The Hon. Margaret (Peg) Lusink AM

Born in Tocumwal in NSW in 1922, Peg's family moved to Melbourne where she went to school. She began law studies at the University of Melbourne at the age of 38, after being widowed with three sons to support. She graduated in 1965. Peg completed her articles at law firm Corr and Corr (now Corrs Chambers Westgarth) and was made a partner in 1970, making her one of the few female partners in a major law firm at that time.

Peg Lusink was a Justice of the Family Court of Australia for 13 years during which time she was appointed as Judge Administrator of the Dandenong Registry of the Court for four years. She resigned from the Court in 1988 and in 1990 moved to Queensland to be a Professor of Law at Bond University. Returning to Victoria in 1992, Peg and her husband settled in Euroa and she established a mediation practice in the area. In 1996 she was appointed to be a Member of the Adult Parole Board of Victoria and served two three-year terms until 2002.

She was also President of the Commonwealth Professional Services Review Tribunal 1996-2000, which was an appeals tribunal relating to alleged Medicare fraud by members of the medical profession. She was a Member of the Royal Women's Hospital Ethics Committee in the early 1980s. Peg was involved in the inception of the Victorian Women's Trust and served as Foundation President in 1985. In 1992, she convened the Friends of the Library in Euroa and subsequently became Chairperson and Honorary Life Member of the National Friends of the Libraries of Australia. She has also been a board member of a number of local hospitals and was the representative of the Euroa Bush Nursing Hospital on the Victoria Bush Nursing Hospitals Association.

Peg Lusink has lived in both rural and urban Victoria and has made significant contributions to the communities in which she has lived. She has made a difference to the lives of many Victorian women, both directly and indirectly through her role as a Justice in the Family Court and her wide-ranging involvement in many organisations. Peg has a strong belief in the importance of justice for women and of improving women's health services and regional hospitals.