Turning commitment into action

Our national Innovate Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP) marks the next stage in our reconciliation journey.

Formally endorsed by Reconciliation Australia on 11 September 2026, the Innovate RAP builds on the work of our people and the relationships we have established with First Nations peoples, communities and organisations over many years. Our national Innovate RAP sets out the actions that will guide our work over the next two years, with a focus on deepening relationships, strengthening accountability and embedding reconciliation more meaningfully across our Firm.

Our vision for reconciliation is an Australia where First Nations people are empowered, and where authentic engagement with First Nations people contributes to a more just and inclusive Australia.

Managing Partner and Chief Executive Officer Mark Pistilli noted,

“The endorsement of our national Innovate RAP is an important milestone for Gadens. It reflects our commitment to embedding reconciliation into how we work, lead and engage with our communities.

While we are proud of the progress we have made, meaningful reconciliation requires ongoing action, accountability and learning. Our Innovate RAP provides a clear framework for the next two years as we continue working alongside First Nations peoples to support positive and lasting change.”

Read our Innovate Reconciliation Action Plan

Our reconciliation journey

Gadens has a longstanding history of engagement with First Nations organisations, communities and initiatives. Across our offices, we have supported First Nations law students, delivered pro bono legal services, participated in community outreach and contributed to initiatives that promote access to justice, self-determination and cultural connection.

Our Innovate RAP builds on the work, relationships and learnings that have been established across the Firm over many years. Developed in consultation with our people and informed by First Nations perspectives, it provides a framework for the next stage of our reconciliation journey and sets out practical commitments across our legal services, pro bono practice, employment pathways, procurement activities, community partnerships and internal operations.

Following formal endorsement by Reconciliation Australia in September 2026, our focus is on delivering the commitments in the RAP, measuring our progress and embedding reconciliation more meaningfully across the Firm.

The role of the legal profession

We recognise the unique place of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the First Peoples of Australia and the continuing strength of their cultures, knowledge systems and connection to Country.

We also recognise the role that laws, policies and institutions have played in the dispossession, exclusion and ongoing disadvantage experienced by First Nations peoples.

As legal practitioners, we have both a responsibility and an opportunity to contribute to access to justice, equity and self-determination. Through our legal services, pro bono practice, advocacy, community partnerships and business operations, we aim to support fairer outcomes and create opportunities for meaningful engagement.

Our Innovate RAP brings these commitments together within a practical framework. It will guide how we continue to build relationships, increase our cultural capability, create opportunities for First Nations people and remain accountable for our progress.

A shared responsibility

In 2025, we established our national First Nations Engagement Group (FNEG), bringing together representatives from across Gadens to help guide our reconciliation efforts and support the development of our national approach. The development and implementation of the Innovate RAP is led by our FNEG, co-chaired by Cassandra Krylov and Sharna White.

The FNEG brings together people from across the Firm and is supported by our First Nations Employees Advisory Group and RAP Champions. Together, these groups help ensure our reconciliation work is informed by First Nations perspectives, supported by senior leadership and connected to meaningful action across our offices.

Cassandra Krylov and Sharna White, Co-Chairs, First Nations Engagement Group, said:

“Our Innovate RAP reflects the collective efforts of people across Gadens who are committed to advancing reconciliation in a meaningful and practical way. It sets clear commitments that will help us deepen relationships, create opportunities and strengthen accountability across the Firm. It also challenges us to keep listening, learning and considering how our everyday decisions and actions can contribute to reconciliation.”

Connection through art

The artwork featured throughout the Innovate RAP, People and the Land (2026), was created by Taungurung artist P.J.

The work reflects different people coming together on Country and provides a powerful representation of connection, community and shared purpose.

The artwork was acquired and licensed through Gadens’ partnership with The Torch, a First Peoples-led organisation that supports Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people who are incarcerated or have recently been released from Victorian prisons.

Through cultural connection and artistic development, The Torch supports participants to reconnect with culture and community, develop their artistic practice and create pathways to economic independence through art.

Our longstanding partnership with The Torch reflects the broader intent of the Innovate RAP: to support self-determination, build meaningful relationships and contribute to sustainable, positive outcomes.

The next stage of our journey

The launch of the Innovate RAP is an important milestone, but it is not an endpoint.

Over the next two years, our focus will be on turning its commitments into sustained action. This includes strengthening our relationships with First Nations peoples and organisations, building cultural capability, supporting education and employment pathways, increasing opportunities through procurement and partnerships, and applying clear governance and accountability to our progress.

Meaningful reconciliation requires ongoing learning, humility and action. We remain committed to listening to and learning from First Nations peoples, strengthening culturally informed approaches to our work and contributing to a more just, equitable and reconciled Australia.