women lawyers of western australia without prejudice bi-annual newsletter winter edition 2015
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WITHOUT PREJUDICE
Making!it!Happen!–!The!Implementation!Phase!
Emai l :!!!!! [email protected]! Facebook: ! ! https://www.facebook.com/!womenlawyersofwesternaustralia!
Website:!! www.wlwa.asn.au! !
Address: ! ! PO!Box!Z5330! ! L inkedIn :! ! Search!“Women Lawyers!of!Western!Australia!Inc”!
!!!!!!!!!! ! Perth,!WA,!6831!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !
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Welcome!to!the!Winter!2015!edition!of!Without'Prejudice,!the!official!newsletter!of!Women!Lawyers!of!
Western!Australia!Inc.!!We!haven’t!produced!a!Newsletter!in!a!long!time!so!we!hope!you!find!time!to!
read! this! important,! yet! lengthy! edition.!! We! have! listened! to! your! feedback! and! have! decided! to!
change!the!format!our!newsletters!from!now!on.!Keep!an!eye!out,!as!from!August!we!will!be!producing!
a!shorter!newsletter!every!three!months!in!order!to!give!you!more!value!for!your!membership.!!Watch!
this!space!!
During!the! last!year!we!have!seen!significant!change!at!WLWA!with!the!departure!of! immediate!past!
president,!Cathryn!Greville.!We!thank!Cathryn!for!her!continuing!support!of!WLWA,!and!welcome!new!
president,!Tina!McAulay.!To!celebrate! International!Women’s!Day! I!sat!down!with!Tina!and!discussed!
her!new!role!and!the!preparations!involved!in!presiding!over!the!WLWA!Honours!Dinner.!!
The!WLWA!Honours!Dinner,!our!annual!black!tie!event,!had!close!to!200!people!in!attendance!this!year.!
We!were!thrilled!to!acknowledge!the!appointment!of!Her!Excellency!the!Honourable!Kerry!Sanderson!
AO!(Governor)!and!to!honour!the!new!appointees!to!the!bench!Her!Honour!Judge!Vicki!Laura!Stewart!
(District! Court),! Her! Honour! Magistrate! Ciara! Tyson! (Family! Court),! Member! Karen! Whitney! (State!
Administrative!Tribunal)!and!Member!Hannah!Leslie!(State!Administrative!Tribunal).!We!spoke!to!some!
of! the! recipients! of! the! 2015!Woman! Lawyer! of! the! Year! Awards! and! the!Aboriginal!Women's! Legal!
Education!Trust!Scholarship!and!congratulate!all!nominees!on!their!wellfdeserved!achievements.!!
WLWA! thanks! all! of! you!who!attended! the!event! and!everyone!who!donated! funds!on! the!night! for!
implementing! the! recommendations!made! in! the!20th
!Anniversary!Review!of! the!1994!Chief! Justice’s!
Gender!Bias!Taskforce!Report!released!in!September!2014!(2014!Review!Report).!Next!year’s!Honours!
Dinner! will! be! on! 11!March! 2016,! so! be! sure! to! save! the! date! in! your! diaries!! As! a! notfforfprofit!
organisation,!we!rely!on!sponsorship!for!this!event.!If!you,!your!firm!or!someone!you!know!is!interested!
in!sponsoring!the!dinner,!please!let!us!know.!!
WLWA!was! excited! to! run! a! number! of! successful! events! over! this! period.! I! attended! the!Australian!
Women!Lawyers!Conference! in!Adelaide! in!October!2014!with!a!number!of!other!WLWA!scholarship!
and!provide!a!full!review!in!this!edition!of!the!newsletter.!I!encourage!all!of!you!to!attend!the!next!AWL!
Conference!which!will!be! in!Perth! in!2016.!This!edition!also! includes!reviews!of! the!WLWA!Christmas!
Function,! Meet! the! Silks! and! Women! Lawyers! High! Tea.! Despite! advances! in! technology,! WLWA!
believes!that!the!best!form!of!communication!still!takes!place!face!to!face!and!encourage!all!members!
to!attend!our!social!and!CPD!Events!coming!up!in!the!second!half!of!2015,! including!WLWA’s!exciting!
membership! event,!Winter! Fashion!Wonder,! a! great! excuse! for! members! to! socialise,! network! and!
shop.!Committee!members!will!be!on!hand!to!help!both!old!and!new!members!register!online.!!
I!also!encourage!each!of!you!to!drag!yourself!away!from!your!desk,!brighten!the!last!Tuesday!of!each!
month!by!attending!one!of!our!very!informal!networking!lunches!held!at!Reveley’s!Café,!located!at!the!
BGC!Centre.!My!involvement!in!WLWA!stemmed!from!attending!one!of!these!networking!lunches!and!I!
am!personally!grateful!for!the!support!shown!by!former!WLWA!Presidents!Cathryn!Greville!and!Elspeth!
Hensler!by!encouraging!me!to!become!involved!and!nominate!for!the!Committee.!!
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WLWA !
2014/2015 ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !
Commi t tee !
!
Ex ecu t ive !
President!
Tina!McAulay!
V ice !Pres ident!
Anne!Wood!
Treasurer !
Susan!Diamond!
Secretary!
Acacia!Hosking!
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E l e c t e d ! M e m b e r s !
Tara!Connolly!
Jane!Ensor!
Catherine!Fletcher!!
Jessica!Henderson!
Shannon!Mony!!
Jessica!Stokes!
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C o f o p t e d !
M e m b e r s !
Rebecca!DaveyMegan!
McCormack!!
Prue!Myers!!
Frieda!Orr!
Emma!Tormey!!
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Emai l !
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W e b s i t e !
www.w lwa .asn .au ! !
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D i s c l a i m e r : ! ! !
This !newsletter !is !
intended!to!keep! readers !
abreast !of ! current !
developments. ! I t! is!not !
however , !to!be!used!or !
re l ied!upon!as!a! subst itute!
for!professional!adv ice. !
Before!act ing!on!any!
matter !deta iled!in!this !
newsletter !readers !should!
discuss!matters !with! the ir!
own!profess ional !adv isers . !
Art ic les !produced!in!this !
newsletter !are!!the!
opin ions!and !observat ions !
of !the!author!and!not !of !
the!WLWA.!!
Editor’s!Note!
'Je ss ica'Stokes ' 'Editor'WLWA'Committee'member'
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The! theme! of! this! newsletter’s! edition! is! “Making! it! Happen! f!
The!Implementation!Phase”!in!support!of!International!Woman’s!
Day!2015!and!the!release!of!the!Executive!Summary!of!the!2014!
Review! Report! on! 6! March! 2015.! This! theme! was! chosen! to!
highlight! the! importance! of! a! period! of! change! for!WLWA! and!
the! rest! of! the! legal! community! as! we! act! on! the! 197!
recommendations! to! government! agencies,! organisations! and!
groups,! including! the! Law! Society! and! the! Western! Australian!
Bar!Association.!The!Executive!Summary!highlights!some!of! the!
most!important!recommendations.!WLWA!encourages!members!
to! look! at! the! recommendations! on! that! affect! you! and! start!
implementing!the!changes.!You!can!read!the!Executive!Summary!
for!the!2014!Review!Report!and!the!Media!Release!published!by!
WLWA!on!6!March!2015!on!our!website!www.wlwa.asn.au.!!
If! you! would! like! to! comment! on! the! Executive! Summary! or!
contribute! to! the! implementation! of! the! recommendations! in!
the! 2014! Review! Report,! please! contact! us! by! email! at!
[email protected]! and! let! us! know! what! your! area! of!
interest! is,! and! how! you! would! like! to! contribute.! WLWA! has!
been! consulting! with! organisations! mentioned! in! the!
recommendations!and!are!very!grateful!to!the!Hon.!Chief!Wayne!
Stewart! Martin! AC,! Matthew! Keogh! (Law! Society! President),!
Nicholas! Van! Hattem! (Founder! of! Piddington! Society)! and!
Conrad! Liveris! (Equal! opportunity! advocate)! for! providing! their!
views!on!diversity!in!the!legal!community.!!
As! Chair! of! the! Communications!Working! Group! I! can! confirm!
that!we!have!been!extremely!busy!this!year!with!the!creation!of!
a! Facebook,! LinkedIn! and! Twitter! account! on! top! of! our! email!
blasts!to!members!and!bifannual!newsletters.!I!encourage!all!of!
you!to!connect!with!WLWA!online!to!receive!real! time!updates!
and! member! benefits.! WLWA! is! offering! ! new! ways! to!
communicate!with!members!and!for!members!to!communicate!
with!each!other.!!Social!media!marketing!is!a!fast,!affordable!way!
to!communicate,!however! it! is!competitive!and!always!evolving!
and! we! hope! you! can! support! us! in! this! new! space! by!
commenting,!liking!and!sharing!our!posts.!!
I!hope!you!enjoy! this!newsletter.!Please! let!me!know!what!you!
would!like!to!see!in!the!next!edition!!
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Meet! the! Silks! Event,! 2015! Ryan! Tozer,! Jessica! Courtney,! Anna! Crosby!
and!Laura!Groves,!photo!provided!by!Jessica!P!Stokes!Photography!
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Meet! the! Silks! Event! 2015,! Christine!Wheeler! and! Jasmine! Sims photo!provided!by!Jessica!P!Stokes!Photography!
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Honours!Dinner!2015,!Susan!Diamond,!Anne!Wood,!Tina!McAulay,!photo!
provided!by!Will!Russell!
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REPORTS!
1! ! !President’s!Report!
2! ! !Gender!Bias!Taskforce!Working!Group!Report!
3! ! !Law!Reform!and!Social!Justice!Working!Group!Report!
3! ! !The!Education!and!CPD!Working!Group!Report!
UPCOMING!EVENTS!
4! ! !Winter!Fashion!Wonder!(July)!
4! ! !Next!WLWA!Newsletter!(August)!
4! ! !CPD!Event!(September)!
5! ! !Meet!the!Judiciary!(September)!
5! ! !Women!in!the!Profession!Photo!(September)!
5! ! !WLWA!Annual!General!Meeting!(October)!
5! ! !Australian!Women!Lawyers!AGM!(Melbourne)!(October)!
5! ! !WLWA!Honours!Dinner!(March!2016)!
5! ! !Australia!Women!Lawyers!Conference!(April!2016)!
ARTICLES!
6! ! !20th!Anniversary!Review!of!the!1994!Report!of!the!Chief!Justices!!
! ! ! ! !Taskforce!on!Gender!Bias!–!implementation!phase!(May!2015)!
7! ! !The!Honourable!David!Kingsley!Malcolm!AC!QC!
7! ! !Women!in!the!law!–!we!can!do!better!
9! ! !The!rubber!hitting!the!road!
11! ! !Making!it!Happen!at!the!Piddington!Society!
12! ! !Lost!and!Found:!Women!in!Leadership!
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PAST!EVENTS!
13! ! !Australian!Women!Lawyers!5th!National!Conference!3f5!!
! ! ! ! ! ! !October!2014,!Adelaide!
13! ! !AWL!Conference!2014!Report!
16! ! !Women!in!Leadership!Summit!
16! ! !Women!Lawyers!High!Tea!
17! ! !WLWA!Christmas!Networking!Party!!
17! ! !Meet!the!Silks!
18! ! !WLWA!Honours!Dinner!
18! ! !WLWA!Honours!Dinner!Sponsors!
INTERVIEWS!
20! ! ! Interview!with!WLWA!President!Tina!McAulay!
22! ! !Senior!Woman!Lawyer!of!the!Year!f!Susan!Fielding!
23! ! !Woman!Lawyer!of!the!Year!f!Elspeth!Hensler!
24! ! ! Joint!Junior!Woman!Lawyer!of!the!Year!f!Stephanie!Puris!and!!
! ! ! ! ! ! ! Jessica!Bowman!!
25! ! ! Interview!with!Stephanie!Puris!
26! ! ! Interview!with!Jessica!Bowman!
28! ! !Rural!Regional!and!Remote!Lawyer!of!the!Year!f!Samantha!!
! ! ! ! ! ! !Martella!
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29! ! ! Interview!with!Laura!Vincent!f!Aboriginal!Women’s!Legal!!
! ! ! ! ! ! !Education!Trust!Scholarship!
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ANNOUNCEMENTS!
30! ! !WLWA!Mentoring!Programme!Interview!
30! ! !WLWA’s!Website!–!www.wlwa.asn.au!
30! ! !Call!for!submissions!
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Contents!
June!2015!Newsletter!
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REPORTS!
President’s!Report!
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'Photo'provided'by'Tina'McAulay'
'T ina'McAulay'President'
As!this! is!my! first! formal!President’s!Report,! I’d! like! to! thank!you!
for! your! support! in! my! leadership! of! Women! Lawyers! WA.! ! Of!
course! I! have! to! thank! our! immediate! past! President,! Cathryn!
Greville,! for! all! of! her! organisation,! hard! work! and! strong!
foundations.!!Without!the!continued!support!of!our!members!and!
past! Presidents,! WLWA! would! not! be! able! to! continue! our!
importance!in!the!Profession.!
I!would!like!to!say!thank!you!to!our!outgoing!committee!members!
for!their!dedication,!hard!work!and!service!to!our!Association!and!
standing!up! for!Women! in! the! law:! !Cathryn!Greville! (immediate!
past! President),! Natalie! Graskoski! (immediate! past! Secretary),!
Anne! Lopez! (immediate!past! Treasurer),! Janette!McCahon,!Emily!
Mills,! Gayann! Walker,! Sophie! Everatt! and! Elspeth! Hensler! and!
Claudia!Maw.!
I! would! also! like! to! formally! introduce! and! welcome! our! new!
committee:! Anne! Wood! (Vice! President),! Susan! Diamond!
(Treasurer),! Acacia! Hosking! (Secretary),! Tara! Connolly,! Catherine!
Fletcher,!Shannon!Mony,!Jessica!Henderson,!Jessica!Stokes,!Emma!
Tormey,! Prue! Meyers,! Jane! Ensor,! Rebecca! Davey,! Megan!
McCormack,! Jodie! Moffat! and! Frieda! Orr.! ! Our! committee! is!
diverse,! with! representation! from! senior! lawyers! to! students,! in!
Government,! at! the!Bar,! in!private!practice,! family! law,! litigation!
and! commercial,! as! well! as! infhouse.! ! I! encourage! members! to!
contact! any! of! the! committee!members! or!me! to! discuss! issues!
that!concern!you!–!whether!in!the!profession!or!involving!women!
in!the!wider!community.!
We! have! been! very! busy! since! October! with! respect! to! the!
outputs!of!the!committee.!!As!we!are!a!volunteer!organisation,!we!
appreciate! the! efforts! our! committee! put! in,! in! donating! their!
time,! pro! bono,! to! help! improve! the! organisation,! promote! the!
advancement!of!women!in!the!profession!and!the!community.!
I! am! very! pleased! to! advise! that! we! launched! WLWA! on! social!
media!for!the!first!time!! ! It! is! important!that!we!keep!up!to!date!
with! our! members,! the! issues! in! society! and! we! continue!
communicating!about! these.! ! Social!media! is! the!obvious!choice.!!
If! you! have! not! already! “liked”! our! Facebook! page! or! LinkedIn!
group,!please!do.!!Also,!make!sure!you!keep!up!to!speed!with!our!
“latest!news”!on!our!website.!
Then! at! the! beginning! of! the! year,! it! was! all! hands! on! deck! in!
preparation! of! the! Honours! Dinner! and! Women! Lawyer! of! the!
Year!Awards.! !WLWA!was! represented!at!most!of! the!profession!
and!community!International!Women’s!Day!events.!!!
In!time!for!International!Women’s!Day,!WLWA!also!published!the!
Executive! Summary! to! the! Gender! Bias! Taskforce! Report.! ! The!
Executive! Summary! is! on! our! website! and! can! be! found! here:!
http://wlwa.asn.au/images/WLWA_GBT_Executive_Summary_06.
03.15.pdf.!!
On!14!March!2015,!we!hosted!our!annual!Honours!Dinner!at!the!
UWA! Club! in! Crawley,! one! of! the! premier! events! on! the! Perth!
Legal! Social! Calendar.! ! It! was! attended! by! nearly! 200! guests.! ! I!
would! like! sincerely! thank! our! sponsors,! Gold:! John! Toohey!
Chambers,!Silver:!Law!CPD!and!Bronze:!Ipac.!!!
At! the! Dinner,! we! acknowledged! the! appointment! of! Her!
Excellency,! Kerry! Sanderson! AO! on! being! appointed! as! the! first!
female! Governor! in! Western! Australia.! ! We! also! acknowledged!
and!formally!congratulated!The!Hon.!Christine!Wheeler!AO!QC!on!
being!inducted!into!the!International!Women’s!Day!Hall!of!Fame,!
a!noteworthy!and!wellfdeserved!achievement.!!You!will!of!course!
all! be! aware! that! Her! Honour! was! on! the! first! committee! for!
Women!Lawyers!WA,!in!establishing!it!in!1982.!You!can!read!more!
about! the! remarkable!women!we!honoured! and! awarded! at! the!
dinner!in!the!newsletter!and!on!our!website.!
Again,! I!congratulate!our!Women!Lawyers!of!the!Year!on!being!
awarded!for!their!achievements.!!Please!start!thinking!about!the!
remarkable!women!around!you!and!consider!nominating! them!
next!year.!
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I! take! this! opportunity! to! remind! you! that! we! are! here! to!
support!women!in!the!profession.!!Part!of!how!we!do!that!is!by!
offering! our! mentoring! programmes.! ! We! have! an! ad! hoc!
mentoring!programme!and!an!advocacyfmentoring!programme.!!
Details! can! be! found! on! our!website.! ! I! encourage! you! to! use!
them.!!It!is!part!of!the!benefit!of!being!a!member.!
We!have!produced!a!number!of!CPD!events,! starting!with! Law!
week!and!will!continue!to!do!so!throughout!the!year,!so!keep!an!
eye! out! on! our! website.! We! continue! to! hold! our! monthly!
networking!lunches.! !They!are!an!informal!get!together!for!you!
to!network!with!other!women! in! the! law.! !See!you!at! the!next!
networking!lunch.!!Details!are!on!our!website.!Registration!isn’t!
essential!but!it!does!help!us!with!confirming!numbers.!
