths. From little things, big things grow! Community service isn’t about grand gestures – it’s about consistent, compassionate action that makes a difference.”
A legacy of service
When Debra learned she’d won the ACT Law Society Award, she felt the weight of the honour as the recognition places her alongside distinguished predecessors, including Richard Faulks of Snedden Hall & Gallop, one of her former partners from the 1990s.
Looking back on her remarkable journey, what would Debra tell her younger self?
“Trust your voice. Embrace imperfection. Back yourself, be authentic!” she says.
“Early in my career, I hesitated to assert myself sometimes, fearing criticism. Today, I would say to young people starting their legal careers: aim high and don’t be afraid to dream!”
It’s clear that this award, while significant, is just another milestone in an ongoing journey of service and innovation. She continues mentoring law students through formal programs at both the Australian National University and the University of Canberra, serves on national boards, and remains passionate about international family law, particularly work involving the Hague Convention on international child abduction.
“I love law and mentoring others who are pursuing a career in law,” she says.
“It’s a great joy to see those younger than me grow and overcome their own personal obstacles and become strong young advocates themselves.”
Her ACT Law Society Award recognises not just individual achievement, but decades of collaborative effort – working alongside colleagues, mentoring emerging lawyers, supporting community organisations, and building bridges between legal practice and social justice. It’s a recognition that resonates deeply with how Debra views her own success.
“The award validates decades of my work at the intersection of law and community, but more importantly, it highlighted the collective effort of everyone I work with and collaborate with, including my co-directors, my clients, colleagues, and our community partners,” she reflects.
“It has reinforced for me that service is a shared journey. It’s not a solo achievement.”
