Legal exec Angelina Lau overcomes racism to lead diversity program
Legal tech executive Angelina Lau, who experienced racism throughout her career, now leads a program helping second-generation Vietnamese Australians.
At 26, Angelina Lau is head of growth at legal tech company Sprintlaw and has just been named Rising Star at the Asian-Australian Leadership Awards. Angelina Lau's path was marked by racism that made her feel she had to hide her identity.
Born to a Vietnamese mother and Malaysian father, Lau faced both racism and misogyny as she climbed the ranks, sometimes playing up her Australian accent to fit in. Angelina Lau recalled someone bowing and thanking her in Chinese, even though she is not Chinese.
Now she chairs the Dual Identity Leadership Program, supporting second-generation Vietnamese Australians aged 18 to 35. A Scanlan Institute survey of 10,000 Australians found the country's multicultural society is becoming more divided in 2026, with greater negativity toward immigrants from Asia and Africa.
- 26
- Lau's age
- 18 to 35
- Program age range
- 10,000 adults
- Scanlan Institute survey size
Why it mattersRacism remains a significant workplace barrier in Australia, especially for women from culturally marginalised backgrounds.
AustraliaAustralian workplaces are grappling with systemic racism that limits opportunities for people from non-European backgrounds.