I!am!pleased!to!advise!of!our!member!benefits!scheme!that!we!
have! been! working! on! to! deliver! in! our! next! membership!
financial! year! 2015f2016.! ! Members! are! encouraged! to! check!
out!our!website!for!further!details.!!You!will!be!delighted!to!see!
the!discounts!to!many!products!and!services!that!are!tailored!at!
women!!
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Honours' Dinner' 2015,' Tina' McAulay,' photo' provided' by' Will'Russell'!
Look!out!for!some!of!these!retailers!at!our!first!Winter!Fashion!
Wonder! event.! ! It! is! being! held! on! 24! July! and! will! showcase!
local! Australian! fashion,! jewellery,! millinery! and! products! that!
will!be!of!benefit! to!members,!at!discounted!prices.! !You!must!
be!a!member! to!attend!or! sign!up!on! the!night.! !We!will! have!
committee! stationed! at! laptops! to! guide! you! through! the!
registration! process! online.! Also,! look! out! for! our! full! day! CPD!
seminar! to! be! held! in! conjunction! with! Notre! Dame! in!
September!! ! The! seminar! will! be! WLWA’s! first! and! will! not!
disappoint!!!!Don’t!miss!out.!Details!will!be!on!our!website!soon.!
Finally,! I!am!pleased!to!announce!that!we!are!in!the!process!of!
organising!a!group!photo!of!all!women!in!the!law,!similar!to!the!
photo! taken! in!1999.! ! The!Federal!Court!has!offered! the! steps!
again!for!the!photo.!!We!are!considering!having!the!photo!prior!
to!our!meet! the! judiciary! function! in! late!September,! so!watch!
this!space!!!
Thank!you!for!your!continued!support.!
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Gender!Bias!Taskforce!Working!Group!
Report!
'Honours'Dinner'2015,'Catherine'Fletcher,'photo'provided'by'Will'Russell'
'Catherine'Fletcher' 'Chair'of'Gender'Bias'Taskforce'Working'Group'''
Current! members! of! this! working! group! include! Catherine!
Fletcher,! Tina! McAulay,! Anne! Wood,! Sarah! McCauley! (UWA!
student),! Conrad! Liveris,! Emma! Greeney,! Megan! McCormack,!
Prue! Myers,! Jane! Power,! Rebecca! Davey,! Kate! Hill! and! Carol!
Bahemia.!New!members!expected! to! join! include!Tom!Porter! (of!
FBC),! Chris! Bates! (MD! of! KBE! Human! Capital! &! Chair! of! The!
Piddington!Society)!and!a!nomination!from!the!YLC!committee.!!
We! are! currently! completing! a! Strategic! Plan! and! a!
Communication! Plan! regarding! the! Implementation! of! the! GB!
Review! Report! recommendations.! The! plan! will! also! look! at!
inviting!firms!to!submit!their!best!practice!examples!of!addressing!
GB,!promoting!it!as!a!marketing!tool!on!their!website.!Also!asking!
for! diversity! policies,! guidelines,! working! examples,! etc.! We! are!
exploring!the! idea!of!utilising!Notre!Dame!as!a!venue!to!conduct!
GBTF!workshops!as!a!joint!partner!with!targeted!presentations!to!
various! stakeholders.! WLWA! is! also! looking! at! holding! general!
briefings!for!the!legal!fraternity!with!the!possibility!of!offering!CPD!
points,! as! WLWA! is! an! approved! provider.! The! NARS! report! is!
complementary!with!the!2014!Review!Report!chapters!2!&!3.!The!
April! edition! of! Brief! spoke! to! the! first!meeting! NARS!workshop!
held! in! April.! The! LSWA! should! be! providing! an! update! on! the!
second!meeting! on!NARS! held! on!May! 8! in! Sydney.! Have! noted!
there!was!Law!Council!Charter!and!media!release!on!NARS.!!
We! also! note! the! “Rubber! of! the! Road”! article! by! Matt! Keogh,!
which! indicates! the! extent! to! which! LSWA! is! addressing! the! GB!
Review! Report! recommendations! from! chapter! 2.! We! are! also!
pleased! to! report! that! Cath! Fletcher! has! been! invited! to! join! a!
Department!of!Corrective!Services! reference!committee! that!will!
address! issues! of! reform! of! women’s! prisons! and! imprisonment!
rates! for! women.! This! is! directly! in! line! with! one! of! the! key!
recommendations!of!chapter!9.!
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Law!Reform!and!Social!Justice!Working!
Group!Report!
'Prue'Myers'CoMChair'of'Law'Reform'and'Social'Justice'Working'Group''
Jane!Ensor!and!I!are!cofchairs!of!the!Law!Reform!and!Social!Justice!
Working! Group.! Our! WG's! role! is! predominately! to! prepare!
responses! to! any! submissions! that! come! to! or! are! of! interest! to!
WLWA.!Unlike!the!busy!year!before,!we!surprisingly!have!not!had!
any!submissions!brought!to!our!attention!for!action!since!October!
2014.!
In!the!meantime!our!WG!is!working!on!articles!to!go!on!the!WLWA!
website!and!doing!some!research!into!other! issues!which!may!or!
may!not!lead!to!future!work.!These!include:!
1. Recognising! and! managing! domestic! violence! –! recent!
removal! of! legal! aid’s! domestic! violence! hotline.! Research! is!
being! conducted! on!why! the! hotline!was! removed?! Is! it! still!
removed?!What!other!mechanisms!have!been!put!in!place,!or!
are!in!place,!to!deal!with!these!matters?!!
2. Research! to! be! undertaken! in! relation! to! pregnant! refugees!
and!how!they!are!dealt!with!by!the!law.!!
3. Research! to! be! undertaken! on! Britain's! new! legislation!
regarding!the!unauthorised!sending!of!sexual!images.!What!is!
the! legislation;!what’s! the!purpose!behind! its!enactment!and!
how! this! might! link! to! recommendations! regarding! gender!
bias!in!the!2014!Review!Report?!
4. The! Australian! Human! Rights! Commission! has! released! its!
report! on! Pregnancy! in! the! Workplace.! WLWA! submitted! a!
formal! submission!on! this! review! in! 2014.!An! article! is! to! be!
drafted!outlining!what!the!released!report!has!recommended!
and! how! it! aligns!with! the! recommendations! in! the!WLWA's!
submission!and! the!2014!Review!Report's! recommendations.!
Resources!were!also!expected!to!be!developed!by!2015!by!the!
AHRC! in! response! to! the! findings! in! its! final! Report.! The!WG!
will! follow! up! on!when! they! are! expected! to! be! available! to!
organisations!and!include!this!in!the!article.!
5. Report! being! written! linking! 2014! Review! Report!
recommendations! with! the! Law! Council's! NARS! (National!
Attrition! and! Refengagement! Study)! Report! and! including!
information!regarding!any!challenges!around!implementation.!
Work!on!items!1,!4!and!5!above!is!almost!complete.!Once!final!
versions! are! prepared,! they! will! be! sent! through! to! the!
Committee!for!approval!before!they!are!placed!on!the!WLWA!
website.!!
!
The!Education!and!CPD!Working!Group!
Report!
'Shannon'Mony' 'CoMChair'of'the'CPD'Working'Group'''
In!conjunction!with!the!Law!Society,!the!working!group!organised!
a!free!seminar!for!the!profession!during!law!week!on!the!subject!
“Women’s!Rights!–!Making!Sense!of!the!Law”.!This!consisted!of!a!
presentation!and!panel!discussion!of! the!challenges!women! face!
in! the! law! and!what! rights! they! have.! The! event!was! chaired! by!
WLWA’s!President,!Tina!McAulay!and!included!a!session!by!Sarah!
Haywood!on!Gender!Bias! in! the!Workplace,! a! second! session!by!
Josephine!Hart!on!Employment!Law,!Maternity!Law!and!Return!to!
Work! and! a! final! session! by! Janette! McCahon! on! Violence,!
Restraining! Orders! and! Immigration! Law.! We! had! 42! attendees!
and!the!feedback!we!received!was!very!good!including!that!it!was!
a! great! event! and! that! the! issues! discussed,! particularly! about!
flexibility!were!relevant!to!the!profession.!!
On!25!May!2015!we!held!a!seminar!titled!“Making!an!Impression:!
Dealing! with! the! Bench! and! the! Boss”.! The! event! was! open! to!
members!and!nonfmembers!with!members!receiving!a!discounted!
rate.!We!had! a! total! of! 22! attendees.! The! event!was! chaired! by!
Tina! McAulay! and! consisted! of! presentations! by! Her! Honour!
Magistrate!Woods! and! Anne!Wood,! Vice! President! of!WLWA! in!
which! they! shared! tips! and!methods! for! appearing! in! court! and!
coping!with!gender!bias!in!the!workplace.!This!year,!we!have!also!
been! working! closely! with! the! universities! and! so! far! we! have!
presented! gender! diversity! seminars! to! Notre! Dame! and! ECU!
ethics! students.! We! have! further! seminars! lined! up! and! are!
working!to!ensure!that!students!have!sufficient!knowledge!of!and!
support!with!respect!to!issues!facing!women!lawyers!before!they!
enter! the! workforce.! We! have! more! exciting! ideas! lined! up! for!
further! seminars!we! can!present! to! the!general! legal! profession.!
As! always,!we! remain! open! to! suggestions! for! future! topics.!We!
also! have! current! vacancies! for!members!who!would! like! to! join!
our!working!group.!
3
UPCOMING!EVENTS!
!
Winter!Fashion!Wonder!
Friday!24!July!2015,!Perth!Town!Hal l !
We!are!delighted!to!bring!you!our!first!ever!evening!of!fashion!!
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!
!
Photo'obtained'online'
This! 2015/2016! Membership! Event! will! be! held! in! midfJuly! f! a!
fashion!night!with!a!number!of!WA!fashion!businesses!exhibiting!
their!wares!for!discounted!prices!or!special!deals.!Ticket!prices!will!
be!nominal.!
As! you! know!membership! is! managed! through! our! website! and!
membership! for! 2015/2016! will! be! opening! soon.! If! you! have!
joined/renewed!online!for!2015/2016!prior!to!the!event!or!join!or!
renew!at!the!computers,!which!will!be!available!on!the!night,!you!
will!be!able!to!have!access!to!this!event.!!
There! will! be! computers! and! committee! members! available! to!
assist!you!with!renewing!or! joining!up.!This! is!a!strictly!members!
only! event! with! the! only! exception! being! people! who! are!
attending!on!behalf!of!a! firm!to!renew!or! join!up!new!members.!
So!watch!out!for!the!official!flyer!announcing!the!date,!venue!and!
pricing.!
Members!will!receive!a!glass!of!champagne!on!arrival.! !For!those!
who!aren’t!members,!we!will!have!a!laptop!set!up!at!the!door!to!
help!you!register.!
We!look!forward!to!seeing!you!for!a!fabulous!evening!of!Women’s!
Winter!Fashion.!
!
!
August!Newsletter!
!
WLWA! will! now! be! releasing! quarterly! newsletters.! Our! next!
newsletter!will!focus!on!Domestic!Violence.!
!
!
!
CPD!Event!–!Notre!Dame!
September!2015,!Notre!Dame,!Fremantle!
This! CPD! event! will! provide! a! full! day! of! interesting! topics! for!
members! to! obtain! points.! !We!have! high! calibre! speakers! lined!
up,!so!you!won’t!be!disappointed.!
Watch! this! space! for! more! information! about! the! date,! times,!
topics!and!speakers.!
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!
!
4
Meet!the!Judiciary!
!! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !Late!September!
Our!annual!“meet!the! judiciary”!function!will! this!year!be!held!at!
the!Federal!Court!in!late!September.!!Members!are!encouraged!to!
attend.!
Watch!this!space!for!details!of!date!and!time!and!how!to!register.!
Women!in!the!Profession!Photo!
!! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !Late!September!
We!will! for! the! first! time! since! 1999,! have! a! photo! shoot! for! all!
women! in! the! profession.! ! It! is! such! an! historic! photo! that! is!
displayed!in!the!Supreme!Court!and!at!the!Law!Society.!!It!will!be!
interesting! to! see! the! numbers! given! the! attrition! rates! since!
1999.!
We!encourage!you!all!to!attend!and!to!circulate!to!all!the!women!
in!law!that!you!know.!
Details!will!be!released!shortly,!so!watch!this!space.!
!
WLWA!Annual!General!Meeting!
13!October!2015,!King!&!Wood!Mallesons!
A!reminder!that!WLWA's!AGM!is!coming!up!on!13!October!2015.!
We! encourage! you! to! consider! nominating! for! the! committee.!
Nominations!are!accepted!to!our!PO!Box! in!advance!of! the!AGM!
(preferable)!or! alternatively,! by! submitting! the!Nomination! Form!
on!the!night.!!If!you!don’t!have!one!already,!contact!us!to!yourself!
a! form! to! nominate.! ! Should! you! wish! to! discuss! nominating!
please!contact!a!current!member!of!the!committee.!!
It! is! important! that! our! range! of!members! are! represented! and!
the!committee!is!diverse.!!If!you!want!a!say!about!the!profession,!
we!encourage!you!to!nominate.!
Australian!Women!Lawyers!AGM!
(Melbourne)!
! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !10!October!2015!
The! AWL! AGM! will! be! held! in! Melbourne! on! 10! October! 2015.!!
Note,!it!is!the!AFL!grand!final!the!weekend!before,!so!if!you!are!a!
“die!hard”!football!fan,!I!encourage!you!to!stay!the!extra!week!for!
the!AGM.!
Alternatively,! proxies! can! be! sent! in.! ! Details! will! be! on! our!
website.!
!
WLWA!Honours!Dinner!2016!
!! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !11!March!2016!
Save! the! date!! ! Our! annual! Honours! Dinner! will! be! held! on!
11!March!2016.!
The! Dinner! is! used! to! honour! appointments! and! retirements! of!
women!on!the!bench!and!to!award!the!recipients!of!the!Woman!
Lawyer!of!the!Year!Awards.!
Next!year!will!see!less!speeches!and!more!networking!time,!so!be!
sure!to!put!the!date! in!your!diaries.! ! It! is!a!premier!event!on!the!
Perth!Legal!Social!Calendar!–!not!to!be!missed.!
!
Australian!Women!Lawyers!Conference!
2016!
!! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !8 !–!10!Apri l !2016!
The!AWL!Conference!for!2016!will!be!held!in!PERTH!next!year.!!We!
are!very! lucky!to!be!the!hosts!of!this! important!conference!and!I!
am! sure! you! will! all! register! to! attend! and! make! conference!
delegates!welcome!to!WA.!
Details!about!the!conference,!speakers!and!how!to!register!will!be!
available!shortly.!!
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!
ARTICLES!
!
20th!Anniversary!Review!of!the!1994!
Report!of!the!Chief!Justices!Taskforce!on!
Gender!Bias!–!Implementation!phase!!
(May!2015) '!
Jessica'Stokes'
On!Tuesday,!23!September!2014!the!20th!Anniversary!Review!of!
the!1994!Chief!Justice’s!Gender!Bias!Taskforce!Report!(“the!2014!
Review!Report”)!was!launched!in!the!foyer!of!the!Supreme!Court!
of!Western!Australia,! a! fitting! tribute! to! the! roots!of! the!original!
1994!Report!under!the!then!Chief!Justice,!the!Hon!David!Malcolm!
AC!QC.!The!Hon!Chief!Justice!Wayne!Martin!AC!opened!the!launch!
event! by! video! message,! and! attendees! heard! from! The! Hon!
Justice! Janine!Pritchard,!Chair!of! the!Steering!Committee! for! the!
20th!Anniversary!Review!Project,!along!with!Ms!Cathryn!Greville.!
By!way!of!summary,!the!broad!Terms!of!Reference!for!the!Project!
were!as!follows:'
1. To!review!the!extent!to!which!the!recommendations!made!
in! the! 1994! Report! of! the! Chief! Justice's! Taskforce! on!
Gender!Bias!(the!1994!Report)!have!been!implemented.!
2. To!the!extent!that!any!recommendations!in!the!1994!Report!
have! not! been! implemented,! to! investigate! and! make!
recommendations! in! relation! to! whether,! and! if! so! how,!
those!recommendations!may!now!be!implemented.!
3. To!investigate!the!extent!to!which!gender!bias!continues!to!
exist!in!the!law!and!the!administration!of!justice!in!Western!
Australia,!and!to!make!recommendations!for!its!elimination.!
!
4. To! consult! with! such! government! agencies,! organisations,!
groups! or! persons! as! the! Steering! Committee! thinks! fit! in!
relation!to!these!matters.!
There!were!many!people! involved! in! the!Project,! including! those!
who!participated!on!the!Steering!Committee,!on!the!nine!chapter!
Subfcommittees,! those! who! engaged! in! consultations,! provided!
submissions! and! gave! feedback! at! various! stages! of! the! Project.!
The! Project! has! received! support! from! the! Department! of! the!
Attorney! General,! the! Public! Purposes! Trust,! the! Department! of!
Communities:! Women's! Interests,! the! Hon! Chief! Justice! Wayne!
Martin! AC,! the! College! of! Law! and! Francis! Burt! Chambers.!!
Research! for! the! Project! was! greatly! assisted! by! funding! grants!
from! the! Public! Purposes! Trust,! Department! of! Communities:!
Women's!Interests!and!the!Department!of!the!Attorney!General.!!
The! next! phase! in! the! 2014! Review! Report! is! to! ensure!
Government! and!other! stakeholders! implement! at! least! some!of!
the! most! important! and! urgent! recommendations.! To! help!
achieve! this,!WLWA! convened! an! Implementation! Committee! to!
ensure! that,! as! a! bare! minimum,! the! most! significant!
recommendations!from!each!chapter!of!the!report!are!highlighted!
and! addressed.! The! Committee! has! been! speaking! to! various!
organisations!about!implementing!the!recommendations!and!on!5!
October!2014,!Cathryn!Greville!and!Catherine!Fletcher!presented!
some!of!the!findings!of!the!2014!Review!Report!to!the!Australian!
Women! Lawyer's! Conference! in! Adelaide.! Their! presentations!
were!made!in!the!course!of!two!sessions!at!the!conference!about!
gender! bias! in! the! law.! The! other! presenters! at! those! sessions!
were! Professor! Sharyn! Roach! Anleu! and! Professor! Margaret!
