AASW Company Statement (15 September 2025)

Dear AASW Member,

I am writing to inform you of significant developments relevant to the upcoming AASW Board elections.

It has been brought to our attention that candidates Dr Andrew Richardson and Ms Elizabeth Little have discussed matters relating to ongoing legal proceedings concerning the AASW.

The AASW has commenced legal proceedings against Dr Richardson, who has nominated for a position on the AASW Board. These proceedings relate to the unauthorised access to, and dissemination of, information that the AASW considers to be its confidential material. One of the recipients of the information in question, Ms Little, has also nominated for election to the Board.

AASW is committed to transparency, good governance, and upholding the integrity of the Board election process. As a registered charity, we must also meet the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC) Governance Standards, which include being open and accountable to our members. It is for this reason that we are sharing this information with you.

In October 2024, AASW became aware that Dr Richardson had accessed the Association’s electronic Marketing and Communications SharePoint folder without authorisation in the lead-up to and during the 2024 Board elections. Dr Richardson is a member of the AASW and the Northern Territory Branch President. This unauthorised access was detected after Ms Little sent an email to members containing confidential AASW information that was not publicly available and could only have been obtained from the SharePoint folder.

Following internal investigations, it was established that Dr Richardson had accessed, downloaded, viewed, and in some cases shared more than 935 files from the SharePoint folder without authorisation. The information included sensitive data, AASW contracts, and other proprietary material. Some of this information was subsequently shared with other members, including Ms Little. Both Dr Richardson and Ms Little have nominated to run for positions on the AASW Board at the forthcoming elections.

Dr Richardson was requested to provide an undertaking to AASW to destroy the downloaded documents and to cease using them. He declined to provide this undertaking. Accordingly, to protect its confidential information, AASW applied to the Supreme Court of Victoria for an injunction to restrain Dr Richardson from using the material. After the commencement of proceedings, Dr Richardson provided the undertaking to the Court. However, he continues to deny that the information was confidential or that there was any wrongdoing, including in relation to its dissemination to Ms Little and others.

Ms Little was also requested to provide an undertaking to AASW to destroy the documents she had received and to cease using them. She declined to provide this undertaking.

AASW considers any unauthorised use of its confidential information by a member to be a serious breach of trust, as well as of professional and ethical standards. We take such matters extremely seriously and remain committed to safeguarding member data, our proprietary information, and the integrity of our election processes.

As this matter is before the Court, the Association will not be making further comment at this time.

We thank you for your ongoing trust and support as we continue to uphold the highest standards of governance, integrity, and accountability on behalf of the profession and our members.

Yours sincerely,