WENDELL HUSSEY | Cadet | CONTACT
Following the very public sexual harassment allegations leveled against former High Court Judge Dyson Heydon yesterday, it can be confirmed that there are a fair few legal old boys shifting around on their chairs today.
This comes a short time after the nation’s female law grads also confirmed that the industry is pretty crook for that sort of thing.
The allegations were published last night after an independent investigation by the High Court found that Heydon sexually harrassed 6 junior court staff during his time on the bench.
Heydon was also accused of harassing a leading female member of the New South Wales bar, a judge, a student at Oxford University, and the former ACT Law Society President Noor Blumer.
Heydon denies those allegations.
While the stories from the independent investigation detail shocking behaviour involving sexual harassment, advocates have been quick to point out that this is not a ‘unique case.’
“Yeah we’ve seen a lot of older white blokes getting away with criminal behaviour over the course of their career because they operate in a system where people are allowed to use their position of power and influence to behave appallingly, and in turn snuff out any ramifications for said behaviour,” explained a spokesperson for the Junior Betoota Law Council today.
“A lot of these lawyers go through the steady trajectory of elite private schools, sandstone universities and large law firms, where they very rarely come into contact with a thing called ‘consequences’ for their actions.”
“That paired with the entrenched sexism and gender bias within the industry makes for an awful culture in a lot of workplaces,” said the spokesperson for the industry that sees itself as the holder of the moral compass.
“Big props to Susan Keifel, the Chief Justice of the High Court who listened when two women told her they had been sexually harassed and did something about it though.”
“That’s the kind of shit that needs to happen if we are to change this old boy run fraternity that sees this kind of behaviour as acceptable because they’re not average blokes, their lawyers.”
“But yeah, there’s a fair few old fellas who are anxiously waiting to see if they’ll be called out for all of the morally and legally questionable shit they’ve done over the course of their careers today.”