Davies!of!Flinders!University!who!have!both!done!very!interesting!
work!in!the!area.!Professor!Roach!Anleu's!recent!work!in!relation!
to!appointments!to!the! judiciary!and!the! judicial!workload!neatly!
complemented!Cathryn's!presentations.!
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! 6
The!Honourable!David!Kingsley!Malcolm!
AC!QC!
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The'Honourable'David'Kingsley'Malcom'AC,'photo'obtained'online'
On! a! sad! note,! most! of! you! will! be! aware! that! the! Honourable!
David! Kingsley! Malcolm! AC! QC! former! Chief! Justice! of! Western!
Australia! passed! away! on! 20!October! 2014! aged! 76,! following! a!
period!of! illness.!His!Honour!played!a! significant! role! in! the! legal!
profession! in! Perth! serving! as! Chief! Justice! of!Western! Australia!
from!1988!until!his!retirement!from!the!bench!in!February!2006.!!
His! Honour! was! also! expatriate! of! the! Supreme! Court! of! Fiji,!
Rhodes!Scholar! for!Western!Australia! in!1960,!was!a!Companion!
of! the! Order! of! Australia,! and! Citizen! of! the! Year! in! Western!
Australia! in! 2000.! David! Malcolm! instigated! the! Chief! Justice's!
Taskforce!on!Gender!Bias!that!reported!in!1994.!The!1994!Report!
contained!197!recommendations!to!address!gender!bias!affecting!
women!in!respect!of!a!broad!range!of!issues!or!areas:!education,!
access!to!justice,!women!in!the!legal!profession,!appointments!to!
the!judiciary,!the!courts,!women!as!victims,!aboriginal!women!and!
violence,! particular! laws,! police! officers! and! punishment! of!
women.! In! September! 2014,! WLWA! released! the! 2014! 20th
!
Anniversary! Review! of! the! 1994! Chief! Justice’s! Gender! Bias!
Taskforce! Report,! marking! 20! years! since! that! first! report.! His!
Honour! will! be! greatly! missed! by! all! who! knew! him! and!WLWA!
extends! its! sincere! condolences! to!his!wife!Kaaren!and!daughter!
Manisha.!!
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Women!in!the!law!–!we!can!do!better!!
'
''
Photo'provided'by'the'Hon.'Chief'Justice'Wayne'Stewart'Martin'AC!!
A!sorry!history!
The!unequal!treatment!of!women!within!the!legal!profession!has!a!
long!and!sorry!history.!!In!Western!Australia,!a!prominent!chapter!
in! that! history! is! the! disgraceful! treatment! of! Edith! Haynes!who!
was!held!to!have!no!right!of!admission!as!a!practitioner!by!a!Full!
Court!which!decided!that!a!woman!was!not!a!"person",!despite!an!
express! provision! in! the! Interpretation! Act! 1898! (WA)! to! the!
contrary,! in! what! is! arguably! one! of! the! worst! decisions! of! the!
Supreme!Court!of!this!State.!1
!
Unequal! treatment! in! the! paths! to! entry! to! the! profession!
remained!evident!in!1970!when!I!looked!around!my!first!year!law!
class!to!see!that!only!about!20%!were!women.!!Ten!years!later!the!
obstacles!had!shifted!to!a!later!point!in!the!career!path,!and!since!
1980! women! have! comprised! a! majority! of! graduates! from! our!
law! schools! and! entrants! to! our! profession.! ! Women! have!
consistently! comprised! 65%! of! graduate! lawyers! for! the! last! 10!
years!or!so.!!However,!the!rate!of!attrition!of!the!first!5!years!post!
admission!is!much!higher!for!women!than!for!men,!and!between!
the! ages! of! 35! and! 55,! the! number! of! women! practising! law!
declines! by! 75%.! ! It! is! no! coincidence! that! women! remain!
significantly! underfrepresented! in! the! senior! levels! of! the!
profession! including! as! partners! in! major! law! firms,! senior!
barristers!and!judges.!!Even!more!concerning!is!that!there!are!less!
women!on!the!Supreme!Court!and!District!Courts!now!than!when!
I!was!appointed!9!years!ago.!
So,!more!than!100!years!after!the!shocking!rejection!of!Edith!
Haynes'!valiant!attempt!to!enter!the!legal!profession,!the!!
1
!! In'Re'Edith'Haynes!(1904)!6!WAR!209.!
7
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obstacles!for!women!are!still!to!be!found!within!the!profession.!!
Although!they!are!less!obvious!than!outright!prohibition,!the!
obstacles!continue!to!frustrate!the!legitimate!ambitions!of!women!
wishing!to!achieve!leadership!roles!within!the!profession.!!This!is!
not!just!unfair!and!unconscionable,!it!deprives!the!community!of!
the!services,!which!could!have!been!provided!by!the!many!
talented!women!who!have!given!up!on!the!legal!profession.!
!
I!suspect!that!most!readers!of!this!newsletter!are!better!equipped!
than!I!to!suggest!steps!that!might!be!taken!to!address!this!
apparently!intractable!problem.!!However,!as!the!husband!and!
father!of!women!lawyers,!I!will!be!bold!enough!to!offer!some!
suggestions!drawn!from!my!observation!of!their!experiences,!and!
also!from!an!excellent!paper!recently!delivered!by!Deidre!
Willmott,!Chief!Executive!Officer,!Chamber!of!Commerce!and!
Industry,!during!Law!Week,!and,!of!course,!also!drawing!upon!the!
excellent!work!done!by!the!many!involved!in!the!20!year!review!of!
the!Taskforce!on!Gender!Bias.!!I!do!not!for!a!minute!diminish!the!
obstacles!confronting!women,!including!the!difficulty!of!balancing!
the!competing!demands!of!motherhood!and!professional!
responsibilities,!but!I!believe!there!are!some!things!we!can!do!to!
assist!those!women!who!take!up!the!challenge.!
First,! all! leaders! of! whatever! gender! must! openly! commit! to!
changing! the! culture! of! our! profession! so! that! women! receive!
substantive! equality! of! treatment,! not! merely! formal! equality.2
!!
There!can!be!no!equivocation!about!committing!to!an!objective!in!
which! women! occupy! at! least! half! of! the! senior! roles! within! all!
branches! of! the! profession! within! the! professional! lives! of! this!
generation!of!lawyers.3
!!
Second,! we! must! commit! to! flexible! work! practices,! including!
flexible!working!hours!and!part!time!work!that!encourage!women!
to!remain!within!the!profession.!!It!is!no!coincidence!that!women!
are! significantly! overfrepresented! in! government! law! offices,!
which!have!more!familyffriendly!work!practices.! !Major! law!firms!
serious! about! this! commitment! may! need! to! reassess! their!
emphasis! upon! billable! hours! and! look! instead! to! performance!
indicators,!which!offer!longerfterm!sustainability.!!
Third,!other!stakeholders!within!the!profession,!such!as!courts!and!
clients,!must!truly!appreciate!that!flexibility!of!work!practices!will!
improve!the!calibre!of!services!provided!by!a!profession!which!has!
a! greater! representation! of! women! amongst! its! senior!
practitioners.! ! Courts! routinely! accommodate! the! obligations! of!
practitioners!when!listing!cases,!and!there!is!no!reason!why!family!
obligations!should!not!be!weighted!just!as!heavily!as!professional!
obligations.!!Clients!who!are!told!by!their!legal!service!providers!
2
!Professor!Catharine!MacKinnon!has!written!extensively!on!the!difference!
between!substantive!equality,!which!focuses!upon!outcomes,!and!formal!
equality,!which!focuses!upon!process.!
!
3
!This!objective!is!still!less!than!true!equality,!as!
!women!comprise!65%!of!law!graduates.!
!
!that!the!best!man!for!their! job!is!a!woman!will!surely!be!flexible!
enough!to!fit!in!with!her!timetable.!
!
Fourth,!the!infrastructure!provided!by!professional!bodies!like!the!
Bar! and! the! Law!Society!must! actively!encourage!mentoring!and!
promotion! of! women! in! all! professional! activities.! ! Mentoring,!
quotas! for! female!participation! in!committee!work! (including!the!
governing!councils!of!these!bodies)!and!in!the!provision!of!CPD,!to!
take! some! examples,! must! all! be! vigorously! pursued,! and! not!
merely!tokenistic.!
Fifth,!women!must!not!be!shy!about!demanding!equal!treatment.!!
Women!must!speak!up!at!professional!gatherings,!not!hesitate!to!
aspire! to! leadership! roles! within! professional! bodies,! write!
articles,! present! lectures! and! mentor! other! women.! ! If! flexible!
work! practices! are! not! readily! available! or! the! best! work! is! not!
being!allocated!fairly,!complaints!must!be!made!f!it!is!the!squeaky!
wheel! that! gets! the! grease.! Of! course,! the! success! of! this!
suggestion! may! also! depend! in! part! upon! a! broader! cultural!
change!in!relation!to!how!assertive!women!are!perceived.!
I!am!sure! there!are!other! things! that!can!and!should!be!done!to!
advance! the! role! of! women! within! the! legal! profession,! but!
hopefully! implementation!of!some!of!the!things!I!have!suggested!
could!help!to!make!a!difference,!which!has!been!long!overdue.!!
!
8
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The!rubber!hitting!the!road!
!
'Photo'provided'by'Matthew'Keogh''Matthew'Keogh'President,'Law'Society'of'Western'Australia'!
The! 1994! Chief! Justice's! Gender! Bias! Taskforce! Report! (1994!
Report)! was! a! landmark! event! in!Western! Australia,! and! indeed!
Australia.!Setting!out,! in!some! instances! for!the!first! time,!and! in!
many!instances!confirming!the!continued!existence!of!gender!bias!
throughout!our!community!and!in!particular!in!the!justice!system.!
The! Law! Society! of! Western! Australia! played! a! keyfcontributing!
role!to!the!Gender!Bias!Taskforce!convened!by!then!Chief!Justice!
David! Malcolm.! The! Society! also! assisted! Women! Lawyers!
Western!Australia!in!their!mammoth!undertaking!of!conducting!a!
20! year! review! of! the! 1994! Report,! the! 2014! 20th! Anniversary!
Review!of! the!1994!Chief! Justice's!Gender!Bias! Taskforce!Report!
(Review! Report).! This! “where! are! we! now”! and! “what! do! we!
still! have! to! do”! review! has! been! both! enlightening! and!
depressing.!Unfortunately,!the!main!theme!of!the!review!is!that!in!
20!years!gender!bias!is!still!pervasive!throughout!our!community,!
including!our!justice!system.!It!is!my!sincere!hope!and!the!task!of!
the!Society!to!work!to!ensure!that!over!the!next!20!years!we!have!
a! great! deal!more! success! in! eradicating! such! bias! in! the! justice!
system!and!legal!profession.!
The! review! also! a! good! news! story! for! the! Society! in! some!
respects!as!well.!In!the!key!focus!area!for!the!Society,!Chapter!2!–!
Career! paths! for! women! in! the! legal! profession! in! Western!
Australia,! a! number!of! the! recommendations!were! for! initiatives!
and!programmes!that!the!Law!Society!has!already!undertaken,! in!
some!cases,!for!quite!some!time.!
Chapter!2!of! the!Review!Report! contained!42! recommendations,!
on! which! 18! are! directed! towards! the! Society! and! a! number! of!
others! relate! to!other!areas!of! the!profession,!which! the!Society!
can! support! in! achieving! the! objectives! of! those!
recommendations.! The! Law! Society! has! established! a! Review!
Report! Working! Group,! including! with! members! of! the! Law!
Society’s!Executive!to!work!with!our!existing!Committees,!such!as!
our!Joint!Committee!with!Women!Lawyers!WA,!Courts!Committee!
and! Human! Rights! &! Equal! Opportunity! Committee,! among!
others,!to!report!on!and!develop!responses!to!the!Review!Report’s!
recommendations! directed! to! the! Society.! At! this! point,! I! am!
pleased!to!report!some!success!already!in!respect!of!the!following!
recommendations:!
2.6! The! Law! Society! of! Western! Australia! publishes!
information!on!flexible!work!practices,!including!guidelines!
and! best! practice! examples! of! firms! utilising! such!
practices,! on! its! website! to! inform! the! profession! and!
broader!public!about!flexible!work!practices!generally.!
The! Society! has! had! flexible! work! practice! guidelines! on! its!
website! for! a! number! of! years! and! has! published! numerous!
articles! in! its!monthly!magazine,!Brief,!with!practical!examples!of!
how!to!make!flexible!work!practices!function!successfully.!
2.7! The! Law! Society! provides! Continuing! Professional!
Development!sessions!for! lawyers!(including!partners!and!
directors)! as! well! as! human! resources! and! nonflegal!
management! and! support! staff! regarding! flexible! work!
practices! in! commercial! practice,! including! the!
implementation! of! flexible! arrangements! for! men! and!
women,! best! practice! examples! and! addressing! common!
pitfalls!for!employers!and!employees.!
The! Society! has! held! CPD! seminars! on! sharing! experiences! of!
flexible! working! arrangements! during! Law!Week! in! the! last! few!
years.!
2.10! The!Law!Society!of!Western!Australia!and!Women!Lawyers!
of!Western!Australia!continue!and!actively!promote! their!
mentoring! programs,! particularly! to! women! returning!
from!leave.!
!
The! Society! administers! (and! will! continue! to)! a! number! of!
mentoring!programs,! for!penultimate!and!final!year! law!students!
at!ECU!and!Notre!Dame!Law!Schools,!for!Aboriginal!law!students,!
and!for!lawyers!admitted!for!less!than!5!years.!The!majority!of!the!
mentees! in! these! programs! are! women,! however,! the! Society!
continues! to!have!difficulty! finding! sufficient!women!practitioner!
mentors! for! the! young! lawyers! mentoring! programme! (likely!
reflecting!other!shortages!of!women!in!the!legal!profession).!
2.11! The! Law! Society! provides! training! for! practitioners!
seeking! to! return! to! the! profession! after! an! extended!
period! of! time! and! such! training! to! include! issues!
relating! to! technology! used! in! legal! organisations,!
networking!opportunities!and!professional!and!personal!
development!skills.!
!
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The! Society! has! held! CPDs! on! assisting! lawyers! returning! to!
practice! keep! upftofdate! with! technological,! professional! and!
personal! development! needs! and! regularly! holds! networking!
events.!!
2.12! The!Law!Society!of!Western!Australia!sets,!publishes!and!
promotes! targets! for! the! number! of! women! in! legal!
practice!and!asks!law!firms!to!report!to!the!Law!Society!
annually!on!achievement!of!these!targets!as!a!reporting!
requirement! associated! with! the! Law! Society’s! Quality!
Practice! Standard! (QPS),! or! in! the! case! of! national! and!
international! firms! utilising! other! quality! assurance!
systems!as!part!of!the!duties!of!a!good!corporate!citizen.!
!
The! QPS! is! not! something! that! lends! itself! to! reporting! on!
numbers!of!staff,!as!it!is!systems!based!programme.!However,!the!
gender!mix! of! lawyers! at! firms! can! be! easily! obtained! from! the!
Legal!Practice!Board!web!site.!The!Society!has!also!run!a!number!
of! CPD! seminars! on! unconscious! bias,! both! for! women! lawyers!
and! for! managers.! The! Society! is! also! aware! that! a! number! of!
international!and!national!firms!have!set!gender!targets!for!senior!
lawyer! and! nonflawyer! roles! within! their! firms! and! voluntarily!
reports!on!their!results.!
2.21! The!Law!Society!of!Western!Australia:!
a)!promotes!understanding!and!awareness!of!the!sexual!
harassment!clauses!of!the!Professional!Conduct!Rules!to!
members!of!the!profession;!
b)! conducts! Continuing! Professional! Development!
sessions!(attracting!CPD!points! in!the!areas!required!by!
the! Legal! Practice! Board! for! the! renewal! of! practicing!
certificates)!relating!to!sexual!harassment!in!workplaces;!
and!
c)!makes!practitioners!aware!of!the!ability!to!speak!to!a!
senior!practitioner! and/or! Senior!Counsel! in! relation! to!
ethical! and!professional!misconduct! issues! (including! in!
relation!to!sexual!harassment!by!another!practitioner).!
The! Society! has! held! ethics! hypotheticals! CPD! seminars! for! a!
number!of!years,!addressing!ethical!issues,!including!treatment!of!
other! practitioners! and! harassment! issues.! The! availability! of!
Senior! Counsel! to! assist! lawyers! with! ethical! issues! is! promoted!
through!this!and!other!CPD!seminars!and!generally!by!the!Society.!
2.22! The!Law!Society!of!Western!Australia!continues! its!Law!
Care! (WA)! counselling! and! information! service! and!
promotes! the! service! and! its! ability! to! assist!
practitioners!experiencing!difficulties!including!dealing!!
!
with! instances! of! unprofessional! conduct! or! professional!
misconduct.!
The! LawCare! service! and! the! Members! Advice! Referral! Service!
have!been!provided!since!2011!and!will!be!continued.!
2.25! The! Law!Society! of!Western!Australia! and! the!Western!
Australian!Bar!Association!lobby!the!Western!Australian!
Government! to! adopt! a! policy! similar! in! content! and!
purpose! to! the! Commonwealth’s! Legal! Services!
Directions,! especially! as! it! relates! to! the! briefing! of!
women!by!State!agencies.!
The! Society! has! discussed! the! introduction! of! a! policy! similar! to!
the!Commonwealth’s! Legal!Services!Directions!with! the!Solicitorf
General!and!the!State!Solicitor.!
2.27! The! Law!Society! of!Western!Australia! and! the!Western!
Australian! Bar! Association! support! Women! Lawyers! of!
Western!Australia!in!requesting!that!the!courts!avoid!or!
minimise! the! listing! of! matters! in! a! way! that!
disadvantages! those! with! family! responsibilities,! in!
particular,! that! matters! should! generally! not! be! listed!
before!9.15am!or!after!4.30pm!save!for!emergencies.!
This!issue!has!been!raised!at!CPD!seminars!regarding!flexible!work!
arrangements! as! well! as! in! meetings! of! the! Society’s! Executive!
with! the! Supreme! Court,! Family! Court,! District! Court! and!
