Bullying in the legal profession

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Bullying in the legal profession is believed to be more common than in some other professions. It is believed that its adversarial, hierarchical tradition contributes towards this.[1] Women, trainees and solicitors who have been qualified for five years or less are more impacted, as are ethnic minority lawyers and gay, lesbian, and bisexual lawyers.[2]

Half of women lawyers and one in three men who took part in a study by the Law Council of Australia (LCA) reported they had been bullied or intimidated in the workplace.[3] The Law Council of Australia has found that women face significant levels of discrimination, with one of the study's key figures telling Lawyers Weekly the profession is a "men's only club".[4]

According to former High Court judge Michael Kirby, the rudeness of judges trickles down to senior lawyers who then vent their frustrations on more junior staff, thus creating a cycle of bullying and stress that is rife within the legal profession.[5]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Le Mire, Suzanne; Owens, Rosemary A propitious moment?: Workplace bullying and regulation of the legal profession University of New South Wales Law Journal, The Volume 37 Issue 3 (Dec 2014)" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-02-01. Retrieved 2015-01-27.
  2. ^ Society publishes guidance on tackling bullying in solicitor profession The Journal of the Law Society of Scotland 27 June 2011
  3. ^ Leanne Mezrani 4 February 2014 Bullying rates 'alarming' Lawyers Weekly
  4. ^ Leanne Mezrani 14 March 2014 Law is failing and hurting women Lawyers Weekly
  5. ^ Bullying judges breed stressful system: Kirby

Further reading

  • Omari, M. & Paull, M. (2014). “Shut up and bill”: Workplace bullying challenges for the legal profession. International Journal of the Legal Profession. Volume 20, Issue 2, 2013 p1-20.

External links

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