The Australian Bar Association notes with concern the statement made today by the Chief Justice of the High Court the Hon Susan Kiefel AC regarding the findings of an independent investigation into claims of sexual harassment by former Justice of the High Court the Hon Dyson Heydon AC QC.
Regrettably as the Australian Human Rights Commission concluded in its April 2020 Report into Sexual Harassment in the Workplace, ‘Workplace sexual harassment is prevalent and pervasive: it occurs in every industry, in every location and at every level, in Australian workplaces’.
The legal profession is no exception to this.
The ABA deplores sexual harassment wherever it occurs. Such behaviour is particularly egregious when it involves the exploitation of a power imbalance.
Sexual harassment and bullying have no place in any workplace including the legal profession. All members of the Bar must work to ensure that the Bar is a safe workplace for everyone.