Magistrates! Court.! While! there! has! been! some! resistance! to!
changing! current! court! practices! in! some! courts,! all! have! been!
open! to! the! Society! working! with! the! Courts! to! work! through!
specific! issues!and!develop!alternatives.!The!Society!will!progress!
this!and!notes!that!the!NSW!Bar!Association!has!had!some!success!
on!this!front!earlier!this!year.!
2.29! The! Law!Society! of!Western!Australia! and! the!Western!
Australian! Bar! Association! make! submissions! to! the!
Supreme! Court! to! adopt! a! policy! (similar! to! the! NSW!
Bar)!explicitly!stating!in!the!Senior!Counsel!protocol!that!
a! flexible!or!partftime!practice! is!not!a!barrier! to!being!
appointed!Senior!Counsel.!
While! this! concept! is! not! opposed! by! the! Society,! it! notes! that!
partftime!employment!or!practice!is!not!stated!to!be!a!barrier!to!
appointment!as!senior!counsel! in!Western!Australia!and!that!this!
also!appears!to!be!the!case! in!practice,! for!example!Karen!Farley!
SC,! was! appointed! senior! counsel! in! 2013! and! is! employed! by!
Legal!Aid!WA!on!a!partftime!basis.!!
2.38! The!Law!Society!of!Western!Australia!conducts!research!
into!alternative! legal!business!models! to! time!billing,! in!
particular!with!respect!to!the!impact!of!time!billing!as!a!
charging!method!on!the!stress!levels!and!health!of!legal!
practitioners.!
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The! Society! notes! that! there! is! a! an! abundance! of! literature! on!
alternatives! to! time!billing!and! the!Society!has!published!articles!
about! this! issue! in! Brief! as! well! as! running! CPD! seminars! on!
alternative! billing!methods,! including! as! part! of! the! Society’s! full!
day! CPD! seminar! on! costs! in! March! 2015.! This! issue! was! also!
raised!by!the!Law!Council!of!Australia’s!Australian!Young!Lawyers!
Committee!report!on!workplace!practices!and!is!addressed!in!the!
Society’s! Report! on! Psychological! Distress! and!Depression! in! the!
Legal!Profession.! I!also!note! that! the!Society!published!an!article!
about!this!issue!in!its!Friday!Facts!email!to!all!members!on!17!April!
2015.!
2.40! The! Law! Society! of! Western! Australia! continues! to!
prioritise! the! development! and! delivery! of! educational!
and!informational!strategies!aimed!at!addressing!mental!
health!and!wellbeing!issues!in!the!profession,!and!make!
those!strategies!available!to!law!students!and!graduates!
via! University! law! schools! and! Practical! Legal! Training!
providers.!
The! Society! has! been! a! national! leader! in! addressing! mental!
health!and!wellbeing!issues!in!the!profession,!commencing!with!its!
Report! on! Psychological! Distress! and! Depression! in! the! Legal!
Profession! in! 2011.! The! Society! is! reviewing! that! report! and! its!
recommendations!in!2015!and!has!also!identified!the!intertwined!
areas!of!mental!health!and!wellbeing,!gender!bias!and!retention!of!
women!in!the!legal!profession!as!one!of!its!two!key!focus!areas!of!
this!year.!The!Society!will!be!rolling!out!an!enhanced!programme!
in!this!area!shortly.!!
!
The! Society! also! requested! that! the! Legal! Practice! Board!
incorporate! a! mandatory! mental! health! component! into! CPD!
requirements!as!part!of!the!LPB’s!CPD!review!at!the!end!of!2014.!
This! suggestion! was! not! taken! on! board,! however,! the! LPB! has!
confirmed!that!CPDs!regarding!mental!health!and!wellbeing!issues!
can!attract!CPD!points!under!the!WA!regime.!
In! addition! to! all! of! the! above,! there! are! a! number! of! other!
recommendations! that! the! Society! is! currently! working! through.!
The!Society!is!also!working!with!the!Law!Council!of!Australia!in!the!
development!of!a!national!response!to!its!National!Attrition!&!Ref
engagement! Study! (NARS),! released! in! 2013.! As! would! be!
expected,! many! of! the! issues! raised! in! the! NARS! are! also!
addressed!in!the!Review!Report.!The!Society’s!Executive!Director,!
David! Price,! and! I! attended! a!workshop!with! other! law! societies!
and! bar! associations! looking! at! these! issues! in! Sydney,! sharing!
successful! programmes! from! other! jurisdictions.! We! will! also!
attend!a!second!workshop!in!May,!to!consolidate!this!learning!and!
look! into!what!programmes!can!be!adopted!by! law!societies!and!
bar! associations! across! Australia! to! ensure! a! best! practice!
approach!nationally.!
The! Society! is! committed! to! a! properly! diverse! and! collegiate!
profession! that! not! only! serves! the! broader! community! but! also!
looks!after! itself.!Addressing!gender!bias! is,! therefore,!a!key!area!
of!focus!for!the!Law!Society,!and!we!look!forward!to!continuing!to!
work!with!Women!Lawyers!WA!to!putting!rubber!on!the!road!and!
achieving!in!results!this!area.!
.!
!
Making!it!Happen!at!the!Piddington!
Society!
!
'Nicholas'van'Hattem'and'Gail'Archer,'photo'provided'by'Jessica'P'Stokes'Photography'''Nicholas'van'Hattem''CoMfounder'and'Convenor'of'the'Piddington'Society''!
!
!
One! of! my! favourite! Piddington! moments! came! from! our! first!
"Meet! the! Silks".! I! thought! it!was! a! great!opportunity! to!make!a!
little!gender!statement!happen.!I!got!it!a!bit!wrong.!
When! the! Chief! Justice! announced! the! appointment! of! senior!
counsel!in!December!2013,!his!Honour's!list!included!Karen!Farley,!
Katrina!BanksfSmith!and!Linda!Petrusa.!To!me,!the!unprecedented!
appointment! of! three! female! senior! counsel! in! one! year! was!
something!to!celebrate.!With!support!from!Tina!McAulay,!Women!
Lawyers! and! Piddington! joined! forces! to! host! a! special! evening!
with!the!2014!appointees.!Gail!Archer!SC!kindly!agreed!to!be!MC.!
The!trailblazing!the!Hon!Christine!Wheeler!AO!QC!would!deliver!a!
keynote.! I! thought! all! the! pieces! were! in! place! for! a! great! big!
feminist!lovefin.!Not!quite.!!
I! think! the! first! person! that! really! drew! attention! to! the! whole!
gender! thing! was! the! very! goodfhumoured! John! Vaughan.! John!
made! some! quips! about! enjoying! the! somewhat! unusual!
experience! of! being! the! only! bloke! on! dais! of! leading! lawyers.!
(John’s! “brother”! 2014! Silk,! Marcus! Solomon,! was! sadly!
unavailable).!
!
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!
As! it! happened,! the! other! speakers!
elected! not! to! devote! much! time! on!
gender!issues.!Of!course,!they!didn't!need!
to.! It! was! their! engaging! stories! from!
diverse,! important! and! fulfilling! careers,!
which! provided! the! most! powerful! case!
for! the! higher! representation! of! women!
in!all!aspects!of!the!law.!!
All! of! our! speakers! (including! John)! are!
people! who! made! it! happen.! The! Piddington! Society! hopes! to!
follow!such!examples.!Since!the!beginning,!Piddington!has!sought!
to!"make! it!happen",!challenging!the!settled!order!of!things,! like:!
"you! can't! just! set! up! a! law! conference! in! Bali"! and! "CPD! costs!
$100! per! hour".! In! 2016,! we've! got! plans! to! make! something!
bigger! happen.! Our! new! project! is! a! proposed! alternative! to!
College! of! Law,! to! be! run! in! partnership! with! community! legal!
centres! f! The! School! for! Social! Justice.! Essentially,! law!graduates!
would!enrol!in!the!School!for!Social!Justice!graduate!program.!The!
cost! would! be! competitive! with! other! PLT! courses,! but! unlike!
other!courses:
• each! graduate! would! be! guaranteed! a! work! experience!
placement;!
• portions! of! the! course!will! be! lectured!by! judges,! silks! and!
senior!practitioners;!and!
• graduates! would! have! access! to! a! support! network!
throughout!the!year. !
Proceeds! from! the!graduate! course!would!be! contributed! to! the!
CLCs,! which! offer! work! placements.! Some! more! information! is!
available! at! www.ssj.org.au! and! we! hope! to! make! some! more!
details! available! soon.! For! now,! Piddington! thanks! Women!
Lawyers!of!WA!members!for!their!continued!support!of!our!events!
and!initiatives.!We're!looking!forward!to!a!future!of!making!lots!of!
new!things!happen.!
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Lost!and!Found:!Women!in!Leadership'
'
''Conrad'Liveris'photo'obtained'online''Conrad'Liveris ' 'Advocate'for'Gender'Equality,'GRAI'(GLBTI'Rights'in'Ageing),'The'Cutting'Room'Floor,'Street'Smugglers''
It! pains! me,! as! a! proud! West! Australian! that! we! are! not! doing!
better!on!gender!equality.!Once!a!leader!on!women!in!leadership,!
WA!today!is!lagging!and!dragging.!
A! gender! pay! differential! of! 25! per! cent,! combine! that!with! the!
likelihood! that! companies! without! women! on! their! board! are!
more!likely!to!be!headquartered!in!WA!than!any!other!state,!with!
only! two!women! in!WA! Cabinet,! three! of! the! 21! justices! of! the!
Supreme! Court! are! female,! and! of! pain! to! many:! inadequate!
childcare!in!the!CBD.!!
Failing! and! flailing,! things! are! terrible! for! women! in! leadership.!
Last!month!Women!on!Boards!released!their!Board!Diversity!Index!
–! and! WA! is! going! backwards! on! the! issue.! ! Contrasting! this,!
Victorian! Premier! Daniel! Andrews! and! his! New! South! Wales!
counterpart! Mike! Baird! have! made! pronouncements! in! the!
opposite!direction.!Andrews!is!guaranteeing!that!50!per!cent!of!all!
future! appointments! to! courts! and! government! boards! will! be!
female.! Baird! just! appointed! a! woman! as! Attorney! General.! Far!
from! a! hunt! for! votes,! it! was! a! surprise! announcement! after!
winning!the!March!28!election.!!
Many! of! us! are! tired! of! this! issue.! I! sometimes! wake! up! in! the!
morning! and! think! “have! we! dealt! with! gender! inequality! yet?”!
What!I!am!becoming!more!confident!on!is!that!action!sits!with!us.!
Clearly! something! needs! to! happen.! No! firm,! chambers,!
boardroom!table!or!judicial!bench!can!confidently!say!that!they!!
!
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take! gender!diversity! seriously! if!women!are! inequitably! represented.!Gaining! traction!on! this! issue! takes! all! of! us.!Whether! that! is! asking! the!
gender! diversity! question,! sharing! this! newsletter!with! an! influential! colleague,! or! supporting! a!woman! into! leadership! yourself!we! can! all! do!
something.! The! harsh! reality! is! that! women! have! been! the! majority! of! law! graduates! since! the! 1980s.! Without! equitable! representation! in!
leadership!by!now!how!anyone!can!deduct!anything!but!some!element!of!discrimination! is!beyond!me.!Amongst!all!of! this! I!am!reminded!that!
achieving!gender!equality!is!not!about!change!–!it!is!about!managers!doing!their!job.!Organisations!ought!to!reflect!their!clients,!stakeholders!and!
talent!pool.!
Unfortunately,!I!do!not!see!this!in!the!law.!
PAST!EVENTS
' '
5th!National!Conference!3f5!October!
2014,!Adelaide!
!
!
AWL!Conference!2014!Report! !
'Jessica'Stokes'!Editor,' WLWA' committee' member,' Website' Coordinator' and'Communications'Chair''Associate,'Clyde'&'Co''!
In! October! I! had! the! pleasure! of! attending! the! Australian!Women!
Lawyers! (AWL)! Conference! in! sunny! Adelaide,! South! Australia,!
courtesy!of!the!Women!Lawyers!Association!of!WA!and!the!WA!Bar!
Association,! along! with! three! other! scholarship! recipients.! AWL! is!
the! peak! body! for! women! lawyers! associations! through! Australia!
and! is! primarily! concerned!with! issues! relating! to! the!practice! and!
advancement! of! women! in! the! legal! profession.! I! was! particularly!
interested!in!attending!the!Conference!to!meet!other!women!in!the!
law!and!to!discuss!not!only! the!difference!between!states!but!also!
the!advantages!and!disadvantages!of!going!to!the!bar,!and!in!some!
cases,!the!bench.!
The! theme!of! the!Conference!was!Change.!Challenge.!Achieve!and!
enticed! practitioners! from! all! over! Australia! and! some! from! New!
Zealand!to!attend.!The!Conference!had!many!highlights,!including!a!
stimulating! program! of! educational! with! a! variety! of! presentation!
topics,!most!with!a!focus!on!the!roles!and!experiences!of!women!in!
the!law,!a!few!substantive!law!panels,!and!wellfrenowned!speakers.!!
Of! particular! interest! to! me! going! into! the! conference! were! the!
panels!on!Social!Media!and!the!Law!(Privacy,!Policies!and!Risks)!and!
How!to!build!and!Retain!Your!Client!Practice.!!
!
With!14!delegates!from!Western!Australia,!including!the!other!
scholarship! winners! Ashleigh! Lindsay,! Mary! Roseingrave! and!
Rachael!Avuti,!our!state!interests!were!well!represented!in!the!
many!and!varied!discussions!had!at!the!Conference!and!at!the!
social!events!with!plenty!of!opportunities!to!meet!and!mingle!
with! other! state’s! delegates.! I! especially! enjoyed! meeting! a!
number!of! the!delegates! in! a! relaxed! setting!during! the!Pref
conference! Wine! Tour! in! Adelaide! Hills! including! current!
President!Tina!McAulay!and!Catherine!Fletcher.!!
The! Conference! officially! kicked! off! with! a! lavish! Welcome!
Reception! at! the! Promenade,! Adelaide! Convention! Centre!
(ACC)! overlooking! the! picturesque! River! Torrens.! After! an!
introduction!from!the!AWL!President,!Amy!Challans!we!heard!
poignant! opening! remarks! by! David! Caruso,! Vice! President,!
and!South!Australian!Law!Society.!!
Chris!Kourakis,!Chief! Justice!of! the!South!Australian!Supreme!
Court,! gave! the! keynote!address! and! raised!a! range!of! really!
interesting! points! relevant! to! women! lawyers! and! I!
appreciated!his!frank!and!down!to!earth!manner.!
!
AWL!Conference!2014,!Ashleigh!Lindsay,!Tina!McAulay,!Jessica!Stokes,!
photo!provided!by!AWL!!
13
!
AWL! Conference! Catherine! Fletcher,! Cathryn! Greville,! photo! provided! by!
AWL!!
!
The! closing! remarks! given! by! the! Hon.! Margaret! Nyland,! WLASA!
Patron! served! to! remind!us! all!why! she! is! the!patron!of!AWL.!Her!
energy!and!commitment!to!the!advancement!of!women!within!the!
profession!really!is!unsurpassed.!!
Day!1!started!with!Welcome!Address!from!Amy!Challans!and!then!a!
lively! Keynote! Presentation! by! Christine! Nixon! APM.! ! I! had! never!
heard!Christine!Nixon! speak! in!person!before!and! I!was! impressed!
with!her! dynamic!description!of! being!one!of! 6! females! that!were!
hired!by!the!Victorian!Police!Force!when!she!first!joined!in!1972.!Her!
rise!to!the!top!and!her!unique!view!on!women!in!law!enforcement!
and!the!workplace!made!her!an!informational!and!dynamic!speaker.!
!
! !
AWL!Conference!2014,!Amy!Challans,!photo!obtained!from!AWL!website!
I! was! pleasantly! surprised! at! her! candid! description! of! her!
experiences! in! changing! challenging! and! achieving! as! a! woman! in!
business,!succeeding!in!a!male!dominated!profession!and!extensive!
knowledge! in! leadership! and! building! high! performing! teams.!!
Christine! provided! valuable! insights! in! relation! to! resilience,!which!
particularly!resonated!with!me!and!said!“You!don’t!have!to!tread!on!
the!past!to!bring!it!to!the!future.!But!you!do!have!to!figure!out!a!way!
to!bring!people!with!you.”!!
!
AWL!Conference!2014,!Christine!Nixon,!photo!obtained!from!the!AWL!
website!
Other!highlights!over!the!day!included!the!presentation!on!the!
“NARS! Report! –! The! Business! Benefits! of! Diversity”! by! Fiona!
McLeod! SC,! Barrister,! Owen! Dixon! Chambers! (VIC)! and!
facilitated! by! Elspeth!Hensler,! AWL!Vice! President.! Following!
morning!tea!delegates!attended!the!Panel!Session!“Innovation!
in!Legal!Practice”!with!the!discussion!being!led!by!Jodie!Baker,!
Managing! Director! and! Founder,! Hive! Legal! (VIC),! Warren!
Kalinko,! CEO,! Keypoint! Law! (NSW)! and! Sarah! Rey,! Partner,!
Justicia!(VIC).!The!Panel!was!facilitated!by!Daniella!DiGirolamo,!
Associate!of!Fisher!Jeffries!(SA).!Panellists!
“Marketing! yourself”! session! presented! by! Christine! Smyth,!
Partner,! Robbins! Watsons! Solicitors! (QLD)! and! facilitated! by!
Leah!Marrone,!Legal!Services!Commission!(SA).!Next!came!the!
Panel!Session!“How!to!Build!and!Retain!Your!Client!Base”!with!
the!discussion!being! led!by!Deej!Eszenyi,!Barrister,!Geraldine!
Hannon! facilitated! by! Kate! Denning,! Special! Counsel.!
However,! the! panel! after! lunch! stood! out! by! far! –! ‘Surviving!
and!thriving!as!a!Successful!Female!Practitioner:!How!to! face!
the! challenges! of! practicing! in! the! current! legal! culture”.!
Janean! Richard,! Olivia! Perkiss! and! Noor! Blumer,! led! an!
engaging! discussion! about! women’s! experiences! of! legal!
practice,! leaving! and! returning! to! the! profession,! and! the!
reasons! for! the!high!attrition! rate!among!women! in! the! law.!
This!panel!was!without!a!doubt!the!highlight!of!the!conference!
for! me! and! sparked! a! huge! amount! of! debate! amongst! the!
audience.!!!
