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In Brief Issue #1096
31Mar
On Friday night last week, I attended the Queensland Law Society’s Legal Profession Dinner in Brisbane. Luke Murphy, President of the Law Council, gave the keynote address. He spoke about his attendance at the 23rd Commonwealth Law Conference in Goa, India, which was held early in March this year. Luke talked about some of the serious threats to the rule of law that currently exist in many countries in the common law world. He also spoke about the efforts that our Bar and the LIV have been making to oppose various provisions in the Human Source Management Bill which allow for the registration of lawyers as informants against their clients. It is an issue that has captured the attention of practitioners nation-wide. Everyone is concerned about it, particularly given the potential for clients to lose faith in their lawyers. It is very good to have Luke’s support on the issue.
On Monday afternoon, I attended the prescribed sexual harassment awareness training for barristers over 10 years’ call which is a prerequisite for those intending to apply for silk. I have been contacted by a number of members who attended the prescribed training last year to ask if it is necessary to complete this year’s course in order to apply for silk in 2023. The answer to that question is ‘no’. The training, once completed, is valid for two years.
In response to feedback from last year, and having consulted Chief Justice Anne Ferguson and Samantha Burchell (CEO at the Judicial College of Victoria), the program has been tweaked this year. There is an increased emphasis on the hypothetical examples which are discussed initially in small groups and then with all participants. I found the training very useful. It helps you to think about ahead of time how you might respond to instances of sexual harassment that you see or hear about. I would like to think that I now have some better, more considered and nuanced strategies to respond to poor behaviour of that kind if I witness it. My sincere thanks to Gina Schoff KC and Liz Bennett S.C. (who have led our efforts to refine the course this year) and Rachel Doyle S.C. and Mark Irving KC (who both helped with course content and addressed the participants on the night). There is another session scheduled for tomorrow afternoon and another will be held in the second half of the year.
On Wednesday night, I attended the 2023 Iftar Dinner which the Bar co-hosted with the Australian Intercultural Society (AIS). It was a real success. Rabea Khan stepped into the role of MC after Haroon Hassan became unavailable at the last minute. We heard a conversation between Yusur Al-Azzawi (of our Bar) and Mohammad Chowdhury about Mohammad’s 2021 book entitled Border Crossings – My Journey as a Western Muslim. Mohammad is a graduate of the universities of Oxford, Cambridge and Harvard and has lived a fascinating expat life. Having worked in over 80 countries, he described his experiences reconciling the British, Asian and Muslim facets of his identity. The event was a great opportunity to hear about the benefits of diversity, as well as the struggles and tensions that can come along with multiculturalism. Thanks to Ahmet Keskin (from the AIS), Rabea, Yusur, Haroon and Mohammad for their participation. Thanks also to the Bar Office staff for their help on the night.
Sam Hay KC with author and CEO of Long Street Advisors, Mohammad Chowdhury at the 2023 Iftar Dinner.
Last night we had a Bar Council meeting and heard from Michael Shand AM KC (Steering Group Chair) and Paul Francis (IT Project Manager) about the IT Redevelopment Project. I am very pleased to report that it is broadly on track. As you would expect, we have hit a few bumps along the way, but they are being managed. My current sense is that there will be a bit of slippage in the timetable, but we are monitoring the project closely and it is going really well. I will keep members updated.
This morning, along with other members of the Veronica Nelson Working Group, I met with Kerri-anne Millard (Director, Policy and Outreach), Michelle Martfurt (Manager, Policy and Regulatory Strategy) and Deborah Lawson (Senior Policy Advisor) from the VLSB to discuss the Bar’s response to recommendations made by his Honour Coroner Simon McGregor. Under Richard Dalton KC’s very efficient direction, the Working Group has put together a detailed proposed response which will be considered by Bar Council next month. My thanks to Richard and the members of the Working Group for their excellent work on this important issue.
On Tuesday next week I will be attending the 17th Annual Victorian State Parliament Iftar Dinner at the Sofitel (another event hosted by the AIS). On Wednesday morning, I will appear at a special ceremonial sitting of the Court of Appeal at the new Bendigo Law Courts. And on Thursday morning, I will attend a Women’s Legal Service Victoria breakfast at Lander & Rogers.
Finally, I would like to let members know about a forthcoming production of Witness for the Prosecution which is being staged by BottledSnail as part of the Victoria Law Foundation’s Law Week. Our own Mark Robins KC, Emily Porter S.C. and Matthew Albert have leading roles and tickets are limited. The show is set for Thursday 18, Friday 19, and Saturday 20 May at 7:00pm (there will also be a 2:00pm matinee session on the Saturday) at the Old Melbourne Magistrates’ Court in Russell Street. Bookings can be made using this link.
