Still a long way to go in EEO for women lawyers

Women are hitting a concrete ceiling in their legal careers and urgent action is needed to address this, according to Auckland barrister Deborah Hollings QC.

Women barristers are poorly represented in top legal appointments, despite increasing numbers in the profession, she says.

Although Dame Sian Elias holds the position of Chief Justice, few women reach anything like such heights.

Only 16.8% of women lawyers are partners in large law firms, and of the 90 practising Queens Counsel, 11 are women. A quarter of judges are women, with the highest percentage being appointed to the Family Court. Many women lawyers are destined to be juniors for the rest of their working lives, with change slow in coming, Ms Hollings says.

"There should be a greater sense of urgency for change to redress the gender problem of the New Zealand legal profession. Part of the problem is legal culture,” she says.   "Any professional group that for 700 years has comprised solely men, is bound to have inherited attitudes that may seem unwelcoming to some different entrants."

Instances of stereotyping, prejudice, harassment and "plain unfairness" do little credit to lawyers who have such an influential role in society, Ms Hollings says.

New Zealand’s Chief Justice Sian Elias recently told the Australian Women Lawyers’ Conference that there is a reluctance to accommodate the needs of women and men who want different work patterns and styles. Even when there is an accommodation there remains a stigma attached to those who seek to be different, she said.

New Zealand is not alone in the gender imbalance of its legal workforce. Australia also has the same problem, but is further ahead in attempts to address it.

In 2004, the Law Council of Australia consulted widely across the legal sector and came up with a national policy for voluntary adoption designed to promote equal opportunity for women barristers.

This included identifying female counsel in the relevant practice area and engaging them, regularly monitoring and reporting on the nature and rate of engagement of female counsel.

The Australian government has indicated that it is willing to adopt a policy similar to that of the Law Council.

In Britain, women increasingly dominate employment law, and women have yet to reach equality at the level of partnerships. Most law firms do have an equality and diversity policy, however, and a high proportion offer family-friendly policies such as part-time and flexible working hours. Work-life balance continues to be one of the most challenging issues affecting employee retention in the legal profession, according to research carried by the organisation Working Families.