Dr Eileen O’Brien is Professor of Law and Ageing in the Discipline of Law, Justice and Society at the University of South Australia. She teaches and researches in ageing and law, housing and tenancy law, and consumer law. Eileen is a former academic member of the Law Reform Commission of Western Australia.
Eileen is passionate about housing issues affecting vulnerable members of our society and her recent research focuses on people experiencing housing stress and homelessness. She has written widely on security of tenure for older people, particularly how the operation of existing laws may make older people susceptible to financial exploitation. She has also examined how revised property and planning laws could facilitate more... Read more
About me
Dr Eileen O’Brien is Professor of Law and Ageing in the Discipline of Law, Justice and Society at the University of South Australia. She teaches and researches in ageing and law, housing and tenancy law, and consumer law. Eileen is a former academic member of the Law Reform Commission of Western Australia.
Eileen is passionate about housing issues affecting vulnerable members of our society and her recent research focuses on people experiencing housing stress and homelessness. She has written widely on security of tenure for older people, particularly how the operation of existing laws may make older people susceptible to financial exploitation. She has also examined how revised property and planning laws could facilitate more downsizing options for Seniors, canvassed the necessity for law reform to address the contentious issue of assets for care arrangements and considered whether property law and human rights principles could assist in alleviating the plight of older women who have become homeless.
Eileen has been a member of several national AHURI projects examining housing vulnerability (with a focus on older people). In 2022 she is working on two AHURI inquiries: Housing Older Australians and Impact of residential tenancy legislation on investment decisions. She is also contributing to the prevalence study examining the abuse of older Western Australians (WA Dept of Communities) and to a research project on legislating for enforceable human rights in aged care (Australian Association of Gerontology). She has recently completed research on the impact of tenancy laws on women and children escaping violence (DSS).
Eileen co-ordinates and teaches in UniSA’s Ageing and the Law program. She also contributes to post-graduate programs in Disability and Ageing.
Eileen is a foundation member of the Australian Research Network on Law and Ageing (ARNLA), a member of the Australian Association of Gerontology, including the Housing and Built Environment and Elder Abuse special interest groups and the Advisory Board to Elder Abuse Action Australia (EAAA).
About me
Eileen is a foundation member of the Australian Research Network on Law and Ageing (ARNLA) and a member of the Australian Association of Gerontology, including the Housing and Built Environment and Elder Abuse special interest groups. Eileen was formerly a member of the Western Australian Ministerial Committee on Consumer Law, the ShelterWA Board, the ShelterWA Advisory Committee on Homelessness,the TenancyWA Boarders and Lodgers Working Group and the ACCC’s Small Business and Franchising Consultative Committee.Eileen we an acadademic member of the Law Reform Commission of Werstern Australia from 2017 - 2019.
About me
Doctor of Philosophy University of Western Australia
Master of Laws Queensland University of Technology (QUT)
Bachelor of Laws (First Class Honours) Queensland University of Technology (QUT)
Eileen is passionate about housing issues affecting vulnerable members of our society and her recent research has focused on security of tenure for older people, particularly how the operation of existing laws may make Seniors susceptible to financial exploitation.
Christie Gardiner and Eileen Webb (Eds), The Age-Friendly Lens 2022 Routlege.
Meika Atkins and Eileen Webb,"Information Duties and the Right to Withdrawal", in G.Howells (ed) Consumer Protection in Asia Bloomsbury Publishing 2022.
Eileen Webb et al Impact of Tenancy Laws on Women and Children Escaping Violence (Final Report for Department of Social Services) March 2021
Achieving the Right(s) Balance: Towards Effective Adult Safeguarding in South Australia *Project led by Professor Ben Livings (UniSA) - Complete
Design and undertake qualitative and quantitative research into elder abuse prevalence, drivers and protective factors in Western Australia’ (Western Australian Department of Communities) *Project led by... Read more
Research
Excludes commercial-in-confidence projects.
AHURI - Housing aspirations for precariously housed older Australians (20/PRO/81253), Australian Housing & Urban Research Institute, 29/05/2020 - 29/10/2021
AHURI - Housing models for precariously housed older Australians (20/PRO/32252), Australian Housing & Urban Research Institute, 01/04/2020 - 28/09/2021
National Survey on the Impact of Tenancy Laws on Women and Children Escaping Violence, Cwth Dept of Social Services, 26/03/2018 - 01/06/2019
Australian Association of Gerontology, Legislating for Enforceable Human Rights in Aged Care in Australia.