Whilst!the!most!obvious!reason!behind!the!high!proportion!of!
women! leaving! the! law!may! be! the! desire! to! raise! a! family,!
concerning! examples! of! gender! discrimination! within! the!
profession!were!also!brought!up!–!not!only!pay!discrepancies!
between! men! and! women! lawyers,! but! also! the! quality! of!
work!referred!to!women!lawyers,!the!areas!of!law!considered!
to! be! ‘women’s! work’,! a! struggle! to! achieve! promotion! to!
senior!roles!and!incidences!of!sexual!harassment.!
14
Why!women! leave! the! legal!profession!and!do!not! refengage! is!an!
important! issue! for! the! national! profession! and! is! highly! topical,!
being! the! subject! of! the! National! Attrition! and! Refengagement!
Study!(NARS)!commissioned!by!the!Law!Council!of!Australia!in!2013.!
Research! was! conducted! to! obtain! quantitative! data! and! confirm!
trends! in!progression,!attrition!and! refengagement! rates!of! female!
lawyers.!The!research!also!examined!the!qualitative!reasons!behind!
these!trends.!The!survey!was!released!in!every!Australian!state!and!
territory! and! surveyed! both! men! and! women! who! are! current!
practising! lawyers;! lawyers!who!have!never! practised;! and! lawyers!
who! are! no! longer! practising.! The! panel! members! discussed!
strategies!for!returning!to!work!after!a!career!break,!whether! it!be!
for!family!reasons!or!otherwise,!stressing!the!benefits!of!keeping!in!
contact!with! colleagues! and! keeping! up!with! developments! in! the!
law.!
After!a!long!day,!we!all!frocked!up!and!headed!to!the!Gala!dinner!at!
the!iconic!Adelaide!Oval.!The!extravagant!evening!was!well!attended!
and! was! an! opportunity! for! The! Honourable! Chief! Justice! Diana!
Bryant,!patron!of!AWL,!to!present!the! inaugural!Australian!Woman!
Lawyer! of! the! Year! Award! (AWL! Award)! to! Professor! Rosalind!
Crouch,! President! of! the! Australian! Law! Reform! Commission.! The!
Australian!Women! Lawyer! Award! (AWL!Award)! recognises!women!
that!have!made!an!outstanding!contribution!to!the!legal!profession!
in! Australia! whether! or! not! their! career! has! led! to! the! traditional!
route!of!partnership.!WLANSW!Immediate!Past!President,!Margaret!
Holz,! noted! ‘Prof! Croucher! is! an! inspirational! leader! in! the! legal!
community,!making!a!distinct! contribution! to! law! reform!and! legal!
education!across! the!national! stage.! She!has!enthusiastically! taken!
on!‘tough’!roles!with!great!success!and!is!a!true!institution!builder.”!
The! Keynote! speaker! at! the! Gala,! Rabia! Siddique,! blew! me! away!
with!her!eloquent!told!her!story!of!courage!and!determination.!She!!!
inspired! everyone! in! the! room! as! she! talked! about! her! life! and!
experiences!in!changing!challenging!and!achieving!as!a!female!in!the!
military!and!legal!profession.!
!
AWL!Conference!2014,!Cathryn!Greville,!Tina!McAulay,!Jessica!Stokes,!
photo!obtained!from!AWL!website!!
!
AWL!Conference,!Western!Australian!delegates,!photo!obtained!from!
the!AWL!website!
In!case!you!are!unfamiliar!with!her!story,!after!becoming!one!
of!the!youngest!federal!prosecutors! in!Australia!Rabia!moved!
to! the! United! Kingdom! and! became! commissioned! Legal!
Officer! in! the! British! Army.! Following! a! terrifying! ordeal! in!
2005,! whilst! deployed! to! Iraq,! Rabia,! along! with! a! male!
colleague,! assisted! with! the! rescue! of! two! Special! Forces!
soldiers! from! Iraqi! insurgents!during! a!hostage! situation! that!
garnered!worldwide!attention.!!
After! the! Iraq! hostage! situation! Rabia’s! male! colleague! was!
awarded!a!Military!Cross! for!outstanding!bravery! for!his!part!
in!the! incident,!while!Rabia’s! involvement!was!covered!up!by!
the!British!Army!and!Tony!Blair’s!Government.!In!her!fight!for!
justice!Rabia!brought!a! landmark! race!and!sex!discrimination!
case!against!the!UK!Ministry!for!Defence.!!
!
Day! 2! began! with! a! Panel! Session! on! “Social! Media:!
Opportunities! and! Challenges”! by! Cassandra! Heilbronn,!
Associate,! Minter! Ellison! (QLD)! and! Erin! McCarthy,! Partner,!
Piper! Alderman! (SA).! The! session! was! facilitated! by! Shelley!
O’Connell,! Solicitor,! Clelands! Lawyers! (SA)! and! was!
informative! current! with! a! large! number! of! thoughtful!
questions! sparking! lively!debate.!What! I! took!away! from! it! is!
keep! Facebook! for! friends,! LinkedIn! for!work! colleagues! and!
activate! a! Twitter! Account! to! stay! up! to! date! on! trending!
news.! ! I! thoroughly! enjoyed! the! next! Panel! Session! “Gender!
Bias!in!the!Law!(Ethics)”!where!Cathryn!Greville!and!Catherine!
Fletcher! presented! some! of! the! findings! of! the! 2014! Review!
Report.!!
The!other!presenters!at!those!sessions!were!Professor!Sharyn!
Roach! Anleu! and! Professor! Margaret! Davies! of! Flinders!
University! who! have! both! done! very! interesting! work! in! the!
area.! Professor! Roach! Anleu's! recent! work! in! relation! to!
appointments!to!the!judiciary!and!the!judicial!workload!neatly!
complemented!Cathryn's!presentations.!Professor!Kim!!
15
Rubenstein’s! description! of! her! oral! history! project! “Trailblazing!
women!and!the!law”,!the!discussion!panel!“Surviving!and!thriving!
as! a! woman! in! the! law”,! Associate! Professor! Maryam! Omari’s!
presentation!on!workplace!bullying!in!the!profession,!and!a!panel!
discussion! on! social! media! which! gave! some! of! us! pause! for!
thought!before!next!logging!on!to!Facebook!or!Twitter.!!
Following! the! Conference! Closing! I! attended! the! AWL! AGM! at!
Jolley’s!Boathouse!Restaurant!and!was!proud!to!witness!our!very!
own! Elspeth!Hensler! nominated! at! AWL!Vice! President.! All! in! all!
the!Conference!was!a!success!exposing!all!delegates!to!a!range!of!
experiences! equipping! us! with! the! knowledge! to! Change.!
Challenge.! Achieve! in! our! chosen! careers.! As! lawyers! we! are!
engaged!with!the!law!and!justice!on!a!daily!basis.!!Sometimes!the!
battle!for!justice!may!seem!far!removed!from!the!world!of!endless!
email! correspondence,! drafting! documents,! and! desperately!
trying!to!figure!out!the!photocopier!when!all!the!secretaries!have!
left!for!the!day.!!But!we!should!remember!that!we!chose!to!study!
law! for!a! reason,! and! it! is!worth! remembering! the!values,!which!
led!us!here!–!a!belief!in!the!pursuit!of!justice!and!the!rule!of!law.!!
As!a!profession,!we!are!extremely!well!placed!to!advocate,!lobby,!
and! persuade! others! –! we! have! the! skills,! the! tools,! and! the!
education!to!do!so!on!behalf!of!others!who!do!not.!
I!am!very!grateful! to!Women!Lawyers!of!WA!for! the!opportunity!
to!attend!the!AWL!Conference.!It!was!an!excellent!weekend!and!I!
definitely!recommend!attending!the!next!one.!!
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!
AWL!Conference,!Western!Australian!delegates,!photo!obtained!from!the!
AWL!website!
!
Women!in!Leadership!Summit!
!
On!8!and!9!December!2014!I!attended!the!second!annual!Women!
in! Leadership! Summit!on!behalf! of!WLWA.! It! is! a! fantastic! event!
that!brings!some!of!the!country's!most!successful!and!motivating!
female!leaders!together!to!discuss!changes!in!the!way!we!need!to!!
do! business.! The! summit! is! an! interactive! twofday! forum!
designed!for!those!in!leadership!roles!in!their!community!who!
wish!to!proactively!develop!their!career!in!a!meaningful!way.!!!
Attendees! learnt! from!the!personal!experiences!of!esteemed!
speakers!including!Hon!Elizabeth!Lloyd!Behjat!MLC,!Members!
for!North!Metropolitan!Region!Liberal!Party,!Samantha!Tough,!
Director!of!CBH!Group,!Jillian!Terry,!Vice!President!Geoscience!
at!BHP!Billiton,!Claire!Negus,!DirectorfCommercial!at!Roy!Hill,!
Julie! Shuttleworth,! General! Manager! at! Fortescue! Metals!
Group! and! Kiersten! Gregg,! General! Manager,! Human!
Resources!at!Rio!Tinto.! ! I! felt!empowered!as! I! listened!to!the!
personal! journeys! of! the! speakers! and! was! excited! to!
implement!first!hand!advice!on!refining!leadership!skills!in!and!
the! face! of! workplace! challenges.! I! particularly! enjoyed! the!
inspiring!talk!by!Male!Champion!of!Change!Mark!McNulty!WA!
Managing!Partner!of!Deloitte.!!
!
WLWA!High!Tea!
!
!
'Woman'Lawyers'High'Tea,'Catherine'Fletcher,'Tara'Conolly,'photo'provided'by'Jessica'P'Stokes'Photography''
!
On!Friday!6!March!2015!I!attended!the!Fifth!annual!Joint!Law!
Society/Woman! Lawyers! High! tea! to! celebrate! International!
Woman's! Day! at! the! Parmelia! Hilton! in! Perth.! ! Attendees!
enjoyed!an!array!of!delicious!food!and!listened!to!an!excellent!
panel! discussing! the! theme! "Let's! not!wait! another! 20! years!
for! gender! equality."! ! WLWA! President! Tina! McAulay!
facilitated! the! panel! discussion! with! opening! remarks! by!
Elizabeth! Heenan.! Speakers! included! the! Honourable! Justice!
Pritchard!of!the!Supreme!Court!of!Western!Australia,!followed!
by! Equal! Opportunity! Commissioner,! Alannah! Lucas,! and!
Matthew! Keogh,! President! of! the! Law! Society! of! Western!
Australia.!!
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!
Woman!Lawyers!High!Tea,!Elizabeth!Heenan,!Tina!McAulay,!photo!
provided!by!Jessica!P!Stokes!Photography!!
!
Woman'Lawyers'High'Tea,'Alannah'Lucas,'photo'provided'by'Jessica'P'Stokes'Photography''
!
WLWA!Christmas!Networking!Party!
!
On! 9! December! 2014! WLWA! committee! members! celebrated!
Christmas! and! the! year’s! achievements! at! the! end! of! year!
Christmas! Function! at! the! Rubix! Bar! Café! in! Perth.! Attendees!
enjoyed!drinks!and!canapés!with!friends!and!colleagues.!!
WLWA! also! took! the! opportunity! to! collect! donations! for! the!
Women's! Refuges! in! the! lead! up! to! Christmas.! Women! and!
children! in! refuges! have! experienced! family! and! domestic!
violence.! Many! have! been! forced! to! leave! their! home! without!
their! belongings.! WLWA! Members! generously! donated! a! large!
amount! of! new! toiletries,! which!were! gratefully! received! by! the!
refuge. !
!
Meet!the!Silks!
!
On! the! 12! March! 2015,! I! joined! members! of! the! legal!
profession!at!the!annual!Meet!the!Silks!Event!with!2014!Senior!
Counsel!appointees!Martin!Cuerden!SC!and!Mr!Michael!Berry!
SC! at! the! Central! Park.! Cofhosted! by! the! Piddington! Society!
and! WLWA,! the! topic! of! the! night! at! "Meet! the! Silks"! was!
ethical!challenges!in!the!law.!!
Bigger! than! before,! the! large! turnout! saw! members! of! the!
legal! community! from!all! parts! of! the! city! gather! to!network!
and! listen! to! the! 2014! Senior! Counsel! appointees! Martin!
Cuerden! and!Michael! Berry! share! the! enlightening! stories! of!
their!careers!in!the!law.!
Gail! Archer! then! facilitated! a! panel! discussion! where!Martin!
and! Michael! were! joined! by! Christine! Wheeler! and! Peter!
Quinlan!who!took!questions!from!the!crowd.!Attendees!were!
lucky!enough!to!be!given!hot!tips!and!frank!advice!on!how!to!
deal!with!ethical!dilemmas!such!as!a!hostile!bench!and!hearing!
candid!stories!from!the!speakers!of!their!early!experiences! in!
the!courtroom.!!
Following! the! panel! discussion! there!were! networking! drinks!
where!the!guests!mingled!and!exchanged!war!stories.!Another!
interesting! and! well! organised! CPD! event! by! Nicholas! van!
Hattem!and!the!Piddington!Society.!This!event!was!sponsored!
by!Pitcher!Partners,!Law!in!Order!and!KBE!Human!Capital,!and!
supported!by!DLA.!!
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Meet$the$Silks,$Gail$Archer,$Martin$Cuerden$SC,$Michael$Berry$SC,$Christine$Wheeler$and$Peter$Quinlan,$photo$provided$by$Jessica$P$Stokes$Photography$$$$$
17
WLWA!Honours!Dinner!!
!
'WLWA'Honours'Dinner,'photo'provided'by'Will'Russell!
Women! Lawyers! of! Western! Australia! Inc.! hosted! the! 2015!
Women!Lawyers!Honours!Dinner!on!Friday!13!March!2015.!!
Close! to! 200! people! were! in! attendance! at! the! annual! blackftie!
event!to!celebrate!the!achievements!of!Western!Australia!women!
lawyers!and!in!particular!to!acknowledge!the!appointment!of!Her!
Excellency! the! Honourable! Kerry! Sanderson! AO! (Governor)! and!
honouring! the! appointments! of! Her! Honour! Judge! Vicki! Laura!
Stewart! (District! Court),! Her! Honour! Magistrate! Ciara! Tyson!
(Family! Court),! Member! Karen! Whitney! (State! Administrative!
Tribunal)! and! Member! Hannah! Leslie! (State! Administrative!
Tribunal).!!
President! Tina!McAulay,!Vice!President!Anne!Wood!and! the! rest!
of! the! WLWA! Committee! and! Event! Working! Group! were!
delighted!to!announce!the!recipients!of!the!Women!Lawyer!of!the!
Year! Awards! and! hear! the! stories! of! these! incredible! women!
including! Susan! Fielding! (Senior! Woman! Lawyer! of! the! Year),!
Elspeth!Hensler!(Woman!Lawyer!of!the!Year),!Jessica!Bowman!and!
Stephanie! Puris! (Joint! Woman! Lawyer! of! the! Year),! Samantha!
Martella! (Rural! Regional! and! Remote! Lawyer! of! the! Year).! We!
were! also! thrilled! that! Clare! Thompson! was! able! to! attend! and!
announce! that! Laura!Vincent!was! the! recipient! of! the!Aboriginal!
Women's! Legal! Education! Trust! Scholarship.! WLWA! thanks! its!
sponsors! from! the! night! John! Toohey! Chambers,! Law! CPD! and!
ipac.!!
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WLWA! Honours! Dinner,! Gail! Archer! photo! provided! by! Will!
Russell!
WLWA!Honours!Dinner!Sponsors!
!
The!Honours!Dinner! is!the!highlight!of!the!WLWA!calendar,!a!
highlight! that! would! not! be! possible! without! the! generous!
support! of! our! sponsors.! WLWA! wishes! to! thank! the! 2015!
sponsors! of! the! Honours! Dinner:! our! gold! sponsor,! John!
Toohey! Chambers;! our! silver! sponsor,! Law! CPD;! and! our!
bronze! sponsor! ipac.! We! also! thank! Ruc! Cullen! of! Cullen!
Wines,! Babington! and! Hughes! for! the! contribution! and!
support! of! the! Gender! Bias! Project.! Special! thanks! to! our!
photographer! Will! Russell! for! these! beautiful! photos! that!
really!captured!the!evening.!www.willrussell.com.au!!
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!
John!Toohey!Chambers!is!named!in!honour!of!the!Honourable!
John!Toohey!AC!QC,!who!was!appointed!to!the!High!Court!of!
Australia! in! 1987.! Today,! John! Toohey! Chambers! has! 27!
members,! three!of!who!are!senior!counsel,!and!eight!of!who!
are! female.! Members! practice! in! a! wide! variety! of! areas,!
including! Native! Title! and! Aboriginal! Heritage! law,! Human!
Rights! law,! Environmental! law,! and! Local! Government,!
Planning!and!Development!law.!!
18
!
WLWA!mourn!the!loss!of!John!Leslie!Toohey!who!passed!away!on!
9!April!2015,!aged!85.! John!Toohey!was!an!Australian! judge!who!
was!a!Justice!of!the!High!Court!of!Australia!from!1987!to!1998!and!
was! one! of! Australia's! most! eminent! jurists! and! contributors! to!
the!law!and!justice.!
Mr!Toohey!was!a!wellfrespected!solicitor!and!president!of!the!Law!
Society!before!his!appointment!to!the!Federal!Court!and!then!the!
High! Court.! He! was! involved! in! significant! legal! cases! affecting!
significant! political! and! social! justice! reforms! in! Aboriginal! law,!
criminal! law,!contract! law,!restitution!and!property! law,! including!
sitting! as! a! judge! in! the! High! Court! for! the! landmark! Mabo!
decision.!
The! 1992! Mabo! judgement! was! a! watershed! land! rights! ruling,!
finding! the! Meriam! people! were! entitled! to! possession,!
occupation,!use!and!enjoyment!of!the!lands!in!the!Murray!Islands!
in!the!eastern!section!of!the!Torres!Strait.!
Mr! Toohey! was! also! the! inaugural! lawyer! at! the! Port! Hedland!
office!of!the!Aboriginal!Legal!Service!of!WA,!president!of!the!WA!
Bar! Association,! inaugural! Aboriginal! Land! Commissioner! for! the!
Northern! Territory,! presidential! member! of! the! Administrative!
