Group meets for the first time as it readies to help transform the legal community
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The New Zealand Law Society has revealed the members of its culture-change task force, which it said recently met for the first time.
The group – formed as a response to the Legal Workplace Environment Survey that found sexual harassment and bullying to be prevalent in New Zealand legal workplaces – is chaired by Law Society President Kathryn Beck.
“I feel a huge personal disappointment as to what has occurred in the legal profession and I’m personally committed to leading the change required,” she said. “The quality of the task force members gives me great confidence that the cultural change we are committed to in our legal community is within our grasp. We can and will achieve the building of a culture within the legal profession that is healthy, safe, respectful and inclusive and which we can all be proud of.”
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More than 80 submissions were received after the Law Society urged members of the legal community to apply to be a part of the group. The task force includes 14 other lawyers, a legal executive, and a practice manager.
The other members of the task force are:
- Julia Batchelor-Smith (Auckland, lawyer)
- John Billington QC (Auckland, lawyer)
- Lindsay Butler (Waikato, practice manager)
- Jenny Cooper QC (Auckland, lawyer)
- Allanah Colley (Wellington, lawyer)
- Mark Cunliffe (Wellington, lawyer)
- Carmen Franich (Auckland, legal executive)
- William Fussey (Auckland, lawyer)
- Roshni Kaur (Auckland, lawyer)
- Stephanie Mann (Canterbury, lawyer)
- Emily Morrow (Auckland, lawyer)
- Jared Ormsby (Canterbury, lawyer)
- Emma Priest (Auckland, lawyer)
- Jonathan Robinson (Wellington, lawyer)
- Mary Scholtens QC (Wellington, lawyer)
- Josie Te Rata (Wellington, lawyer)