Sam Hay KC
The VicBar CPD Committee would like to remind members that the last day to complete your CPD requirements is today, Friday, 31 March 2023.
If you haven’t completed your requirements yet, don’t worry — log in to the VicBar website and there is an extensive list of recordings available for viewing on our CPD catalogue.
If you have extenuating circumstances and are unable to complete in time, please ensure you notify the CPD Committee ASAP by email education@vicbar.com.au.
You should have received an email from the Victorian Legal Services Board + Commissioner (VLSB+C) on Monday, 27 March 2023, outlining details of the practising certificate (PC) and professional indemnity insurance (PII) renewal process.
LSB online went live on Monday, 27 March 2023, for the renewal of your PC. Members must renew before Friday, 30 June 2023 to continue to practise on Saturday, 1 July 2023. Members who renew after this date may incur a late renewal surcharge from the LSB+C.
The LPLC portal is expected to open on Wednesday, 5 April 2023 to renew your PII, and further information from the LPLC will be distributed on or closer to that date. The LPLC requires payment of the PII premium by Wednesday, 31 May 2023 and members are encouraged to renew online on the LPLC website.
Information on renewing practising certificates can be found on the VicBar website here.
Links for online lodgement, found on the above webpage, will be available from the VLSB+C and LPLC live dates, or you may go directly to LSB Online and the LPLC website when live.
Login to LSB Online and the LPLC renewal portal using your Practitioner Number as the username (your Practitioner Number will be included in the email sent to you by the VLSB+C). You can contact the Bar office for assistance if required. LSB Online deals with all PC administrative matters, and there is no printed PC renewal form. If you have forgotten your password, you can reset this on the LSB Online login screen by selecting ‘forgot password’. You will receive an email to reset your password.
If you experience technical difficulties with LSB Online, please contact the VLSB+C via their lawyer enquiry form. In addition, answers to frequently asked questions and LSB Online user guides can be found here.
Should you require assistance renewing your PC, the Victorian Bar office can help you, and members who need assistance should email membership@vicbar.com.au or contact Daphne Ioannidis on (03) 9225 8326 or Mark Bryant on (03) 9225 7105.
The LGBTIQ Working Group of the Equality & Diversity Committee of the Victorian Bar celebrates Transgender Day of Visibility 2023, a day set aside by members of the community to acknowledge and celebrate trans and gender diverse people and their achievements.
In particular this year we celebrate the extraordinary law reform and pioneering human rights advocacy of Roberta Perkins – a member of the ground-breaking Australian Transsexual Association (est. early 1980s, now The Gender Centre Inc) the world’s first fully government funded transgender rights organisation. To find out more about Roberta Perkins and her law reform work, members and colleagues across the profession may wish to read the website of the LGBTIQ Legal Service, a community legal centre service provided by Southside Legal.
The varied stresses and pressures associated with work at the Bar can often lead to feelings of unease, stress and anxiety. If as a member you continue to experience any kind of professional, financial, or personal stress, it’s important to remember that maintaining good mental health is a vital part of your professional life.
You can always make the most of the resources and services that the Bar offers to members and their families.
Resources
Please visit the Bar's health and wellbeing portal for helpful information, resources, and coping strategies for issues relevant to members.
Counselling
The Bar provides five free, entirely confidential counselling sessions to all barristers and their immediate families. The services are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. There are two alternatives on this front:
- The team at Re-Vision Group have multiple years’ experience dealing with Bar members, and their issues and concerns. Call 03 9650 5540.
- Converge International is another independent crisis and counselling service delivered by qualified psychologists and counsellors. Call 1300 687 327.
Why Take Chambers with BCL? As a wholly owned subsidiary of the Victorian Bar, BCL provides a flexible and unique solution of chamber and technology support only available to members of the Bar. Click here to view our current vacancies.
The following are highlights of upcoming CPD and events for Victorian Bar members. You must be a member of the Victorian Bar and logged into the VicBar website to view these events.
- Dealing with clients in suicidal distress is on 26 April 2023 from 5:15pm-6:15pm. In this seminar, the speakers will explain the drivers for suicide and how to identify and respond to suicidal distress. Lisa Hannon KC, Chair of the Victorian Bar's Ethics Committee, will outline a barristers’ ethical duties when they apprehend that a client may be suicidal. This is an online-only event. Click here to RSVP.
- Are the parties bound by an agreement to settle at mediation? is on 27 April 2023 from 5:15pm-6:15pm. In this seminar Grant Lubofsky and Shaun Clement (Counsel for Appellant and Respondent respectively in Sully v Englisch [2022] VSCA 184) reflect on Masters v Cameron agreements in the wake of the recent Court of Appeal’s decision. This is an online-only event. Click here to RSVP.