Appeals! Tribunal,! a! judge!of! the! Supreme!Court! of! the!Northern!
Territory! and! an! independent! member! of! the! Bloody! Sunday!
Inquiry.!
!
Making!it!happen!at!John!Toohey!
Chambers!
!
!
Teresa'Farmer''!Barrister,'John'Toohey'Chambers'''
Statistically!women!at!the!Independent!Bar!in!Perth!remain!underf
represented.!!The!website!for!the!West!Australian!Bar!Association!
lists!198!members,!of!whom!39!(or!just!under!1/5th)!are!women.!
Happily! it! can! be! reported! that! the! figures! for! John! Toohey!
Chambers!are!somewhat!healthier.!!Whilst!the!men!still!!
outnumber! the!women! (19! to! 8)! the! proportion! is! closer! to!
1/3rd.!
John! Toohey! Chambers! has! a! policy! of! nonfdiscrimination.!!
Neither! gender,! religion! nor! political! persuasion! is! a! bar! to!
inclusion.! ! On! the! contrary,! the! variety! of! individuals!
engenders!collegiality!and!positive!discourse.!!Discussions!can!
be! robust,! but! all! points! of! view! are! respected.! ! Ideas! are!
shared,! resources! pooled! and! knowledge! freely! exchanged.!!
Women!are! very!much!encouraged! to!be!active!members!of!
chambers,!as!are!all!our!members.! !For!members!who!chose!
to!work!less!than!full!time!hours,!including!women!with!young!
children,! Chambers! can! (and! does)! provide! shared! room!
arrangements! and! recognises! the! particular! challenges! that!
face!such!members.!
When! speaking! of! our! members! and! the! environment! in!
chambers!I!have!tried!to!avoid!the!use!of!the!terms!“support”!
or!“supportive”.!!To!use!those!phrases!connotes!that!there!is!a!
dependence!or!need!that!requires!some!third!party!efforts!to!
make!women!successful!at!the!Bar.!!This!is!not!my!experience!
as!women,! just! like!men,!have!sufficient!abilities!and!skills! to!
be! recognised! as! a! quality! advocate! or! lawyer! without! the!
need!to!resort!to!gender,!given!an!even!playing!field!on!which!
to!compete!(in!many!cases,!performing!even!better!).!!!
Whilst! my! personal! experiences! are! of! no,! or! occasional,!
positive!discrimination!within!the!law!(as!a!barrister!working!in!
the! field! of! family! law),! it! is! recognised! that! this! is! not! the!
experience!of!all!women! lawyers! for!we!do!not!yet! live! in!an!
era! where! the! impediments! to! the! advancement! of! women!
have!been!completely!extinguished! in! society! generally.! ! The!
recent!reports!show!that!gender!inequality!remains!something!
of! a! feature! in! our! profession! and! that! can! hardly! be! an!
attraction!to!new!graduates!seeking!to!enter!the!law,!or!more!
experienced! women! seeking! to! join! the! Bar.! ! Whilst! clearly!
there! has! been! progress! over! the! years,! more! needs! to! be!
done!to!achieve!that!even!playing!field.!
!
!
LawCPD,! our! silver! sponsor,! provides! online! interactive! legal!
CPD! training! for! lawyers! around! Australia.! In! Western!
Australia,! LawCPD’s! courses! are! classified! as! an! interactive!
activity,! which! means! that! both! barristers! and! solicitors! can!
earn!1!CPD!point!for!each!hour!of!CPD!completed!through!the!
LawCPD!website!and!can!claim!all!10!CPD!points! for! the!CPD!
year!through!LawCPD.!The!flexibility!of!LawCPD’s!online!!
19
delivery!system!means!that!the!service! is! ideal! for!those!working!
remotely,!as!sessions!can!be!completed!anywhere!on!the!internet.!!
!
Ipac! Western! Australia! is! one! of! Australia’s! leading! financial!
advisory!firms!specialising!in!personal!financial!advice.!Nationally,!!
its!founders!include!leading!financial!commentator!and!author!
Paul! Clitheroe! AM,! and! respected! investment! strategist! and!
author!Arun!Abey.!Ipac!WA!started!back!in!1986!in!Subiaco.!In!
1987! the!CEO!Patrick!Canion! joined,!and! in!2003! they! joined!
the! ipac! family.! Ipac! used! its! expertise! to! attract! many! of!
Perth’s!leading!financial!advisers!to!join!in!subsequent!years.!
!!
!
!
INTERVIEWS!
Interview!with!WLWA!President!–!Tina!
McAulay!
Jessica'Stokes' '
!
Tina'McAulay,'photo'provided'by'Jessica'P'Stokes'Photography'
'
As! part! of! our! International!Women's! Day! celebrations,!Women!
Lawyers! of! Western! Australia! have! been! sharing! the! inspiring!
stories!of! the!Women!of!Western!Australia.!We!began!by! sitting!
down! with! WLWA! President! Tina! McAulay! to! discuss! what!
International!Women's!Day!means!to!her.!
Please' introduce'yourself . '
My! name! is! Tina! McAulay! and! I! am! the! President! of! Women!
Lawyers!of!Western!Australia!Inc.!I!am!a!lawyer,!I!am!a!mum,!I!am!!
!
a! daughter,! a! sister,! and! an! aunty.! I! am! a! mentor,! I! am! a!
mentee! and! I! support! and! promote! the! advancement! of!
women.!
What' does' International ' Women’s' Day' mean' to'you?'
International!Women’s!Day!means!a!day!to!not!only!celebrate!
the!achievement!of!women,!of!women’s!progress,! it! is!about!
continuing!to!strive!for!equality,! it!means!standing!up!against!
inequality! and! it! means! listening! to! the! influential! stories! of!
other!women!and!supporting!women!on!a!global! scale.! Start!
small,!aim!high,!achieve.!
Did' you' do' anything' to' commemorate' IWD?' If ' so, 'what'did'you'do'and'why?'
I!commemorated!IWD!by!posting!about!IWD!on!social!media.!I!
attended!and!chaired!the!High!Tea!for!women!lawyers!hosted!
by!The!Law!Society!–!aimed!at!addressing!gender!inequality.!I!
attended! the! launch! of! International! Women’s! Day! by! the!
Minister!for!Women’s!Interests,!the!Hon.!Liza!Harvey!MLA!and!
I! have! been! preparing! for! the! WLWA! Honours! dinner! for!
Friday!13!March!2015! to! coincide!with! IWD! to! celebrate! the!
remarkable!achievements!of!women!in!the!law.!
What'do'you' think'are' the'biggest' chal lenges' facing'women'in'the' law'and'the'administrat ion'of' just ice?'
There!are!so!many.!To!start,!unconscious!bias!is!probably!the!
biggest!challenge.!Unconscious!bias! is!not! just!by!men,!many!
women!also!are!unconsciously!bias!towards!men!because!the!
profession! is! so! largely! male! dominated.! Educating! the!
profession! and! addressing! this! is! important.! Women! face!
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prejudices! in! salary! equality.! This! is! challenging! when! men!
with! the! same! level!of! experience!as! you!are! receiving!more!
money!without!justification.!
Flexible! work! practices! and! career! advancement! is! another! big!
challenge.! The! Government! has! come! a! long! way,! but! private!
practice!needs!to!ensure!flexible!practice!and!not!being!available!
24/7! or! in! the! office! for! 10! hours! a! day! is! mainstream.! The!
work/life!balance!and!changing!the!culture!of!the!profession!away!
from! the! need! to! be! in! the! office! for! long! hours! is! essential.!
Minimum! conditions! of! employment! need! to! be! created.!
Employers!need!to!be!held!to!task.!Expecting!employees!to!be!in!
the! office! for! long! days! every! day! has! an! effect! on! the! mental!
health! and! wellbeing! of! the! profession.! The! Government! has!
awards! to! govern! this.! Private! practice! needs! to! catch! up.! I!
commend! those! organisations! that! already! have! flexible! work!
practices!in!place,!well!done.!
As!for!the!administration!of!justice,!there!are!plenty!of!challenges!
women! face! in! getting! access! to! justice.! Education! of! cultural!
diversity!in!all!courts!is!important.!!
Providing! adequate! facilities! to! women! in! courts! is! important,!
including!child!care!facilities,!breastfeeding!facilities!and!separate!
waiting! areas! for! victims! of! crime! –! it! is! abhorrent! that! women!
have!to!sit! in!the!same!waiting!areas!as!their!attacker!while!they!
wait! for! their! matter! to! be! called.! The! Gender! Bias! Taskforce!
Review!Report! looks!at! these! issues! in!more!detail,! including! the!
challenges!women!face!in!crime.!
What' do' you' think' are' the' biggest' chal lenges' facing'women' in' the' legal ' profession, ' and' do' you' think' the'chal lenges'change'as'a'woman’s'career'evolves?'
Some! of! the! biggest! challenges! facing! women! in! the! legal!
profession! I! have! dealt! with! already.! The! challenges! definitely!
change! as! a! woman’s! career! evolves.! For! example,! as! a! junior!
practitioner,! you! face! challenges! of! working! long! hours! and! pay!
disparity.!As!your!career!develops!and!you!have!children,!you!face!
challenges! of! balancing! work! and! family! –! which! is! particularly!
difficult!if!you!are!expected!to!be!in!the!office!for!long!days!–!that!
means!you!are!away!from!your!children!for!10!plus!hours!a!day!if!
you! work! full! time! and! may! not! even! see! them! awake.! Other!
challenges! are!whether! you! can! either! afford! to!work! flexibly! or!
part!time!or!if!your!employer!allows!it.!I!think!it!is!generally!known!
if! you! reduce! your! workload! you! face! difficulty! being! promoted!
and! advancing! at! the! same! rate! a! counterpart! would! that! has!
continued!to!work! full! time.!As!you!get!older,!caring! for!parents,!
school!events!etc.!have!an!impact.!Also,!lacking!the!energy!to!keep!
working!those!hours!has!a!negative! impact!on!mental!health!and!
wellbeing!and!is!physically!draining.!
When' and' how'did' you' f irst ' become' aware' of' these'chal lenges?' Were' you' aware' of' this ' issue' at' law'school?'
I!was!somewhat!aware!of!these!challenges!at!law!school!but!it!
doesn’t! really! hit! home! until! it! happens! to! you.! Having!
children!and!being!able!to!juggle!everything!is!a!real!challenge,!
especially! when! you! are! running! your! own! business! and!
involved! in!numerous!committees,!playing!very!active!roles.! I!
have!learnt!that!as!much!as!I!have!tried!to!be!superwoman,!it!
really!is!challenging.!
What' do' you' think' the' legal ' profession' can' do'about'some'of'these'chal lenges?'
The! legal! profession! can! address! this! by! promoting! the!
advancement! of!women.! This! includes! briefing!more!women!
at! the! bar,! especially! in! complex! litigation.! They! can! ask! for!
women! to! junior! senior! counsel.! They! can! account! to! the!
profession!for!their!briefs!to!women!and!adhere!to!the!model!
briefing!policy.!The!bar!could!also!introduce!a!clerking!system!
similar! to! that! used! in! the! Eastern! States,! so! that! work! is!
divided!up.!Obviously! in!WA!you!face!the!added!challenge!of!
having! to! find!your!own!work,!which! really! leaves!you! to!get!
the!small!work!from!the!small!firms!because!unless!you!have!a!
promoter! in! the!profession! to! introduce!you! to! the!big! firms!
and!clients!and!give!you!challenging!work,!it!will!be!a!long!time!
before! you! get! there! yourself.! Particularly! having! promoters!
will!help!achieve!this.!
Despite' the' obvious' answer, ' what' role' do' you'bel ieve' other' women' have' in' promoting' other'women'in'the'workplace?' '
Women!have! an! important! role! to!promote!other!women! in!
the!workplace.!Men!do!it!to!other!men,!so!why!don’t!women!
do! it! enough?! There! has! been! a! lot! of! focus! in! recent! years!
about! mentors,! but! not! about! promoters.! The! He! for! She!
campaign! and! male! champions! of! change! are! all! great!
initiatives! to! help! support! women’s! advancement! and! it! is! a!
community! issue.! The! CEO’s! for! Gender! Equity! is! another!
initiative! to! help! support!women! at! senior! level.! However,! if!
women!don’t!support,!encourage!and!promote!other!women,!
it! just! makes! it! even! harder! to! get! ahead.! Lawyers! are!
naturally! competitive,! but! that! doesn’t! mean! other! women!
should! be!mean.!Grow!up,! support,! encourage! and! promote!
the! advancement! of! other! women! and! you! will! feel! much!
better! for! it.!What! you! get! out! of! helping! someone! is!much!
better!than!the!feeling!you!get!from!being!mean.!!
!
21
What' steps' do' you' think' an' organisation' can' take' to'cult ivate'a'f lexible'work'practice?'
There! are! many! steps! an! organisation! can! take! to! cultivate! a!
flexible! work! practice.! Organisations! include! universities,!
government!employers!–!including!the!Courts!providing!part!time!
or! flexible! judicial! appointments,! private! practice! and! infhouse.!
Professional! bodies! also! have! a! role! to! play! in! promoting,!
supporting! and! encouraging! flexible! work! practice.! Some! of! the!
steps!include:!
• Move!away!from!a!24/7!availability!
• Encourage!employees!to!work!remotely!
• Move! away! from! time! billing,! focus! on! deliverables! (it!
doesn’t!matter!if!that!work!is!done!in!the!office!or!at!10pm!
at! night! at! home! –! what! matters! is! the! result! and!
productivity)!
• Be!flexible!and!your!employees!are!more!likely!to!be!flexible!
with!you!
• Be!collegiate!and!communicate!about!flexibility!
• Have! policies,! there! is! a! policy! you! can! adopt! on! The! Law!
Society!website! if!you!don’t!have!one!already!–!be!open!to!
negotiation!–!what!works!for!one!might!not!suit!another!
• Support,! encourage! and! promote! the! advancement! of!
women! –! it’s! good! for! business! –! look! at! your! business!
cases,!can!you!improve!them?!
Do' you' bel ieve' there' are' biases' against' people' who'work' part ' t ime/' f lexibi l i ty ' and' if ' so, 'what' are' they' and'what'can'you'do'to'change'this?'
There! are! biases! against! people! who! work! part! time! or! flexibly,!
but! these! biases! may! be! more! unconscious! than! conscious.! For!
example,!it!may!be!seen!that!they!don’t!put!in!enough!effort.!The!
consultations! from! the! GBT! Review! Report! show! however,! that!
most! women! who! work! part! time! or! flexibly! actually! give! more!
time! and!work!than!they!are!getting!paid!a! pro!rata!rate!for.!The!
prejudices!are!because!of!a! lack!of! knowledge!or!understanding.!
Change! the! culture! of! thinking! everyone! must! be! in! the! office!
from!8am!to!6pm.!People!are!most!productive!at!different!times.!
Be! accepting! of! contributions! people!make! and! be! open! to! new!
ways! of! achieving! those! outcomes.! Create! a! diversity!
representative! in! your! workplace! –! to! help! articulate! some! of!
these!issues!and!assist!flexible!practice.!You!will!find!it!isn’t!always!
the! women! that! want! to! work! flexibly.! It! should! be! part! of!
everyday!practice.!
Senior!Woman!Lawyer!of!the!Year!f!
Susan!Fielding!
!
The! Senior! Woman! Lawyer! of! the! Year! award! recognises!
women!who!have!provided! leadership! in! the! legal!profession!
over!a! long!period!of! time,!whether! in!Australia!or!overseas.!!
The! four!nominees! in! this! category!were!Rebecca!Lee,!Susan!
Fielding,! Luisa! Dropulich! and! Rabia! Siddique! with! Susan!
ultimately! winning! the! award.! Susan! has! balanced!work! and!
family! (3! daughters)! for! the! last! 43! years,! maintaining! a!
prominent!career!in!the!law!at!the!same!time.!Susan!was!kind!
enough! to! answer! the! following! questions! in! relation! to! her!
career.!
Susan!is!Special!Counsel!at!Jackson!McDonald!and!some!of!her!
many!contributions!to!the!legal!community!include!supporting!
and! encouraging! the! promotion! of! careers! of! women!within!
the!profession!as!well!as!mentoring!women!in!the!profession.!!
!
Interview!with!Susan!Fielding!
'
WLWA'Honours'Dinner,'Susan'Fielding,'photo'provided'by'Will'Russell'
P lease'tel l 'us'about'your'background'and'history. ' '
Like!A!B! Facey! I! have!had!a! ‘fortunate! life.! I!was!born! into!a!
family! where! due! to! the! fact! that! my! grandmother! and!
mother! were! both! widowed! at! an! early! age! and! each! went!
back!into!the!workforce!at!a!time!when!women!did!not!usually!
work,!there!was!always!a!concern!by!them!that!I!should!have!a!
career!and!be!able!to!support!myself.!
Initially,! I! was! educated! at! a! small! country! primary! school!
where! I! was! lucky! enough! to! have! several! outstanding!
teachers.!Then,!with!the!assistance!of!a!scholarship!I!went!to!a!!
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girls! secondary! boarding! school,! one! of! only! five! or! six! from!my!
grade!7!class!whose!parents!were!not!only!able,!but!prepared!to!
educate!a!daughter.!At!my!secondary!school,!I!was!encouraged!to!
aim! for! university.! This! was! unusual! at! most! girls’! secondary!
schools! in! the! fifties.! Latin,! physics,! chemistry! and! mathematics!
were!all!part!of!the!upper!school!curriculum!at!my!school!
How'and'why'were'you'cal led'to'practice' law?''
I! did! not! receive! any! “calling”! to! study! law.! Although! I! had!
matriculated!with!physics!and!mathematics!as!two!of!my!subjects!
I!did!not!want!to!study!the!sciences.!Nor!did!I!want!to!be!a!teacher!
or!a! librarian,!which! in!the!early!sixties!was!the!fate!of!most!arts!
graduates.! At! our! school! careers! evening! for! the! first! time! a!
woman!lawyer!came!to!speak!about!her!career!as!a!lawyer.!Three!
of!my! friends! thought! they!might! try! law.!When! I! broached! the!
idea!at!home!my!mother!and!stepfather!were!very!supportive!and!
so,!with!a!Commonwealth!Scholarship!to!pay!the!fees,!I!enrolled!in!
the!Bachelor!of!Laws!course!at!Adelaide!University.!
