About Sheetal Deo
Lawyer by Education,
Advocate By Choice
“Sheetal is a change agent, facilitator, curator and incredibly astute professional.”
— Hayley Angell, Senior Manager (DEI), Chartered Accountants Australia New Zealand
Sheetal Deo (She/Her) is a lawyer by qualification and an advocate by choice. A strong believer in using positions of power and privilege to support and empower others, Sheetal is passionate about inclusive practices, access to justice and education.
Sheetal’s journey spans two countries and more than 15 years of work at the intersection of law, advocacy, and social change.
After earning a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from the University of Fraser Valley in Canada and engaging in political and social science studies for over 12 years, Sheetal pursued her Juris Doctor, Master of Laws and Graduate Diploma of Legal Practice through Bond University in Queensland, Australia.
Today, Sheetal’s work spans multiple roles across the legal, not-for-profit and advocacy sector where she channels her passions to drive social impact.
Reimagining Access to Justice: Shakti Legal Solutions
Shakti Legal Solutions is Sheetal’s contribution to bridging the justice gap. Community legal centres and Legal Aid centres provide free legal help, but these organisations are often under-funded, under-resourced and as a result, unable to help everyone who seeks their assistance.
Launched in 2020, Shakti Legal Solutions is an innovative low-bono law firm with a unique “pay what you can” model that’s been recognised as a proof-of-concept, inspiring law firms across Australia. The organisation empowers individuals, organisations and communities to directly support its efforts by offering fixed fees and sliding scale payment options for eligible clients with professional fees as low as $50.
Thought Leadership: Speaker & Facilitator
Whether she’s in the courtroom, comedy debate or advocacy panel, Sheetal knows how to engage her audience and articulate her points. As an international speaker, facilitator, and panelist, she navigates difficult topics and conversations with passion and compassion, delivering keynotes, workshops, and training that leave audiences empowered, hopeful, and curious. Her signature topics include diversity, equity, inclusion, intersectionality, privilege, LGBTIQA+ allyship, access to justice, mental health and wellbeing, and the South Asian diaspora.
amplifying lived experience: the diversity Collective
Founded by Sheetal, The Diversity Collective is a social cooperative that engages community members with relevant lived experience to facilitate bespoke diversity and inclusion training sessions. The Diversity Collective is therefore a safe space for people to learn, engage and take ownership of their impact and role in deconstructing systemic oppression of marginalised communities, whilst simultaneously amplifying underrepresented voices and stories of lived expertise.
Creating Change, not just compliance: Workshops & Training
Sheetal delivers bespoke training sessions and workshops to help organisations move beyond box-ticking compliance to create meaningful, sustainable change in an engaging, inclusive and accessible way, taking big topics and making them approachable.
Current Leadership & Advocacy
Along with her work in Shakti Legal Solutions, Sheetal volunteers her time on various not-for-profit boards, including in 2022, becoming the first woman of colour elected to the Queensland Law Society’s Council in its 150-year history. As a Councillor (Non-Executive Director/Board Member), she provides strategic direction and governance for an organisation with net assets in excess of $196m.
Sheetal is also a recent appointment to the Management Committee of the LGBTI Legal Service and serves as the State Director (QLD) for Out for Australia.
Sheetal is a member of the DCA team for the RISE project which “is a visionary project that aims to build pathways to leadership for women from culturally and racially mariginalised (CARM) backgrounds”.
What drives this work?
As a member of the South Asian Diaspora with Fijian-Indian Girmitiya heritage and as an LGBTIQA+ advocate, Sheetal brings lived experience to every conversation. Her philosophy is rooted in the belief that bridging the gap between awareness and action often requires unlearning, re-learning, kindness and compassion. She's a keen believer in calling in, not calling out, and creating safe and comfortable spaces to ask and learn about otherwise uncomfortable topics. Issues relating to diversity, inclusion, equity and accessibility may not be our fault as individuals, but it's our responsibility as a society.
Awards & recognition
2025
- Finalist, South Asian Women in Business Award
- University of the Fraser Valley’s 50 Remarkable Alumni
2024
2023
2022
- Australian Women in Law Awards – Innovative Law Firm
- Australian South Asian Centre (ASAC) Stellar South Asian Award Winner
- Multicultural Queensland Awards – Outstanding Contribution by a New Queenslander
2021
Let's connect
Whether you’re looking for a speaker who can navigate difficult conversations with grace, training that creates real change, legal support that’s actually accessible, or just want to explore possibilities – let’s talk.
Not sure what you need? Let’s figure it out together.