For more upcoming CPD events, please visit our listings here.
Studio 11 warmly invites you to take a break and visit its exciting Term 1 2023 exhibition comprising some 45 works from artists including:
Llewelyn Ash
Andrew Baines
Min-Woo Bang
Jenny Coker
Janine Daddo
Tracy Dods
Steve Harris
David Hinchliffe
Julie Hutchings
Alan Kuczynski
Kate Piekutowski
Tim Shaw
Lisa Russell
Lisa Taylor King
Miertje Skidmore
Belinda Wilson
Patrick Wong
The exhibition includes paintings, etching on paper, sculpture and beautiful glass work.
Take a break and come and spend some time with the works on Level 11 East, which are all for sale with work sheets available on the floor.
The exhibition runs until 31 March 2023.
For enquiries contact lauracolla@vicbar.com.au.
Dear Essoign Club Members,
We are open daily from 7:30am – till late
Breakfast – for dine-in or takeaway.
Lunch – Daily Café Menu take away or delivery.
Lunch Dine-In – A La Carte from midday.
Bar – EVERY EVENING – $5 Beer & Wine from 4:30pm – 5:30pm with light snacks available.
Catering & Events – For all occasions including:
Breakfasts
Cocktail Parties
Dinners
Platters for:
Lunches
Morning & Afternoon tea
Or something special you may have in mind.
See Catering and Events Pack here.
Email us at essoign@vicbar.com.au
Victorian Bar members are encouraged to use the Member Benefits online portal, where you can access a wide variety of discounts, special offers, and member-only deals as part of your Bar membership.
The exclusive benefits are available Australia-wide and are not generally open to the public.
To activate your account and access the benefits, please click here. You must log in using your vicbar.com.au login details.
Click here for the monthly Best Buys!
Click here for a special offer from HotelPlanner.
The Federal Court of Australia is currently considering potential amendments to the Commercial and Corporations (C&C-1) Practice Note to reflect changes to the manner in which Scheme of Arrangements are addressed. It is intended to consult with the profession and the Australian Securities and Investments Commission before finalising those potential amendments. There will be further communications and invitations to consult circulated shortly.
The Supreme Court will mark its first attendance at the new Bendigo Law Courts with a special ceremonial sitting.
To mark the Supreme Court’s first appearance at the new Bendigo Law Courts, Chief Justice Anne Ferguson, President Karin Emerton and Justice Robert Osborn will preside over a special ceremonial sitting on Wednesday 5 April before hearing an application for leave to appeal against sentence related to crimes that were committed in the area.
The ceremonial sitting will begin at 9:15am and will include a Welcome to Country from the Dja Dja Wurrung with addresses from Chief Justice Ferguson, President Emerton, Sam Hay KC, President of the Victorian Bar, and Juliana Smith of the Law Institute of Victoria.
The ceremonial sitting will be livestreamed.
Click here for more information.
The County Court’s Common Law Division has published a revised Family Property List practice note. The revised practice note introduces a new streamlined procedure for testator family maintenance claims against low value estates (<$150,000). The new procedure includes the use of disclosure forms rather than affidavits or position statements and a cap on legal costs. The practice note also now lists the “critical documents” which parties will be expected to disclose in a dispute.
Visit the County Court website for further information.
The Victorian Bar Library Committee has recently purchased many useful new books in a variety of areas. Come in and have a look! Owen Dixon Chambers East.
A list of some of the new arrivals are listed below. The Richard Griffith Library is a reference library and that books may not be removed from the library save for those that have been clearly marked as available for loan.
Australian master superannuation guide 2022-23
Case management and complex civil litigation
Cheshire and Fifoot law of contract
Commercial arbitration in Australia under the model law
Hanks Australian Constitutional law : materials and commentary
Jesting pilate and other papers and addresses
Keay's insolvency : personal and corporate law and practice
New South Wales civil procedure handbook 2022
Residential tenancies law and practice : New South Wales
Royal commissions and public inquiries in Australia
First in a series of Conversations about the Voice to Parliament
The Centre for Comparative Constitutional Studies at Melbourne Law School is hosting a series of four events exploring and explaining the proposal to change the Australian Constitution to recognise the First Peoples of Australia. The series is convened by the Victorian Bar’s own Timothy Goodwin (co-chair of the Bar’s Indigenous Justice Committee), together with Melbourne Law School’s Laureate Emeritus Professor Cheryl Saunders AO and Professor Jason Varuhas.
The first event in the Conversations about the Voice is happening on Monday, 3 April 2023 at 5:30pm, in a hybrid format (in person and remote attendance both possible). The event will provide a general introduction to and overview of the Voice proposal and referendum process. There will be opportunities for members of the audience to put questions to an expert panel.