As!soon!as! I!graduated,! I!married!and!my!husband!and!I!came!to!
Perth!where!I!had!the!good!fortune!to!be!articled!to!Joan!Heenan.!
Mrs!Heenan!was!at!the!time,!one!of!four!partners!in!the!firm!of!E!
M!Heenan!&!Co!but!she!was!the!partner!who!everyone!in!the!firm!
relied!on.!She!was!respected!by!all!in!the!legal!profession!in!Perth!
at! the! time.! She! encouraged! me! to! do! a! wide! range! of! work!
including!appearing!in!Court.!
What' do' you' think' are' the' biggest' chal lenges' facing'women'in'the' law'and'the'administrat ion'of' just ice?'
Less! than! two! years! after! I! was! admitted! our! first! daughter! was!
born.!I!continued!to!work!from!home!and!indeed,!initially!from!the!
hospital!bed.!In!the!days!before!computers!this!was!somewhat!of!a!
challenge!as!the!files!had!to!be!delivered!to!me!and!I!had!to!return!
them!to!the!office.!My!husband!worked! in!the!city!and!so!our!car,!
which!was!parked!behind!his!office,!was!left!unlocked!and!was!used!
as!a!sort!of!post!office!box.!Every!now!and!then!I!would!need!to!go!
into! the! office! and! would! arrive! complete! with! pram! and! baby.!
Clients! were! often! unaware! that! I! was! usually! at! home! as! most!
office!telephone!calls!were!returned!when!the!baby!was!asleep.!
If! we! had! had! only! had! one! daughter! I! would! probably! have!
continued!to!work!without!a!very!long!break!in!my!career.!However,!
much! to! my! surprise! I! enjoyed! motherhood.! As! my! husband! was!
also!a! lawyer!we!made!the!decision!that!the!care!of!our!daughters!
would!primarily!be!my!responsibility.!I!continued!to!work!but!initially!
on! a! very! part! time! basis,! which! was! gradually! increased! as! our!
daughters,!started!school.!
I! do! not! regret! the! choice! I! made! to! spend! time! away! from! my!
career!to!bring!up!our!three!daughters.!I!considered!that!I!was!lucky!
to!be!able!to!make!that!choice.!As!soon!as!I!started!working!full!time!!
again!I!became!a!Senior!Associate!at!Minter!Ellison!Northmore!
Hale,!which! by! then! incorporated! E!M!Heenan!&!Co.!Minter!
Ellison!Northmore!Hale!took!what!was!then!an!innovative!step!
for!full!time!employees!with!school!age!children.!In!addition!to!
normal!annual!leave!employees!with!school!age!children!were!
permitted!to!take!up!to!four!weeks!unpaid!leave!to!use!during!
school! holidays.! Employees! with! school! age! children! were!
given!priority!to!take!leave!in!the!school!holidays.!Without!this!
change!it!would!have!been!difficult!for!me!to!work!full!time!as!
vacation!care!had!not!yet!been!developed.!!
What'do'you' think'are' the'biggest' chal lenges' facing'women' in'the' legal 'profession, 'and'do'you'think'the'chal lenges'change'as'a'woman’s'career'evolves?'
The! challenges! facing! women! in! the! law! are! similar! to! the!
challenges!facing!women!in!all!the!professions,! if!they!decide!
they!want!to!have!children!and!be!actively!involved!in!the!dayf
tofday! care! of! those! children.! For! example,! our! middle!
daughter! is!a!civil!engineer!who! in!her! twenties!was!working!
on! some! big! mining! projects! in! the! Pilbara.! She! and! her!
husband! wanted! children! and! so! she! resigned! from! a! job,!
which!she!found!exciting!(and!exhausting)!and!began!working!
in! project! management! so! she! could! combine! work! and!
motherhood.!Not!everyone!makes!this!choice.!As!Julie!Bishop!
said!recently!–!“We!can’t!have!it!all”.!
As! I! approach! retirement! I! look! back! on! a! career,!which! has!
been!rewarding!and! intellectually! satisfying!at! the!same!time!
as!allowing!me!to!have!a!fulfilling!family!life.!!
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23
Woman!Lawyer!of!the!Year!f!Elspeth!
Hensler!
!
!
!
WLWA!Honours!Dinner,!Elspeth!Hensler,!photo!provided!by!Will!Russell!
The!Woman!Lawyer!of!the!Year!award!recognises!those!women!who!
have! made! significant! recent! contributions! to! the! promotion! of!
justice! for! all!women,! and! the!participation!of!women! in! the! legal!
profession.! The! two! nominees! for! the! Women! Lawyer! category!
were! Rabia! Siddique! and! Elspeth! Hensler,! with! Elspeth! ultimately!
winning!the!award.!!
Elspeth! received! two! nominations! for! this! award! and! has! a! long!
sustained! contribution! to! the! legal! profession! and! has! furthered!
women’s! contribution! to! the! practice! of! law! and! has! devoted!
countless!hours!to!pro!bono!work!and!cofordinating!pro!bono!work!
in!the!profession.!
Elspeth! is! a! barrister! at! Francis! Burt! Chambers! and! some! of! her!
many! contributions! to! the! legal! community! include! pro! bono!
assistance! to! veterans! in! personal! injuries! claims,! coordinating! the!
Mallesons! in! the! Community! pro! bono! program! and! cofordinating!
fundraising! for! Care! Australia! to! provide! clean! water! to! the!
Vietnamese!Mekong!Delta! Region.! Elspeth! jointly! cofordinates! the!
Bar’s! pro! bono! program! and! contributed! to! Bar! Association’s!
education!programme.!Her!commitment!to!equality!and!diversity!is!
evident!as!she!is!a!WLWA!past!President,!GBT!project!review!report!
cofconvenor!and! integral! steering!committee!member.!Elspeth! is!a!
Role!model,!inspiration!and!mentor!to!junior!members!of!the!bar!!
and!many!others! in! the! legal!profession,! including!women!of!
diverse!ethnic!backgrounds.!She!is!also!a!leader!for!men!in!the!
profession,! in! helping! them! recognise! the! urgency! and! need!
for! real! and! lasting! gender! equality! and! diversity! within! the!
profession.!!
Last! but! not! least! Elspeth! is! the! Recipient! of! the! Attorney!
General’s! Community! Service! Law! Award! 2014! and! was!
awarded!WA!Bar!Association’s!inaugural!Distinguished!Service!
Award! in!2014!a!very!deserving!winner!of!this!year’s!Woman!
Lawyer!of!the!Year!Award.!!
!
WLWA!Honours!Dinner,!photo!provided!by!Will!Russell!
Joint!Junior!Woman!Lawyer!of!the!Year!
f!Stephanie!Puris!and!Jessica!Bowman!
!
This!Award!recognises!those!women!who!have!been!admitted!
to! practice! for! less! than! 5! years! who! have! made! an!
outstanding! contribution! towards! the! legal! profession.! The!
five! nominees! for! the! award! were! Nikit! Barsby,! Cassandra!
Wee,! Danielle! JohnsonfKellett! and! Jessica! Bowman! and!
Stephanie! Puris! (Jointly! and! severally).! Jessica! and! Stephanie!
ultimately! won! the! award! and! are! both! lawyers! at! King! and!
Wood!Mallesons.!
Stephanie!and!Jessica!are!passionate!about!Human!Rights!and!
dedicate! that!passion! into! their!employment,! volunteer!work!
and! in! the! supporters! they! inspire! along! the! way.! Some! of!
their! many! contributions! to! the! legal! community! being!
Members!of!the!Australia!Child!Rights!Taskforce!(cofconvened!
by! UNICEF! Australia! and! the! National! Children’s! and! Youth!
Law!Centre!(NCYLC)),!an!active!involvement!in!the!NCYLC!and!
KWM! Cyber! Project,! pro! bono! assistance! in! relation! to!
Refugee! Review! Tribunal! decisions! and! nonfgovernment!
organisations! in! relation! to! the! rights!of! refugees! in!offshore!
processing!centres. !
24
Interview!with!Stephanie!Puris!!
'Photo'provided'by'Stephanie'Puris'
'Emma'Tormey' '
Please' introduce'yourself . ' '
My!name!Steph!Puris.!!I!am!a!solicitor!with!King!&!Wood!Mallesons!
in!the!Dispute!Resolution!team.!!I!am!originally!from!NSW,!however!I!
have!lived!in!Perth!for!the!past!3!years.!!A!random!fact!is!I!compete!
at!highflevel!equestrian!competitions!on!my!horse,!Lochie.!
You' have' both' recently' been' jointly ' awarded' junior'woman' lawyer' of ' the' year, ' can' you' explain' your'professional ' journey'up'unti l ' this 'point?' '
Jess!and!I!were!nominated!by!the!Law!Society!of!Western!Australia!
for!our!pro!bono!efforts! in!promoting!access! to! justice!and!human!
rights!within! KWM!and! the! Perth! profession.! !We!were! pleasantly!
surprised!to!be!nominated!and!delighted!to!have!won!!!
I! studied! B.! Laws/! B.! Commerce! (Marketing)! at! the! University! of!
Wollongong,! and! started! as! a! law! graduate! with! King! &! Wood!
Mallesons! in! February! 2010! in! Sydney.! ! I! transferred! to! the! KWM!
Perth!office!in!April!2012!on!a!“12!month!secondment”!–!and!I!am!
still! here! 3! years! later!! Probably! the! most! interesting! part! of! my!
career! journey! is!how! I!got! involved! in!pro!bono!work.! !During!my!
first!few!months!I!noticed!that!KWM!offered!a!number!of!interesting!
pro!bono!projects!to!get!involved!in.!!From!there!I!took!advantage!of!
all!opportunities!in!the!pro!bono!space,!which!I!could!fit!around!my!
commercial!practice.!!This!has!included!an!opportunity!to!go!on!a!6f
month! full! time! pro! bono! secondment! to! the! National! Children’s!
and! Youth! Law! Centre! and! to! sit! on! the! Australian! Child! Rights!
Taskforce! steering! committee.! I! also! lead! a! team! of! 120! lawyers!
from!KWM!and!our!clients!in!my!role!as!coordinator!of!the!National!
Children’s!and!Youth!Law!Centre/KWM!Cyber!Project.!The!team!!
provides!pro!bono!legal!advice!to!children!and!their!advocates!
on!issues!such!as!cyber!bullying!and!family!violence.!
Do' you' f ind' it ' hard' to' balance' your' commercial 'practice'with'pro'bono'work?' '
I!don’t!really!view!pro!bono!work!as!being!that!different!from!
my!usual!practice.!I!see!them!as!quite!complementary!to!each!
other.!Often! pro! bono!work! provides! you!with! opportunities!
to!progress!skills,!which!you!might!not!get!to!for!a!while! in!a!
large!firm.!For!example,!you!often!have!greater!responsibility!
on!matters,!manage!teams!across!the!various!offices!and!have!
great!contact!with!clients.!I!am!certain!that!my!involvement!in!
pro!bono!work!has!enhanced!a!number!of! skills! that! I!use! in!
my! every! day! commercial! practice,! especially! my! project!
management! and! communication! skills.! It! provides! an!
opportunity! to! advise! individuals! and! connect! with! the!
community,!a!perspective!that!can!be!lost!when!you!are!acting!
for! multinational! companies! in! large! commercial! disputes.! I!
don’t! find! it! hard! to! balance! the! two,! as! KWM! is! very!
supportive! of! the! work! I! undertake! and! have! a! great!
community! and!pro!bono!program,!KWM! in! the!Community,!
which! provides! me! with! amazing! opportunities.! The! work! is!
also! so! interesting! and! rewarding! that! spending! a! couple! of!
extra!hours!here!and!there!is!no!burden.!!
This' year' the' theme' of' International ' Women’s' Day'is ' “Making' it ' Happen,”' what' does' International 'Women’s'Day'mean'to'you?'
International!Women’s! Day! is! an! important! day! to!mark! the!
success! of! women! in! the! past! and! to! inspire! and! encourage!
women! to! strive! to! be! as! successful! as! they! can! be! in! the!
future.!!The!day!encourages!women!to!pursue!their!goals!and!
aspirations.!!It’s!also!a!great!day!to!remind!women!to!support!
each!other!and!to!meet!other!women!to!extend!your!network.!!
What'do'you' think'are' the'biggest' chal lenges' facing'women' in'the' legal 'profession, 'and'do'you'think'the'chal lenges'change'as'a'woman’s'career'evolves?'
I! think! the! challenges! women! face! in! the! profession! does!
evolve! as! your! career! progresses.! ! The! first! challenge! was!
getting!into!the!profession!in!a!competitive!market,!following!
that! it! was! how! to! build! your! reputation! within! your!
organisation!and!the!legal!profession!more!broadly,!and!I!think!
the! next! challenge! will! be! to!maintain!my! career! if! I! start! a!
family.! ! The! first! two! challenges! are! not! unique! to! women,!
however!my!next!challenge!is!particularly!due!to!my!gender.!!I!
am! very! aware! of! how! difficult! that! challenge! will! be! to!
overcome.!!
25
When' and' how' did' you' f irst ' become' aware' of' these'chal lenges?'Were'you'aware'of'this ' issue'at' law'school? !
I!was!aware!of!these!challenges!at!law!school!–!however!they!were!
in! the! abstract.! ! The! challenges! really! impress! upon! you! once! you!
are!experiencing!them,!or!you!are!much!closer!to!that!point!in!your!
life!than!you!were!10!years!ago.!
What' do' you' think' the' legal ' profession' can' do' about'some'of'these'chal lenges? '
Flexible!work!practices!have!definitely!provided!a!greater!potential!
for! the! challenge! to! be! overcome,! however! I! don’t! think! it! is! a!
complete! solution.! ! It! still! takes! each! individual! to! work! out! how!
these! practices! will! suit! them.! ! For! flexible! work! practices! to! be!
successful,!obviously! the! first! step! is! for!each!organisation! to!have!
appropriate! policies! and! practices! available! to! staff,! and! both! the!
organisation!and!the!profession!more!broadly!to!be!truly!supportive!
of!them.!!I!feel!I!will!be!in!a!lucky!position!when!I!come!to!face!this!
challenge,! as!many! remarkable!women!have!paved! the!way! in!my!
workplace!and!the!profession.!!I!know!there!is!still!a!way!to!go,!but!I!
have! the! benefit! of! some! amazing! role! models! and!mentors! who!
have!demonstrated!it!is!possible.!!
Final ly , ' what' advice' do' you' have' for' young' up' and'coming'female' legal 'practit ioners?''
Take! every! opportunity! that! comes! your! way.! There! are! several!
opportunities! that! I!accepted!although!they! involved!some!risk!but!
the!rewards!have!been!amazing.!!I!also!think!having!a!mentor!(or!a!
few)!to!help!you!along!the!way!is!important!to!help!you!reach!your!
potential!and!navigate!your!way!through!the!profession.!
!
!
!
!
Interview!with!Jessica!Bowman!!
'Photo'provided'by'Jessica'Bowman''Emma'Tormey' '
'
P lease' introduce'yourself . ' '
I! am! a! solicitor! in! the! Employee! Relations! and! Safety! team!
(part! of! the! Dispute! Resolution! group)! at! King! &! Wood!
Mallesons.!I!started!my!career!in!the!Melbourne!office!of!King!
&! Wood! Mallesons! in! 2010.! In! early! 2011! I! was! given! the!
opportunity!to!work!in!the!Perth!office!for!6!months.!I!liked!it!
so!much!that!I!have!been!in!Perth!ever!since.!!Outside!of!work!
I!enjoy!playing!field!hockey!and!going!scuba!diving.!!!
You' have' recently' been' jointly ' awarded' junior'woman' lawyer' of ' the' year, ' can' you' explain' your'professional ' journey'up'unti l ' this 'point?''
I!was!very!honoured! to! receive! the!award! for! Junior!Woman!
Lawyer!of! the!Year,!and!delighted!to!share! it!with!a! fantastic!
colleague! and! friend,! Stephanie! Puris.! Stephanie! and! I! were!
nominated! for! the! award! for! our! contributions! through! pro!
bono! work.! ! I! completed! a! double! degree! of! Arts! and! Law!
(with! honours)! at! Monash! University,! Victoria.! My! elective!
units! for! law! included! international! law,! international! human!
rights! law,! issues! in! indigenous! rights! and! trial! practice! &!
advocacy! –! essentially! all! the! subjects! that! are! not! typically!
associated!with!a!career!in!commercial!law.!I!became!involved!
in!pro!bono!work!at!the!outset!of!my!career.!I!joined!the!KWM!
Human!Rights!Law!Group!in!the!Melbourne!office!in!2010!and!
later!became!the!coordinator!for!the!Perth!arm!of!this!group.!I!
also! sit! on! the! KWM! in! the! Community! Committee,! which!
coordinates! and! facilities! pro! bono! work! and! volunteering!
opportunities.!!
26
This' year' the' theme' of' International ' Women’s' Day' is '“Making' it ' Happen,”' what' does' International ' Women’s'Day'mean'to'you?'
To! me! International! Women’s! Day! is! about! recognising! and!
celebrating! achievements! to! date,! sharing! experiences,! and!
supporting!and!encouraging!women!to!face!future!challenges,!great!
or!small!and!both!in!and!out!of!the!workplace.!!
What' do' you' think' are' the' biggest' chal lenges' facing'women'in'the' law'and'the'administrat ion'of' just ice?'
I!am!conscious!of!and!very!grateful!to!the!women!who,!well!before!I!
started! my! legal! career,! pioneered! successful! careers! in! the! law,!
becoming! the! first! female! partners,! barristers,! magistrates! and!
judges.!Their! tenacity,! creativity!and!ultimate! success!means! that! I!
was! able! to! step! into! a!profession! that! is!moving! closer! to! gender!
equality! (or! is! at! least! conscious! of! the! gender! gap).! Certainly! it! is!
not! perfect! but! career! progression! and! promotion! opportunities!
that!were!previously!impossible!or!very!unlikely!for!women!are!now!
possible!and!more!likely.!!Despite!much!advancement,!unconscious!
bias! and! sexism! still! exist! within! the! profession.! Whilst! I! haven’t!
experienced!it!within!my!own!firm,!I!sometimes!feel!it!whilst!dealing!
with!practitioners!for!the!other!side,!clients!and!occasionally!whilst!
appearing!in!court.!It!is!usually!subtle!but!the!underlying!impression!
is!that! I!will!need!to!work!harder!to! impress,!have!my!voice!heard,!
respected! and! taken! seriously,! particularly! as! a! junior! female!
practitioner.! Being! aware! of! and! correcting! unconscious! bias! and!
combating!sexist!behavior!where!it!occurs!are!two!challenges!facing!
both!men!and!women!in!the!law.!!!
