Congratulations to Acting Chief Legal Officer, Tara Gupta, who was recognised in the 2025 Australia Day Honours List with a Public Service Medal.
Tara Gupta is a leading authority on Western Australia’s child protection legislation. During her 40 years of service in the public sector in Western Australia and prior to that in Victoria, she has made a remarkable difference to the lives of the children and families in the WA community.
"I've always been drawn to addressing social issues and knew early on that I wanted to use my work to make a difference," Tara said.
"For the first 13 years of my career, I worked for Victoria Legal Aid representing families and children in the Children’s Court. When I came to WA, I pivoted to focus on legislation and legal policy."
Since joining the Department in 1995, Tara has provided high level legal advice on child protection, adoption and family law matters and policy. In her role as General Counsel Advisory Services and Legislation she also advises on other aspects of the law including information exchange, administrative law and civil litigation. Tara works closely with the State Solicitor’s Office and the Parliamentary Counsel’s Office.
Most recently, Tara advised on a range of disability services legal issues including those related to the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability.
Her expertise has influenced the decision making of ministers, directors general, and executives.
Tara said a career highlight has been the opportunity to develop and implement the Children and Community Services Act 2004 as well as the introduction of Working with Children legislation.
"The work on the Act was particularly meaningful as it saw the repeal of child protection laws that were more than 50 years old," she said.
"Seeing these changes take hold and knowing they've made a difference is deeply fulfilling.
"It’s a rewarding job but you have to persevere because overall processes can be slow – then on the other hand, there are strict deadlines for urgent legal response on some matters."
Nevertheless, it’s this combination of perseverance and expertise that has earned Tara the Public Service Medal for her outstanding public service in developing legislation for children’s rights and wellbeing.
"This is recognition for our work to modernise legislation relating to children, community services, child protection, adoptions and screening in WA," Tara said.
"I’ve been fortunate to work alongside so many dedicated people. This isn't just about me – it's about the incredible work we've done together."
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