Law Institute of Victoria adopts revamped Charter for the Advancement of Women

It’s fantastic to see that the Law Institute of Victoria has now adopted our revamped Charter for the Advancement of Women in the Legal Profession, making it available to all Victorian firms, practices and their teams. The Charter aims to promote and support strategies to retain women from all backgrounds in the profession over the course of their careers. We’ve seen an encouraging rise in signatories since we added new provisions to prompt signatories to establish procedurally fair and transparent sexual discrimination and harassment complaints processes.

This latest development means that law firms and legal practices across two states, representing nearly 70 per cent of our nation’s solicitors, can become a signatory to the Charter.

Appointment of new Chief Magistrate

Former President of the NSW Children’s Court, Judge Peter Johnstone, today commences his new role as the new Chief Magistrate of the Local Court of NSW, replacing the Honourable Graeme Henson AM. It is a much-welcomed appointment.

As President of the Children’s Court, Judge Johnstone championed the appointment of specialist magistrates, advocated for prevention, early intervention, diversion and rehabilitation measures that keep children out of juvenile detention and helped strengthen cultural connections for vulnerable young Indigenous children placed in out-of-home care.

Judge Johnstone has previously served on the bench of the District Court, as deputy chair of the Medical Tribunal and as a part-time commissioner of the NSW Law Reform Commission. Prior to taking public office, Judge Johnstone worked as a solicitor for 33 years and held a number of senior positions at Blake Dawson Waldron (now Ashurst), including national chief operating partner and managing partner of the firm’s Sydney and Melbourne offices.

His Honour’s appointment comes at a crucial time for the Local Court, as it works to overcome significant delays and backlogs generated by COVID-19 restrictions. My heartfelt congratulations to Judge Johnstone. I wish him well in his new role and look forward to continuing the long and productive relationship we’ve enjoyed with the Office of the Chief Magistrate.

Annual Government Solicitors Conference

I am looking forward to tomorrow’s annual Government Solicitors Conference, which is being held as an online event. We have a fantastic program of live and on demand events, including a judicial panel discussion reflecting on the virtual courtroom experience during the pandemic. We’re also excited about announcing the winner of the Michelle Crowther PSM Excellence in Government Legal Service Award and the recipient of the John Hennessy Legal Scholarship.

Vale Margaret Stone

I was deeply saddened to learn of the passing of The Honourable Margaret Stone AO FAAL on 1 September 2021. Margaret Stone was a trailblazer in academia, the legal profession, the judiciary and the public service. In her long and distinguished career, Margaret lectured in law at UNSW, was a partner at Freehills, a judge of the Federal Court of Australia and also an additional Judge of the Supreme Court of the ACT.  After retiring from the bench, she was appointed Australia’s first Independent Reviewer of Adverse Security Assessment. She was later appointed Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security, a position she held until her retirement in 2020. She was a wonderful role model, friend and mentor to many in our profession and I was very proud to be a partner of Margaret’s at Freehills before she went to the Court. My sincere condolences to her family, friends and former colleagues. Vale The Honourable Margaret Stone AO FAAL.

Juliana Warner, President, the Law Society of NSW

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