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Archive for the ‘Advocacy’ Category

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After 20 years, do the numbers stack up?

In Advocacy, Barristers, Career, Education, Hegemony, maternity, Solicitors, women on December 5, 2012 at 1:26 pm
What do we have to do to make a difference? *

What do we have to do to make a difference? *

Nearly twenty years ago, the Australian Law Reform Commission, in its report “Equality before the Law: Women’s Equality (ALRC Report 69 Part 2)” examined the place of  Women in the Legal Profession, and said

Women make up 50% of law school graduates, and 25% of the legal profession as a whole. However, women leave the profession at a much higher rate than men, and they are clustered in the lower ranks of the profession. [footnotes omitted]

Fast forward two decades and the VEOHRC has released its latest report into research on women in the law, entitled  Changing the rules: The experiences of female lawyers in Victoria.  This report focused on discrimination, sexual harassment and the accommodation of parental and carer responsibilities.  Read the rest of this entry »

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Blawg Review #320 – A Call to Arms

In Advocacy, amusement, blogs, Diversity, women on May 7, 2012 at 2:01 pm

The Maid of Orleans and Women In Law: An Allegory

On this day in 1429 Jeanne D’Arc pulled an arrow from her own shoulder and returned, wounded, to lead the final charge thus ending the Siege of Orléans. Who was this heroic and infamous woman, and what is she doing in BlawgReview #320?  

If ever there was a symbol of leadership and sacrifice in the name of duty, it is the story of Joan of Arc. Living in an era during which women had no place at all in public life, she led French resistance and died doing so, having been tried and convicted of ‘insubordination and heterodoxy’ on 30 May, 1431. Read on… Read the rest of this entry »

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Finding Australian Law Blogs

In Advocacy, amusement, blogs, Community, legal education, Procrastination on April 28, 2012 at 10:59 am
Law, blogs, blawgs, Australian law

Updating the Blog

Law blogs (blawgs?) are increasingly popular as a way for lawyers, law students and legal academics to communicate to new audiences, create communities of shared interests, and generally vent about the peculiarities of  the law. They are also one of the few ways people can access and exchange legal information and analysis for free (although there is a cost to the blogger, there is little cost to the bloggee). I recently had to hunt down a variety of  blogs for an article I was writing,  and I realised its hard to locate an up to date list of ‘Oz Blawgs’. Here is a list of the ones I found so far. It complements my list of Australian Legal tweeters here and Legal Info here. Read on Read the rest of this entry »

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Who Controls Women’s Bodies?

In Advocacy, Community, media, women on February 19, 2012 at 3:48 pm

My Body. My Business.

In my last post on Amicae Curiae in response to an article by Bettina Arndt, I described the way in which women were objectified in media whether or not they displayed their breasts.  It seems however that the media’s obsession with breasts is not going to go away.

In mainstream media, on Twitter and on Facebook, the last week or so has seen a constant stream of the kind of mixed messages and double standards that represent society’s view of women’s bodies. {read on} Read the rest of this entry »

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Respect Ma Authoritah!

In Advocacy, Family Court, Guest Post, Judiciary on December 15, 2011 at 11:07 pm

Margaret Battye (WA) wore her wig well.

The question of what lawyers wear is in the news again since the Family Court of Australia has announced  that judges have new robes, it will dispense with wigs, and there is a new dress code for lawyers appearing before it.  The Family Court changes caused me to think again about the reason behind court dress – and others too, as evidenced by an animated discussion on Twitter following the Court’s announcement.

read on… Read the rest of this entry »

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Please be upstanding up for the Ladies

In Advocacy, Awards, Barristers, Community, mentoring, Solicitors, women on July 6, 2011 at 8:16 pm

Gold, gold, gold!

Lest it not be a “winter of discontent” perhaps we should put on our thinking caps, sharpen our pencils and nominate some worthy women to the next round of law and community awards? Many women would never dream of asking someone to nominate them, or even nominate themselves, so don’t wait to be asked! Here is a round up of some Awards, why don’t you grab a friend, colleague or your mentor and submit a nomination?

As the Advancing Women guide says

If you know a woman who’s doing work that you admire, put her forward for an award. Australia will thank you.

A list of some awards follows below:

Read the rest of this entry »

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Is there a Ladies Lounge at the Bar?

In Advocacy, Barristers, Judiciary, women on May 24, 2011 at 3:37 pm

"I can never see why it is not considered the hallmark of success to have a brain like a woman!"

I attended the signing of the Victorian Bar Roll for my brother last week, and the Chair of the Bar Council Mark Moshinsky SC made some interesting points in his speech;

The first woman to sign the Victorian Bar Roll was the late Joan Rosanove QC. She signed as number 207 on the 10th of September 1923. Of the 47 Readers signing the Roll this evening, just under half are women – 21 of the 47. They will join the 425 women on the practising list, bringing the total to 446 – a little under a quarter of the total practising list of 1,849.

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Continued, click below Read the rest of this entry »

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Mind the Gap!

In Advocacy, Career, women on April 10, 2011 at 5:34 pm

"Maybe today is the day I get equal pay!"

The GFC and the pay gap:  We just read author Anne Summers’ June 2010 speech to Our Community (many thanks to Leanne O’Donnell for forwarding it). In it Anne discusses the GFC, or Gender Fairness Crisis;

There is a million dollar penalty to being a woman. Recent research shows that if current earning patterns continue, the average 25-year-old male starting work today would earn $2.4 million over the next 40 years while the average 25 year old female would earn $1.5 million. Over a lifetime of working, a woman will earn almost one million dollars less than a man. How fair is that? Read the rest of this entry »

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Don’t Miss These:

In Advocacy, Career, law, Meeting, Opportunities, Public Lecture, Social Media, women on March 23, 2011 at 8:23 pm

Life as a Government Lawyer: A conversation with Vanessa Twigg

Join the Victorian Women Lawyers for a straightforward conversation on an issue that is far from simple and straightforward: pay and progression challenges faced by women lawyers in government,Wednesday 6 April 2011 1pm-2pm. Click here

‘Will the Revolution be Tweeted? The Role of Social Media in Promoting and Protecting Human Rights’ – Seminar on 5 April 2011

The Human Rights Law Resource Centre and the Castan Centre for Human Rights Law  present
Professor Sarah Joseph, Director, Castan Centre for Human Rights Law
Simon Sheikh, National Director, GetUp!
Jonathan Green, Editor, The Drum, ABC
Alex Pagliaro, Refugee Campaign Coordinator, Amnesty International Australia

Date: 12.30pm – 2.00pm on Tuesday, 5 April 2011

Read the rest of this entry »

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