This past week we marked another milestone in the 178-year history of our association with the appointment of the next Chief Executive Officer of the Law Society.

Ms Sonja Stewart, a former Deputy Secretary within the NSW Department of Premier and Cabinet, will step into the CEO role on Monday 31 August.

Ms Stewart brings enormous experience to the role across Commonwealth and State Governments, the legal profession, academia and the not-for-profit sector and I am delighted to have someone of her calibre to lead the Society into our next exciting chapter. I look forward to welcoming her to 170 Phillip Street and, COVID-19 restrictions permitting, introducing her to members of the profession, judiciary, government and other key stakeholders over the coming weeks and months.

Later this week, I will be launching, via webcast, the Law Society’s three uniquely targeted mentoring programs to support lawyers at different stages of their career: a Graduate Mentoring Program for final-year students and recent graduates, a Young Lawyers Mentoring Program for those two to five years into practice, and a Women’s Mentoring Program for those with more than five years’ experience.

This year we will have nearly 450 people participating in the Law Society’s Mentoring Programs, the largest intake ever.

As I see it, mentoring programs express some of the highest values of our legal profession. I was fortunate enough to be mentored, albeit informally, as a young lawyer at Dettmann & Dettmann, Chatswood. As a result, I have sought to give back during my career and act as mentor to those coming up through the ranks. I have no doubt that those who participate in the Law Society’s mentoring relationship, whether they are a mentor or mentee, will find the experience just as interesting, illuminating and fulfilling as I did.

And finally, some more welcome news in relation to our courts, with the announcement that a major security upgrade at Sydney’s Downing Centre has been completed.

New high-security security screening is now in place at the Downing Centre, including 3D body scanners at the entrance of the court, making it safer for all court users. The overhaul of the security layout at our state’s busiest court, including a dedicated screening unit for practitioners and court staff to fast-track their entry into the complex, will hopefully end the bottlenecks that have been the source of much frustration for practitioners and caused many a delay in the past.

Richard Harvey, President, Law Society of NSW

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