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25 September 2008 |
Dear Members & Colleagues
The Australian Women Lawyers (AWL) AGM was held on 13 September in Brisbane, and I am pleased to announce that Georgia McMaster, barrister, of the Northern Territory, has been appointed as the President of AWL for 2008-2009. It is a great privilege for me to continue to serve as the NSW Representative and Treasurer on the AWL Board, and I look forward to working with Georgia and the other AWL Board members for 2008-2009.
I was also fortunate to be invited to participate in the Standing Committee of Attorney's General (SCAG) Harmonisation Conference this month at which several key law reform and policy issues that will benefit from a harmonised approach across State and Territory boundaries were proposed for consideration by SCAG. The Conference was a positive sign of the increased consultation and transparency by the Attorneys General with key stakeholders within the legal profession and business sector, and WLA NSW can only be supportive of the continuation of such an initiative.
Our professional networking event hosted by Clayton Utz on 28 August ‘Help! My daughter wants to be a Workplace Relations Lawyer!’ highlighted some ongoing challenges in regard to flexible work practices and gender bias as reported in Lawyers Weekly article 5 September. The next event in our professional networking series will be hosted by Deacons on 28th October with the focus on Women in Environmental Law.
October is shaping up to be a busy month commencing with our next Work2Suit Forum on 16th and our biannual Female Bar Readers Welcome & Networking Lunch on 24th as noted below. Further details will be available shortly with other event updates.
Thank you for your support and we look forward to seeing at an event soon.
Yours faithfully,
Lee-May Saw
President
16 October 2008, Thursday 5.30-7.30pm Liana Gorman, director and co-founder of Australia’s leading flexible recruitment website, Part Time On-Line will be speaking to the forum. An experienced recruitment professional, Liana will give an overview of this segment of the legal job market the kinds of flexible work arrangements legal service providers recruit for. She will also provide practical tips on:
Krista Gerrard, an experienced superannuation lawyer will speak about her experience of successfully creating a career path using non-standard working arrangements, in particular contracts which suit her professional and personal circumstances. Krista is currently on contract with Mercer. |
24 October, Friday 12:45PM - 2:00PM |
LAW SOCIETY OF NSW 2008 COUNCIL ELECTIONS
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Ros Everett: I am seeking re-election as one of your representatives on Council to continue to work towards issues very important to women lawyers, better work life balance, partnership and promotional opportunities, and pay based on work performed not on gender or age, to name but a few. We are seeing more women promoted to the bench, as demonstrated by the very successful Women’s Lawyers “Women in the Judiciary” Function on the 24th July this year, but we still have a very long way to go to be equally represented on the judiciary and in senior management positions. I had to start my own firm in 1996 to get a partnership! I have encouraged job sharing, work from home and flexible hours. I seek your vote so I can continue to promote this common sense work life balance with council. Please phone me to discuss any issues important to you on (02) 47217333 or email 
Mary Catherine Snell: Current Councillor 4 years. Solicitor, City of Sydney Council. Past President of NSW Young Lawyers (2004) and Mid-North Coast Regional Law Society (2003-2005). Member of the Professional Conduct Committee and chair of sub-committee; Member of Environmental Planning and Development, and Property Law Committees; Treasurer of NSW Women Lawyers and board member of PILCH. I will continue to represent the interests of all lawyers, particularly young, regional and women lawyers. I want to work towards sustaining our profession into the future - to ensure that the needs of members are met, that our community has access to justice, that regional practices remain viable, and that our young lawyers and women lawyers are given every aid to achieve their career objectives and a genuine work-life balance. 
Anne Sullivan: As a female partner in a large commercial law firm, as the staff partner for my team at Blake Dawson, and as a wife and mother, I deal every day with the challenges facing women in forging a satisfying professional career whilst balancing their other life aspirations. I have had the pleasure of working with many talented and capable women and I want to ensure that the Law Society supports opportunities for women in all areas of the profession. I am also committed to encouraging more active involvement in the Law Society by lawyers in large law firms. Should I be elected to the Council, I would welcome ideas from other women across the breadth of the profession as to ways in which the Law Society might be able to better represent your interests. Please take the time to vote to ensure we have a strong and dynamic Law Society Council. 