Government of South Australia, Achieving the Right(s) Balance: Towards Effective Adult Safeguarding in South Australia (project led by Professor Ben Livings) - Complete
Western Australian Department of Communities ‘Design and undertake qualitative and quantitative research into elder abuse prevalence, drivers and protective factors in Western Australia’ (Project led by Professor Loretta Baldassar (UWA)) - Complete
AHURI - Regulation of residential tenancies and impacts on investment (*Project led by Dr Chris martin, UNSW) https://www.ahuri.edu.au/research-in-progress/Regulation-of-residential-tenancies-and-impacts-on-investment
Research
Research outputs for the last seven years are shown below. To see earlier years visit ORCID, ResearcherID or Scopus
Open access indicates that an output is open access.
| Year | Output |
|---|---|
| 2021 |
Open access
|
| 2021 |
|
| 2021 |
Open access
|
| 2020 |
Open access
|
| 2020 |
6
|
| Year | Output |
|---|---|
| 2020 |
Webb, E & Stephenson, M 2020, Focus land law, LexisNexis, Australia. |
| 2008 |
Griggs, L, Webb, E & Freilich, A 2008, Consumer protection law, Oxford University Press, Australia. |
| Year | Output |
|---|---|
| 2022 |
|
| 2021 |
|
| 2020 |
Open access
|
| 2020 |
Open access
|
| 2018 |
Open access
|
| 2013 |
|
| 2013 |
|
| 2010 |
|
| Year | Output |
|---|---|
| 2021 |
Open access
|
| 2020 |
6
|
| 2018 |
Open access
|
| 2017 |
|
| 2016 |
|
| 2016 |
|
| 2015 |
|
| 2015 |
|
| 2014 |
|
| 2013 |
Open access
|
| 2012 |
Open access
|
| 2011 |
Open access
|
| 2011 |
|
| 2011 |
|
| 2010 |
|
| 2010 |
|
| 2009 |
|
| 2009 |
Open access
|
| 2009 |
|
| Year | Output |
|---|---|
| 2021 |
Open access
|
| 2020 |
Open access
|
| 2018 |
|
| 2018 |
Open access
3
1
|
| 2017 |
Open access
|
| 2017 |
Open access
4
|
| 2016 |
Open access
|
| 2015 |
Open access
|
| 2014 |
|
Forthcoming
Eileen Webb and Teresa Somes "Property, Housing and Aged Care" in Graham, Davies & Godden (eds) Routledge Handbook of Property, Law & Society Routlege Forthcoming 2022
Christie Gardiner and Eileen Webb (Eds) The Age-Friendly Lens Routlege Forthcoming 2022
Jane Knowler and Eileen Webb,'‘Grandly Designing’ co-housing for older people in Australia: Overcoming the challenges', in C.Gardiner & E.Webb (Eds.) The Age-Friendly Lens Routlege Forthcoming 2022.
Meika Atkins and Eileen Webb,"Information Duties and the Right to Withdrawal", in G.Howells (ed) Consumer Protection in Asia Cambridge University Press Forthcoming 2022.
Philip Taylor, Eyal Gringart, Phillipa Carnemolla, Eileen O’Brien Webb, Deidre Drake, Michelle Oppert, Robin Harvey ‘Drivers and patterns of early retirement in the neo-liberal university’, Economic and Labour Relations Review Forthcoming 2022
Eileen Webb 'Abuse of older Australians during the COVID-19 pandemic: Experiences, responses and lessons', in Mala Kapur Shankardass (ed) Older Persons and the COVID 19: Impact of the pandemic Forthcoming 2022
Teresa Somes and Eileen Webb, 'Older women and homelessness among older women: An Australian perspective.' Forthcoming 2022.
Teresa Somes and Eileen Webb, 'Housing older people and abuse in Australia', in Research Handbook on Law, Society and Ageing, in S.Westwood and N. Knauer (eds) Edward Elgar Forthcoming 2022/23
Research
Christie Gardiner and Eileen Webb (Eds), The Age-Friendly Lens 2022 Routlege.
Meika Atkins and Eileen Webb,"Information Duties and the Right to Withdrawal", in G.Howells (ed) Consumer Protection in Asia Bloomsbury Publishing 2022.
