Latest Message from the President

Dear Members & Colleagues,

Following our AGM on 30th November 2011, I am delighted to be re-elected President. I would like to thank the outgoing Vice President, Kate Blue and outgoing committee members, Lee-May Saw and Jade Tyrrell. Please click here to view my President’s Report from the AGM. The newly elected committee will be meeting shortly and planning is underway for the New Year, and I look forward to bringing you further updates.

Our Christmas Party following the AGM was a terrific event and we were thrilled that as well as our Patron The Hon Justice Jane Mathews AO of the Supreme Court of NSW; The Hon Justice Margaret Beazley AO of the Supreme Court of NSW; The Hon James Wood AO QC Chair NSW Law Reform Commission, Judge Kevin O’Connor President of the Administrative Decisions Tribunal;  Prof Ros Croucher President of the Law Reform Commission; Bernard Coles QC President of the Bar Association; Julia Baird SC Chair of the Women Barrister’s Forum; Heidi Fairhall President of NSW Young Lawyers; Alexandra Rose, Coralie Kenny and past President Mary Macken of the  Law Society of NSW; Marion Pascoe our host at UUSC; Louisa Fitz-Gerald from the Cancer Council and Justin Whealing Editor of Lawyers Weekly, were all there to celebrate the end of another fabulous year with our members and guests.

I would also like to take this opportunity to thank the Law Society of NSW for their ongoing support and sponsorship, and TressCox Lawyers for their ongoing support as host for our committee meetings.

One of our aims for 2012 is to continue to participate in the debate on diversity on boards and diversity in senior positions of the legal profession. It was a great pleasure to support the cocktail event on the 17th November with the Women Barristers Forum, celebrating the appointment of two new women to Senior Counsel, Sarah McNaughton SC and Kristina Stern SC. 2012 will also host our biennial signature event “Celebrating Women in the Judiciary’ and some exciting new projects and events.

The passing of this year also saw the recent passing of another of our Life Members, The Hon. Mahla Pearlman AO, who died on 2 December. Martin Place Chambers fondly recalled that Mahla referred to Chambers by saying, “you can call it what you like but I know it is really Mahla Pearlman Chambers”, and she was quite proud that her little court warranted a specialist Bar. Many gathered to honour Mahla and her life contributions at the funeral on 4 December. In the words of one of our Life Members, “A great lady whose fine example made the road for those women lawyers coming after her a little smoother”, a sentiment I’m sure shared by all that knew her.

On behalf of the committee I thank you for your support during 2011 and wish you a safe and happy festive season. Please note that our office will be closed from 23rd December and will reopen 16th January.

Kind regards,

Rebecca Barry
President