David holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Communication from Queens College, City University of New York and a Juris Doctor from the University of California, Los Angeles. He is admitted as an attorney in California and a barrister in New South Wales, Australia.
David was President of the Australian Law Reform Commission from 1999 -2009, and presided over 15 major national inquiries. In 2001, he chaired the Commonwealth Attorney-General’s National Pro Bono Taskforce.
In 2003, Professor Weisbrot was awarded a Centenary Medal by the Australian Government for ‘services to law reform’, and in 2006 was made a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) for ‘service to the law in the areas of law reform, education and access to legal services
David was a Foundation Member of the National Health & Medical Research Council’s Human Genetics Advisory Committee from 2006 – 2012. He was also a Foundation Fellow and Vice-President of the Australian Academy of Law.
David was previously a Commissioner of the Fiji Law Reform Commission and a consultant to the Papua New Guinea Law Reform Commission, as well as, serving as a legal consultant to several Pacific Islands and African governments and agencies.
Presently, David is the Chair of the Australian Press Council and an Emeritus Professor of Law and Honorary Professorial Fellow in Medicine at the University of Sydney. He is also a part-time Commissioner of the New South Wales Law Reform Commission; Vice-President of the Australian Academy of Law; a Member of the Strategic Advisory Board of the Garvan Institute‘s Centre for Clinical Genomics, in Sydney; and a member of the Australian Pro Bono Centre’s Advisory Council.
David is also a Member of the prestigious Order of Australia.