Eileen Webb et al Impact of Tenancy Laws on Women and Children Escaping Violence (Final Report for Department of Social Services) March 2021
Achieving the Right(s) Balance: Towards Effective Adult Safeguarding in South Australia *Project led by Professor Ben Livings (UniSA) - Complete
Design and undertake qualitative and quantitative research into elder abuse prevalence, drivers and protective factors in Western Australia’ (Western Australian Department of Communities) *Project led by Professor Loretta Baldassar (UWA)
Australia and New Zealand Society of Criminology (AUSOC) Adam Sutton Crime Prevention Award 2020 - Barbara Blundell, Joe Clare, Mike Clare, Emily Moir, Eileen Webb: Review into the prevalence and characteristics of Elder abuse in Queensland
External engagement & recognition
| Organisation | Country |
|---|---|
| Australian Catholic University | AUSTRALIA |
| Brunel University | UNITED KINGDOM |
| Curtin University | AUSTRALIA |
| Deakin University | AUSTRALIA |
| Flinders University | AUSTRALIA |
| KGA Consulting Group | AUSTRALIA |
| Macquarie University | AUSTRALIA |
| RMIT University | AUSTRALIA |
| Shawnee State University | UNITED STATES |
| Swinburne University of Technology | AUSTRALIA |
| University of Adelaide | AUSTRALIA |
| University of Auckland | NEW ZEALAND |
| University of Cape Town | SOUTH AFRICA |
| University of New South Wales | AUSTRALIA |
| University of Queensland | AUSTRALIA |
| University of South Australia | AUSTRALIA |
| University of Sydney | AUSTRALIA |
| University of Tasmania | AUSTRALIA |
| University of Western Australia | AUSTRALIA |
External engagement & recognition
| Engagement/recognition | Year |
|---|---|
Adam Sutton Crime Prevention AwardAustralian and New Zealand Society of Criminology (ANZSOC) |
2020 |
Advisory Board MemberElder Abuse Action Australia |
2020 |
Advisory Board MemberElder Abuse Action Australia |
2019 |
MemberLaw Reform Commission, Western Australia |
2019 |
Member, Small Business and Franchising Consultative CommitteeAustralian Competition and Consumer Commission, Australian Government |
2019 |
Board MemberShelter, Western Australia |
2018 |
Editor, Special 2018 EditionCurtin Law and Taxation Review Consumer Law |
2018 |
Editorial Board MemberProperty Law Review |
2018 |
Editorial Board MemberBoard of Competition and Consumer Law Journal |
2018 |
Foundation memberAustralian Research Network on Law and Ageing |
2018 |
Founding Member, Consumer Advisory CouncilDepartment of Health, Government of Western Australia |
2018 |
MemberAustralasian Consumer Law Roundtable |
2018 |
MemberInternational Association of Consumer Lawyers (IACL) |
2018 |
MemberLaw Reform Commission, Western Australia |
2018 |
Member, Advisory Committee on HomelessnessShelter, Western Australia |
2018 |
Member, Appeals BoardThe Real Estate Institute of Western Australia, Inc |
2018 |
Member, Boarders and Lodgers Working PartyTenancy, Western Australia |
2018 |
Member, Law Professional Practicum Advisory PanelACICIS Study Indonesia |
2018 |
Member, Management CommitteeConsumers Association of Western Australia |
2018 |
Member, Management CommitteeConsumer Credit Legal Service, Western Australia |
2018 |
Member, Ministerial Advisory Committee on Consumer LawGovernment of Western Australia |
2018 |
Member, Small Business and Franchising Consultative CommitteeAustralian Competition and Consumer Commission, Australian Government |
2018 |
State EditorAustralian Property Law Bulletin |
2018 |
ConvenorAustralasian Property Law Teachers Conference |
2017 |
ConvenorCurtin Law School Eminent Speakers Series |
2017 |
MemberLaw Reform Commission, Western Australia |
2017 |
Panel member and ChairLaw Society of Western Australia |
2017 |
Invited participationModern Law Review Dynamics of Enduring Property Relationships May 2016, Oxford University |
2016 |
OrganiserAustralasian Property Law Teachers Conference, Curtin Law School |
2016 |
Co-Editor, Special 2013 EditionThe University of Western Australia Law Review in Unfair Contract Terms |
2013 |
Teaching & student supervision
Teaching & student supervision
Supervisions from 2010 shown
| Thesis title | Student status |
|---|---|
| Cutting the gordian knot of failed family accommodation agreements: identifying vulnerability to improve access to justice for older people | Current |
| Industry Led Product Stewardship Schemes consumer law issues | Current |
| The future of recycled water law in Australia | Current |
