Former Consumer Action Law Centre CEO joins AFCA board
The former chief executive of the Consumer Action Law Centre, Gerard Brody, has been appointed to the board of the Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA).
AFCA announced Brody’s three-year appointment this week. It becomes effective from next Thursday (4 May.
In announcing the appointment, AFCA independent chair, Professor John Pollaers said Brody would bring a thorough understanding of the contemporary challenges facing consumers and firms.
Brody will be one of eight directors with financial services industry and consumer experiences.
Brody has worked as a lawyer, policy officer and consumer advocate for 20 years. He was the CEO of the Consumer Action Law Centre, a leading consumer advocacy organisation that provides legal assistance and financial counselling, for 10 years until February 2023.
He is also an experienced director. He has been on the board of the Energy & Water Ombudsman Victoria since 2014, the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman since 2022, and Community Legal Centres Australia, the peak body for community legal centres, since 2021. In addition, he is the Chair of the Consumers’ Federation of Australia, the peak body for consumer organisations in Australia.
Brody replaces Elissa Freeman on the board who comes from a similar consumer representative background.
Sounds like he will approach all decisions in an unbiased manner
Why doesn’t AFCA hire from the pool of former professionals in the sector? Championing positive leaders and behaviors from within Financial Services and Providers? Stacking with consumer advocates is imbalanced for a supposedly objective edr