He became a solicitor in New South Wales, working for Legal Aid and also serving as an adviser to the then Labor state government.
[1][2] In 1993, Dodd was elected to the Australian House of Representatives as the Labor member for the Queensland seat of Leichhardt.
[1] He had sought the latter committee placement due to his electorate including the Torres Strait.
[5] He was sharply critical of the Liberal opposition's response to the Mabo High Court decision on native title, claiming their "consultative committee" was a "belated public relations exercise doomed to failure" with a predetermined outcome.
[6] He strongly supported the introduction of native title legislation and the creation of a Torres Strait Regional Authority.