Article

Law Society Journal (NSW, Australia), June 2001, page 12. Cite as (2001) 39 (5) LSJ 12

The shining of Matt Laffan

By Keren Lavelle

LIFE IS BUT A 'SHORT race', and we should all make the most of what we have been given. That was the message forviewers of the ABC's Australian Story profile of Sydney solicitor Matt Laffan in late April - an episode that gave the show one of its biggest responses.

Laffan was born with diastrophic dysplasia (DTD), a rare disorder passed on by a recessive gene whose carriers have shortened limbs and a propensity to develop severe scoliosis and kyphosis, forms of curvature of the spine. At the age of ten a spinal operation that saved Laffan's life left him with paraplegia and he has since depended on an electric wheelchair. But now 30, with law school behind him and a successful career as a government lawyer with the DPP well under way, he can say with the utmost conviction that "the sun hasn't shone brighter for me".

Laffan's courage in surmounting his disabilities and his joy for life shone brightly on Australian Story. According to ABC producer Ben Cheshire, the technical term for the response to the program was 'humungous'.

An internet forum after the broadcast attracted more than 1,000 contributors, and the Australian Story website received some 155,000 hits over the next two days. Laffan himself has received a flood of emails and letters from all over Australia.

Laffan's boss, NSW Director of Public Prosecutions Nick Cowdery QC, told Australian Story there was much to learn from Laffan's success.

"I think one of the lessons that arises out of Matt's achievements is that any physically disabled person, when given the opportunity, when given the access, can achieve just as much, if not more, than an able-bodied person, because there is something in that determination, something in that application, the will to succeed, which very often propels such people above able-bodied people, and that certainly has been the case with Matt," Cowdery said.

Laffan is keen to credit his colleagues at the DPP.

"The clerks with whom I've worked have always been very generous with their time and assistance in getting files together and taking them to court and being there to make things look simple. Also, when I have had to instruct Crown Prosecutors I have been unable to offer them, in practical terms, the physical support they often expect from solicitors, yet none of them have ever made me feel a lesser part of the team," Laffan told LSJ.

Matt Laffan grew up and completed his secondary education in Coffs Harbour, and moved to St Johns College at Sydney University where he studied arts and law. He credits the vision and determination of Elizabeth Egan, the University's manager responsible for students with a disability, for ensuring that people like him could access the university and achieve their goals.

"I was very fortunate that when I started, in 1989, there was an expectation that someone in my situation had the right to access the university," Laffan said.

"I was also fortunate to be a student during the time of a Commonwealth Labor government which cared about the disadvantaged and education. The Commonwealth Rehabilitation Scheme offered me financial support to pursue my education without which it would have been very difficult. The Commonwealth paid for the ramps at the College where I lived and at the university, and they helped supplement my income, enabling me to pay the College fees."

Laffan completed his studies in 1994 and for the first few months of 1995 worked in a mentions practice that allowed him to establish a feel for appearance work. He was also business manager for the practice, receiving and distributing the requests for mentions. If one came up at short notice, he could be seen hurtling away from the Haymarket district to make it to the court on time.

Laffan now enjoys work with the DPP's non-trial litigation group which takes him into the Supreme Court bails list and the District Court, where he has conduct of sentence and appeals matters. He finds the quick thinking demanded of advocacy a great stimulation.

"The law has been a liberating force in my life," says Laffan, "and a rewarding career."

Other careers may be calling. After travels in Europe Laffan returned home determined to do something for visitors to Australia who were offered very little practical information of help to people with disabilities. In spare time during 1998, he made a major effort to fill the gap by establishing the http://www.globalaccess.com.au web site, and remains its managing director.

He is now seeking support for a TV series proposal which would feature himself travelling around the world. And as a result of his appearance on Australian Story he is being contacted for appearances as a motivational speaker.

Laffan is a member of the Access Committee for the Sydney City Council and since 1996 has been a member of the NSW Rugby Judiciary, giving him an involvment with a sport for which he has a passion passed down from his father Dick, who coached the New South Wales State team from 1988 to 1990.

He is a high achiever and a champion of people with disabilities, but modestly sees his role in practical terms. "I just go about my business," he says, "and pursue my goals and dreams. People before me have often waged the war that has allowed for the likes of me the right to equality and the right to access services."

"What I think I present to people, able bodied and disabled, is a working example of why those rights must be maintained and worked at. What I hope I represent to people with disabilities is that it can be done. And to the able bodied, why it should be."

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