Called to the Bar in 2016, Mary Keaney was admitted, and commenced practice in general litigation in 2005. Ms. Keaney’s practice has focused on access to justice, with particular interest in the rights of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, people with mental health conditions, and survivors of child sexual abuse.  Ms. Keaney is a committed advocate for human rights.
Having gained extensive advocacy experience as a solicitor, Ms. Keaney practiced criminal law in house at Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Legal Aid Services in Alice Springs, NT, and Brisbane, QLD. Ms. Keaney also worked in private practices in the ACT, NSW, and QLD and she was a Legal Aid Queensland accredited Duty Lawyer.
Ms. Keaney regularly appears led and unled in interlocutory applications, hearings, and trials, at first instance and appeal in the Local / Magistrates, District, and Supreme Courts and also the Court of Appeal. In addition to her criminal law practice, she also appears in common law matters, predominantly for plaintiffs in personal injury cases arising from historic child sexual abuse.
Ms. Keaney has appeared in the Murri Court (QLD) and the Galambany Circle Sentencing Court (ACT), and has a particular interest in offender rehabilitation, restorative justice, the intersection of trauma, FASD and other mental conditions with the justice system.