Pamela Suttor: I was admitted as a solicitor with three other women. The numbers of women practitioners have since grown exponentially but there is still a long way to go in getting true equality of opportunity and remuneration for women practitioners. I am committed to ensuring that women are entitled to practice in a manner suitable to their personal needs and talents whether part time or full time, in government, corporate or private practice. As a senior practitioner I have tried to provide leadership to the profession whether as a Law Society Councillor or as President and committee member of City of Sydney Regional Law Society. If re-elected I promise to bring all my experience, drive and enthusiasm to the continuing work of the Law Society Council for all practitioners including maintaining my specialist area of practice in Wills and Estates as a viable area of practice. Exercise your vote. 
Penelope Waters: As a member of the ethics committee since 2003, a former councillor of the Law Society, and a member of the Motor Accidents Council since 2005 I am aware of the need for the Law Society to represent the needs and interests of its members first. I believe that it is necessary for the Law Society to maintain its role as an advisory service for members with respect to ethical issues, disclosure, and professional standards in addition to its role as an advocate for the legal profession promoting the profession through the media and government. I have recently formed a new firm and been elected president of the North and North West Regional Law Society. These experiences have highlighted the opportunities and difficulties faced by female practitioners. OTHER EVENTS & NEWS:
UBS Career Comeback offers professionals who have taken time out of the workplace the opportunity to revitalise their business knowledge and skills. The free two day course is run in conjunction with AGSM and is designed for individuals with a minimum of five years professional experience who have taken a career break of at least 18 months. The program will be held in Sydney on 15 – 16 October. To apply go to: www.agsm.edu.au/cc Note: Deadline for applications 1 October 2008.
”The Jihad Seminar” PEN Lunchtime Reading & Talk with Hanifa Deen 7 October.
Tuesday 7 October, 2008 12.15pm – 12.45pm
Customs House Library, Barnet Long Room
31 Alfred Street, Circular Quay
Free Admission/Bookings: Ph 9242 8555/ Library@cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au
In her latest book, The Jihad Seminar, award-winning author Hanifa Deen follows the controversial case that turned into an unholy war of words lasting five long years – freedom of speech versus freedom from religious vilification. Through Deen’s eyes we discover a wider meaning to this conflict as she reads from and discusses The Jihad Seminar with Sydney PEN VP, Dr Ben Saul, Director, Sydney Centre for International & Global Law at Sydney Law School. She has written three books including best-selling Broken Bangles; Caravanserai and A Journey Among Australian Muslims. Click here for more details or visit www.pen.org.au for more information.
21 October 2008, Tuesday 5.30pm
“What women want … the naked truth!” Part 2, hosted by ANZ Martin Place
The National Foundation for Australian Women invites you to join them for a panel discussion with:
• MC: Catherine Fox, Deputy Editor AFR BOSS
• Michael Rose, MD of Allens Arthur Robinson
• Todd Sampson, CEO Leo Burnett Pty Ltd
• Jane Caro, author and panel member of ABC’s ‘Gruen Transfer’
Click here for details and registration.
National Access to Justice and Pro Bono Conference 2008 (A2J), November 14-16 Sydney http://www.a2j08.com.au/
The Law Council of Australia and the National Pro Bono Resource Centre have teamed up again to host the second National Access to Justice and Pro Bono Conference. This conference aims to encourage all those who strive to provide access to justice in Australia to work more closely together and collaborate in projects and programs that will better address the legal needs of Australians.
We hope that you take advantage of the many programming and networking opportunities available that are designed to connect you to new ideas and creative approaches to addressing key access to justice issues.
Please feel free to pass this email onto colleagues and ensure they are on our email list for future updates and invitations.
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URL: http://www.womenlawyersnsw.org.au
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