Organiser Hayley Coles explains why the time is right to launch New Zealand’s first union for legal workers. In 2018, Aotearoa’s legal profession received a wake-up call. The media broke stories of sexual harassment, bullying and other injustices throughout the profession. It was a call for change and it was long overdue. These problems have … Read more
With a career that has taken her from Whakatāne to Otago, to the hallowed halls of Harvard, to the front line of Standing Rock, lawyer Natalie Coates has fought for Māori and indigenous rights wherever she’s been needed. She has appeared in the Supreme Court for the Urewera ‘anti-terror’ raids case, and volunteered in ‘war-like’ … Read more
Anton Smith worked at big law firms for years, and welcomes signs the profession wants to change their workplace culture. But, he warns, without a massive industry shift any plans for improvement are doomed to fail. While I wholeheartedly support Sarah Mitchell’s recent advice to young lawyers in The Spinoff, better coping strategies won’t fix … Read more
Sarah Mitchell used to be a lawyer at a major New Zealand law firm – she lasted two years – and went on to study how practical psychology can help young lawyers adjust to legal life. Here she shares what she learned. In her independent review of Russell McVeagh, Dame Margaret Bazley noted that she … Read more
Harassment in the legal profession doesn’t exclusively affect women, writes Auckland lawyer Jason Cooper. It affects us all – and all of us have a responsibility to speak up. It’s been a few months since the allegations of sexual misconduct in the legal profession were reported. Since then, many victims of sexual harassment in the … Read more
The Law Society has professed shock after discovering the extent of harassment and discrimination in legal offices. But if you look at the barriers to reporting abuse, it’s little wonder juniors refuse to come forward, writes Madeleine Holden. For the second time this year, the legal profession has been rocked by reports that it’s a … Read more
A young lawyer wonders if her older peers’ response to the Russell McVeagh revelations might be just a bit too convenient. When the Russell McVeagh sexual assault allegations were published I imagine I wasn’t the only recent law graduate who felt smug. The stories of what had happened that summer were an open secret around … Read more
The legal profession has done a lot of soul searching since the revelations about widespread sexual harassment at the law firm Russell McVeagh. But, asks commercial litigation lawyer Ana Lenard, why have we heard from so few men? It has been nearly a month since Newsroom exposed sexually inappropriate behaviour by senior male lawyers at … Read more
It’s the biggest scandal to rock the legal profession in years. Yet the official response to the Russell McVeagh revelations has been woefully inadequate, says special counsel Linda Clark. I work with a group of simply terrific young women. They are bright, engaging, hard working and professional. These women – and so many others like … Read more
Revelations of alleged sexual harassment by a former partner at Russell McVeagh underscore the unique privilege of the legal profession. “Abusers don’t need to tear through the law because their very relationship with the law protects them,” writes Danyl Mclauchlan. A lawyer at a party told me. I couldn’t remember where he worked so I yelled … Read more