What' do' you' think' are' the' biggest' chal lenges' facing'women' in' the' legal ' profession, ' and' do' you' think' the'chal lenges'change'as'a'woman’s'career'evolves?'
There! are! some! challenges,! such! as! managing! mental! health! and!
developing! resilience! that! are! a! constant! challenge! throughout! a!
career! in! the! law.!Other! challenges,! such!as!balancing!a! successful!
career!and!a!family!life!arise!later.!Of!course!these!issues!affect!both!
men!and!women,!although!perhaps!differently.!In!the!face!of!these!
challenges,!firms,!organisations!and!individual!practitioners!need!to!
support! each! other! and! be! accommodating! and! respectful! in!
regards! to! how! individuals! choose! to! structure! their! careers.! ! Law!
societies!and!other!professional!bodies!can!play!a!meaningful!role!in!
educating!the!profession!and!providing!support!networks.!!
When' and' how' did' you' f irst ' become' aware' of' these'chal lenges?'Were'you'aware'of'this ' issue'at' law'school?'
I!was!not!aware!of! the!extent!of! issues! such!as!mental!health!and!
unconscious!bias!within!the!profession!whilst!I!was!at!university!(not!
that! it! would! have! changed! my! decision! to! make! a! career! in! the!
law).!Whilst!at!university,!female!law!students!were!the!majority!!
and! at! least! in! my! experience,! received! equal! treatment! in!
comparison!to!male!law!students.!!
What' do' you' think' the' legal ' profession' can' do'about'some'of'these'chal lenges?'
To!overcome!any!kind!of!bias,! it!must!first!be!recognised!and!
acknowledged.! Unconscious! bias! is! the! hardest! to! perceive!
and!the!hardest!to!produce!evidence!of!when!we!suspect!it!in!
someone!else’s!motivations!or!behavior.! ! It! is! important! that!
we!raise!awareness!of!the!issue!within!the!profession!so!that!
hopefully! individuals! can! perceive! and! then! selffcorrect! any!
unconscious!bias!and!point! it!out!when!others!are!applying!a!
policy! or! behaving! in! a! way! that! reflects! bias.! The! tide! is!
turning! but! there! is! still! more! work! to! do! to! achieve! true!
gender!quality!and!ensure!that!both!men!and!women!are!able!
to!achieve!and!be!recognised!for!their!full!potential.!!
What'steps'do'you'think'an'organisation'can'take'to'cult ivate'a'f lexible'work'practice?'
Policies!need!to!be!reflective!of!what!staff!at!the!organisation!
want!and!need.!I!think!there!is!no!‘one!size!fits!all’!approach!to!
flexible! work! practices! and! policies! needs! to! be! capable! of!
being!adapted!to!suit!individual!circumstances.!!!
Do' you' bel ieve' there' are' biases' against' people'who'work' part ' t ime/' f lexibi l i ty ' and' if ' so, ' what' are' they'and'what'can'you'do'to'change'this?'
Whilst!I!have!only!ever!worked!full!time!and!therefore!cannot!
comment! from!personal! experience,! I! can! see! that! there!are!
challenges!to!working!partftime!in!the!law.!The!danger!is!that,!
in! order! to! feel! as! though! you! are! contributing! as! much! as!
your! fullftime! counterparts,! you! end! up! working! the!
equivalent!of!fullftime!hours!but!being!remunerated!for!partf
time!hours!only.!Of!course!this!may!happen!on!occasion!when!
a! matter! ‘blows! up’! or! when! the! matter! is! at! a! particularly!
critical!stage.!!
Organisations!however!need!to!discourage!this!situation!from!
becoming! the! norm! and! step! in! and! offer! support! to! those!
working! partftime! if! their! workload! is! constantly! the!
equivalent!of! a! fullftime! load.! In! respect! to!opportunities! for!
promotion! and! career! profession,! I! have! seen!many! positive!
examples! of! women! being! promoted! to! Senior! Associate! or!
Partner!whilst!working!partftime!or!whilst!on!maternity!leave.!!
'
'
'
27
Final ly , ' what' advice' do' you' have' for' young' up' and'coming'female' legal 'practit ioners?''
There! are! so! many! interesting,! challenging! and! rewarding! roles!
within!the!legal!profession!and!from!my!discussions!with!women!in!
my!networks,!there!is!no!‘correct’!career!path!f!have!the!courage!to!
forge!your!own!path!to!an!enjoyable!and!successful!career.!!I!think!it!
is! very! important! to! have! men! and! women! within! your! networks!
who!can!give!you!guidance,!act!as!mentors,!advocates!and!a!source!
of!inspiration.!Equally,!it!is!important!to!support!and!strive!to!inspire!
others!as!you!progress!throughout!your!career.!!
!
Rural!Regional!and!Remote!Lawyer!of!the!
Year!f!Samantha!Martella!
'
The!Rural,!Regional!and!Remote!Woman!Lawyer!of!the!Year!Award!
is!particularly!to!recognise!an!exceptional!female!lawyer!working!in!
a!rural,!regional!or!remote!area!of!Western!Australia!who!has!made!
an!outstanding!contribution!to!their! local!community!and!the! legal!
profession.!The!two!nominees!for!this!award!were!Erin!Churchill!and!
Samantha!Martella!with!Samantha!ultimately!winning!the!award.!!
!
WLWA'Honours'Dinner,'Samantha'Martella,'photo'provided'by'Will'Russell'
Samantha! is! committed! to! regional! and! remote! practice! in! the!
Kimberley!and!Pilbara!communities.!!Her!connection!and!knowledge!
of!the!communities!in!Kununurra!and!the!East!Kimberley!is!of!great!
assistance!to!the!community!members.! !She!has!been!the!Solicitor!
in!Charge!of!that!office!for!the!past!seven!years.!Some!of!her!many!
contributions! include! providing! understanding! of! diverse! and!
remote! indigenous! communities! and! delivery! of! service! to! those!
communities! and! adaptability! and! composure! to! different! circuit!
courts.!She!is!known!for!showing!leadership,!compassion,!empathy,!
strength,! objectivity! and! poise! in! providing! services! to! these!
communities!and!is!shown!a!great!deal!of!respect!from!relationships!
she!has!formed!with!local!government!agencies,!nonfgovernment!!
agencies! and! community! organisations.! Samantha! prepared!
the! submission! to! the! Law! Reform! Commission! Discussion!
Paper! Enhancing! Laws! Concerning! Family! and! Domestic!
Violence! and! has! been! a! mentor! and! supervisor! to! at! least!
seven! women! in! the! last! three! year! guiding! them! in!
professionalism,! ethics! and! practice! including! in! often! first!
criminal!trials!and!superior!court!appearances.!!
!
Interview!with!Samantha!Martella!!
'By'Jodie'Moffatt'WLWA' committee' member' and' Networking' Lunch'Coordinator''Solicitor,'Bennett'&'Co'''
How'and'why'were'you'cal led'to'practice' law?'
I!don't!think!I!set!out!to!practice!law,!I!enjoyed!every!moment!
of! my! Arts! degree! majoring! in! Philosophy! and! Psychology!
(except! statistics)! but! upon! its! completion! falling! into!what! I!
knew,!what!I'd!seen!!!(Dad!had!a!small!legal!practice!and!Mum!
worked!there!as!a!settlement!clerk)!seemed!only!natural.!
What'do'you' think'are' the'biggest' chal lenges' facing'women' in'the' legal 'profession, 'and'do'you'think'the'chal lenges'change'as'a'woman's'career'evolves?''
The!mentoring! and! guidance! I! received! from!my! family! and!
during!my!articles!and!restricted!practice!at!Kott!Gunning!saw!
me,! in! 2004,! embark! on! the! isolated! practice! of! law! in!
Kununurra,!at! the!Kimberley!Community!Legal!Service.! It!was!
here!that!I!came!to!appreciate!the!isolation!of!remote!practice!
and! the! limited! access! to! justice! available! to! women! in! the!
Kimberly! at! the! time.! The! same! disadvantage,! the! same!
barriers! to! justice! exist! for! women! in! the! Pilbara! and! the!
Kimberley! in! 2015.! I! had! always! wanted! children,! but! I! got!
caught! up! in! a! wonderful! job! at! the! LAWA! Pilbara! Regional!
Office! that! I! loved.! By! 35! the! realization! that! the!window!of!
opportunity! to! "have! and! juggle! it! all"! was! closing! in! on!me!
was! daunting.! The! clock! was! (and! still! is)! ticking,! but! it's! a!
grandfather!clock!now,!"tic!toc!tic!toc"!it's!getting!louder.!!Can!
I!actually!have!it!all?!And!If!I!did!what!would!it!look!like?!
How' hard' have' Lawyer/Mums' had' to' f ight' for'f lexible' working' hours?' How' much' have' Lawyer/'mums' sacrif iced' to' work' ful l ' t ime' on' part' t ime' pay'and'a'part 't ime'roster?'
Are! these!work! practices! healthy?!What! type!of! practice! are!
we!promoting?!What!are!our!expectations?!Will!this!lead!to!!
28
longevity!in!the!profession?!Do!we!promote!healthy!work!practices!
for!anyone?!Not!just!women,!but!anyone?!!Or!do!we!foster!dread?!
Nurture! Exhaustion?! Breeding! burnout! and! depression?! Do! our!
practices! result! in! Loss! of! interest! and! a! loss! of! passion! for! our!
wonderful,!exciting!and!diverse!profession?!
What' do' you' think' the' legal ' profession' can' do' about'some'of'these'chal lenges?'
I!don't!want!to!resent!the!practice!of!law!because!I!might!not!end!up!
having! the! family! I!wanted!and! I! certainly!don’t!want! to! see! those!
who! are! blessed! to! have! a! family! resent! the! practice! of! law! for!
taking! every! last! bit! of! life! or! energy! from! them.!Whether! you're!
part!of!a!dynamic!working!duo!or!a!duo!managing!a!family!(in!all!it's!
wonderful!forms)!whether!you're!a!single!parent!or!a!single!person!
we! all! collectively! shape! our! profession,! the! standards!we! set! and!
the! expectations! we! create! are! designed! by! us! through! our! daily!
practice! and! conversations.! There! is! still! room! to! reflect! on! what!
practices! and! standards! we! are! promoting.! ! We! must! show!
leadership! in! supporting! and! encouraging! our! sisters! not! pulling!
them!back!or!looking!for!opportunities!to!cut!them!down.!!
I!hope!we!have!confidence!in!ourselves!and!our!ability!to!recognise!
the!strengths!in!our!peers!and!let!them!know!once!in!a!while.!I!hope!
we!are!a!profession!that!prides! itself!on!respect! for!difference!and!
reflects!a!practice!that!includes!rather!than!excludes.!I!wish!we!were!
kinder! to!each!other!and! respected! "difference"!without! judgment!
where!we,! celebrate! diversity! and! share! our! knowledge,! skills! and!
privilege!to!promote!the!advancement!of!all!women.!Finally!!!I!really!
hope! that! young!women! coming! through! the! law! are! not! fighting!
science! and! careers,! that! they! can! see! that! there! are! amazing!
women!who!have!paved!the!way,!who!have!shown!us!that!we!can!
have!it!all,!whatever!it!is!you!might!want!!
!
Interview!with!Laura!Vincent!f!Aboriginal!
Women’s!Legal!Education!Trust!Scholarship!!
!
Jodie'Moffatt '
Introduction'–'background'and'history. '
My!name!is!Laura!Vincent;!I!am!from!the!Maluigal/Maoilgal!Clan!of!
the!Torres!Strait!Islands.!I!am!currently!in!my!fifth!year!of!a!sixfyear!
double!degree!of!Law!and!Majoring!in!Psychology.!!I!currently!work!
three! months! a! year! as! a! cadet! lawyer! for! the! Federal! Attorney!
Generals’! Department! in! Canberra! at! the! end! of! each! year! during!
the!summer!university!break.!
!
How'and'why'were'you'cal led'to'practice' law?'
I!was!given!the!opportunity!to!do!work!experience!in!year!10!
when! my! Father! organised! a! placement! for! me! at! the!
Aboriginal! Legal! Service! in! Perth.! As! a! young!16! year! old! girl!
where!my!dream!began,!I!will!never!forget!the!emotions!I!had!
of! seeing! a! young! Indigenous! boy! being! held! in! custody! and!
facing! criminal! charges.! It! broke!my!heart! to! see!a! child,! the!
same!age!as!my!brother!at!the!time,!being!held!in!custody!for!
an! assault! charge.! This! horrible! experience! is! what! gave!me!
the!drive,!the!passion!and!motivation!to!never!give!up!on!my!
goal!to!want!to!contribute!making!a!difference.!!!
What' has' enabled' you' to' continue' your' goal ' and' to'succeed' in'a'career' in'Law?''
I! have! been! privileged! enough! to! be! mentored! by! a! select!
group! of! successful! individuals! in! the! legal! profession! which!
also! includes! a! District! Court! judge.! Their! guidance! has! truly!
enabled! me! to! succeed! in! continuing! to! follow! my! goal! of!
becoming! a! lawyer.! Having! a! mentor! is! crucial! for! personal!
success!as!they!can!provide!you!with!the!guidance!that!assist!
you! in! considering! another! perspective! on! an! issue! you! are!
faced!with!in!pursuing!your!career.!!
What'do'you' think'are' the'biggest' chal lenges' facing'women' in'the' legal 'profession, 'and'do'you'think'the'chal lenges'change'as'a'woman’s'career'evolves?'
The!biggest!challenges!facing!women!in!the!legal!profession;!I!
personally! feel! is! “workflifefbalance”,! being! able! to! have! a!
career! and! still! maintain! a! healthy! balance.! I! also! personally!
feel,! from!my!own!experience!that!creating!a!balance!can!be!
hard!to!achieve!at!the!best!of!times.!Over!the!past!5!years!of!
my! university! degree! and! working! away! at! the! end! of! each!
year,!I!have!had!to!learn!to!create!a!“happy!medium”,!with!still!
ensuring!that!I!am!taking!time!out!for!myself!outfside!of!work.!
Were'you'aware'of'this ' issue' in' law'school?'
I!became!aware!of!these!in!my!third!year!of!law!school!when!I!
became!sick!and!very!run!down.!I!realised!that!we!often!forgot!
to!take!time!out!for!ourselves!and!it!is!not!until!we!get!unwell!
we!truly!realise!we!might!be!over!doing!it!in!some!areas!of!our!
lives,! especially! our! work! or! in! my! personal! situation! my!
university! studies.! Time! management! is! a! must,! it! needs! to!
include! time! for! friends,! and! family! and! exercise! and! most!
importantly!rest.!!
'
'
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! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !ANNOUNCEMENTS
WLWA!Mentoring!Programme!Interview!!
!
Anne'Woods'Vice'President''!
Do!you!need!a!bit!of! inspiration?!Feeling!like!you!just!need!to!talk!to!
someone!about!issues!you!are!facing!in!the!profession?!Or!maybe!you!
want!some!career!guidance!from!someone!who!does!not!look!at!your!
monthly!bills?!Our!adfhoc!mentoring!scheme!might!be!for!you!!
We! are! constantly! matching! our! wonderful! mentors! with! fabulous!
mentees! to! talk! about! career! options! and! progression,! dealing! with!
difficult!colleagues!or!advocacy!skills.!If!you!think!you!would!like!to!be!
a! mentee! or! a! mentor! please! do! not! hesitate! to! contact! our!
!
Call!for!submissions!
!
We!are!always!on!the!lookout!for!interesting!articles!and!information!
to!include!in!the!next!edition!of!Without'Prejudice.! ! If!you!would!like!to! see!more! interesting! things! appear,! such!as! crosswords,! etc.,! you!
have! an! interesting! contribution! or! a! suggestion! in! relation! to! our!
newsletter!let!us!know.!!We’d!like!to!hear!from!you!!
Send! your! information,! suggestion! or! contribution! to!
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!
WLWA!Website!–!www.wlwa.asn.au!!!
!
From!time!to!time,!we!receive!queries!from!members!about!how!
to!access!WLWA’s!website!at!www.wlwa.asn.au.!!WLWA’s!website!
is! a! convenient! way! to! find! information! about! your! fellow!
members,! WLWA! events,! other! events! of! interest,! WLWA’s!
newsletters,!and!information!about!public!enquiries!of!interest!to!
WLWA! members! and! how! to! make! submissions! to! those!
enquiries,!special!offers!to!WLWA!members,!discussion!forums.!It!
is!a!very!useful!site,!but!you!must!be!registered!to!use!it.!
If! you! are! not! registered! to! use! WLWA’s! website,! go! to!
www.wlwa.asn.au,!click!on!“Register”!on!the!left!hand!side!of!the!
WLWA!welcome!page!and!follow!the!prompts.!!
If! you’re! already! a!member,! or! have!been! a!member!previously,!
follow!these!handy!tips:!
TIP!1:!Previous!members!must!login!on!the!right!hand!side!of!the!
main! page.! Please! do! not! set! up! a! new!membership! account! by!
using!the!register!or!subscribe!links.!
TIP!2:! if!you!have!forgotten!your!username,!try!the!initial!of!your!
first!name!followed!by!your!family!name.!!!
T IP!2:! if! you! have! forgotten! your! password,! click! on! “Forgotten!
Password”!on!the!left!hand!side!of!the!WLWA!welcome!page!and!
follow!the!prompts.!A!system!generated!email!will!be!sent!to!you!
with!a!new!password.!!
TIP!4:!If!you!have!changed!your!email!address!and!forgotten!your!
password!or!username,!please!send!both!your!old!and!your!new!
contact! details! to! [email protected]! .We! will! change! your!
email! address! and! let! you! know! when! this! is! done! so! you! can!
retrieve!a!new!password.!!
If!you!need!any!further!assistance,[email protected].!
WLWA’s! website! is! where! WLWA! and! its! members! share!
information! f! if! there! is!anything!that!you!think!should!be!added!
to!it,!please!let!us!know.!
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