Sydney Law School congratulates Emeritus Professor Terry Carney AO, who has been awarded a 2026 Lifetime Achievement Award by the Council of Australian Law Deans (CALD), recognising more than five decades of contribution to legal scholarship, legal education and law reform in Australia.

The award was presented at the Australasian Law Academics Association (ALAA) Conference Gala Dinner in Melbourne, alongside colleagues from law schools across the country.

Professor Carney began his academic career at Monash University in 1971 before taking up a chair at Sydney Law School in 1991, where he served as Head of Department, Director of Research for a decade, and Chair of Postgraduate Studies. He co-designed and, for close to 30 years, has taught and assessed the Law School's flagship doctoral research courses, which have become a model for higher-degree research training across Australia. He has supervised more than 40 doctoral students to completion and is a recipient of the University of Sydney's Vice-Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Higher Degree Supervision.

A pioneering scholar in social security law, health and mental health law, administrative law and disability law, Professor Carney's research has extended into the rapidly evolving field of automated decision-making, including automated debt recovery and algorithmic decision-making in social services. His body of work spans nearly a dozen books, more than 40 book chapters, 50 reports and over 250 refereed journal publications, and includes the 2023 monograph prepared for the Disability Royal Commission, Diversity, Dignity, Equity and Best Practice: A Framework for Supported Decision-Making.

His scholarship and jurisprudence, developed over nearly 40 years as a member of the tribunal reviewing social security decisions, played a significant role in exposing the illegality of Robodebt. The Royal Commission into the Robodebt Scheme cited his research and publications 118 times in its findings. 

Professor Carney's leadership has also shaped Australian law reform directly, through roles chairing inquiries into child welfare, adult guardianship and health law, five years as Chair of the Australian Institute of Family Studies, and leadership of the National Advisory Council on Social Welfare. His contributions helped shape landmark legislation including Victoria's child welfare reforms, the Health Services Act 1988 (Cth), adult guardianship legislation across all states and territories, and the Social Security Act 1991 (Cth), which continues to underpin Australia's welfare system.

Internationally, Professor Carney served as President of the International Academy of Law and Mental Health and has been the longstanding Australian Reporter to the Max Planck Institute for Social Law and Social Policy, shaping international debate on mental health law, guardianship, disability rights and supported decision-making.

In nominating Professor Carney for the award, Professor Fleur Johns, Dean and Head of School, described him as embodying "the purpose and criteria of the CALD Lifetime Achievement Award" through his outstanding and enduring contributions to legal scholarship, legal education, research leadership, research training and public service.

Despite his formal retirement in 2012, Professor Carney remains an active mentor to early- and mid-career researchers and continues to serve as the Law School's principal advisor on ARC and other competitive grant applications.

Sydney Law School warmly congratulates Professor Carney on this well-deserved recognition of a career that has strengthened legal academia across the country.