She was the independent member for Nightcliff in the Northern Territory Legislative Assembly from 1974 to 1983; in the First Assembly, she and fellow independent Ron Withnall were the sole non-Country Liberal Party members.

After politics, Lawrie and her husband established a community newspaper, the Palmerston & Northern Suburbs, which was published from 1983 to 1985.

Lawrie was appointed as the first Regional Director for the Australian Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission in 1986.

She served as the Administrator of the Cocos Keeling Islands from 1988 to 1990 and was the first NT Anti-Discrimination Commissioner.

[4] She is the mother of Delia Lawrie, former leader of the Labor Party and the opposition in the Northern Territory.