Those interested in attending should register here. More information about the series can be found here.
Melbourne University Law Review Annual Lecture 2023
Date: Thursday, 6 April, 7:00pm
Location: Room G08, Melbourne Law School
The Melbourne University Law Review ('Review') is honoured to host Chris Maxwell AC as our guest speaker for the 2023 Annual Lecture. The title of the address is 'Thinking Philosophically about Law: The Role of Moral and Political Reasoning in Shaping the Law'.
The Annual Lecture is part of an ongoing effort by the Review to increase its engagement with the legal community. This lecture will explore the different ways in which ideas from moral and political philosophy underpin the development of the law. The shape of the substantive law can be seen to reflect assumptions and choices about core philosophical notions such as the moral obligation of one person to another, the attribution of responsibility for conduct and the nature of the relationship between the individual and the State. And the task of adjudication often calls for the exercise of moral judgment, whether because the applicable rule invokes an explicitly moral concept such as unconscionable conduct or moral culpability, or because the application of an indeterminate legal standard necessarily involves moral judgment. Equipping future lawyers with the capacity to think philosophically should therefore be one of the goals of legal education.
Those interested in attending should register here.
We are pleased to invite you to attend an online information session where you will be able to ask questions about the AAT’s new Migration and Refugee Practice Direction which came into effect on 1 March 2023.
The information session will be held via Microsoft Teams on Wednesday, 5 April 2023 from 3:00pm to 4:00pm (AEST) and will feature presentations from senior representatives of the AAT. Following the presentations, the panel will address questions and matters of interest from attendees.
This is a good opportunity for professionals who support applicants in the Migration and Refugee Division to gain a clear understanding of how the new practice direction will impact your work.
Registrations are open until midnight on Sunday, 2 April 2023.
If you are unable to attend, we encourage you to forward this invitation to a colleague who may be interested.
Space is limited so please secure your place by registering to attend as soon as possible.
Click here to register.
The International Council for Commercial Arbitration (ICCA) is conducting a roadshow in Melbourne to promote ICCA to the Victorian legal community. ICCA is a global non-governmental organisation that began in 1961 and promotes the use of arbitration, conciliation and other forms of international dispute resolution.
Herbert Smith Freehills is hosting an evening reception on 12 April for Dr. Mariel Dimsey (Secretary General of the Hong Kong International Arbitration Centre) and Neil Kaplan CBE KC (Co Chair Host Committee HK ICCA 24).
ICCA’s biennial Congress (described as the largest regular gathering of international dispute resolution specialists worldwide) will take place in Hong Kong in May 2024.
Those interested in learning more about ICCA and perhaps attending the Congress and those interested or involved in arbitration generally may consider attending the evening reception on 12 April.
Interested members can register here.
The Royal Historical Society of Victoria has some forthcoming lectures that may be of interest to Vic Bar members.
Law and Order Under La Trobe: The First Prisons of Port Phillip
Dr Ashleigh Green
The Royal Historical Society of Victoria, in partnership with the C J La Trobe Society, presents the annual A. G. L. Shaw Lecture, delivered by Dr Ashleigh Green, the current La Trobe Society Fellow at the State Library of Victoria.
Dr Green’s fellowship topic is very interesting and, until her current work, little researched. Dr Green has investigated the planning and construction of the first purpose-built penal and psychiatric institutions in the Port Phillip District and Colony of Victoria during the La Trobe administration (1839-1854). Her project provides an in-depth history of the construction and early administration of four of these key institutions, and how they set the precedent for the design and construction of gaols, prisons, and asylums in the colony that came after.
This event is an in-person event.
Tuesday, 18 April, 5:30pm for 6:00pm
Bookings: Link
Royal Historical Society of Victoria Gallery downstairs.
239 A'Beckett St
Melbourne
(03) 9326 9288, office@historyvictoria.org.au
Lessons from History: Colonial Foundations of Criminal Justice in Victoria
The Hon Chris Maxwell AC will deliver the Society’s inaugural Paul Mullaly History and Law Lecture during Law Week 2023.
This lecture will explore the value of legal history, both as a window into social and political history and as an aid to understanding the present state of the law. By way of illustration, the lecture will highlight key aspects of criminal justice in colonial Victoria: jury trials; the role of the trial judge; and early ideas about proof and punishment; drawing on Paul Mullaly’s foundational work Crime in the Port Phillip District 1835-51.
This event will both be in person at the RHSV Gallery Downstairs, and on Zoom.
Tuesday, 16 May, 5:30pm for 6:00pm
Bookings: Link
Royal Historical Society of Victoria,
239 A'Beckett St
Melbourne
(03) 9326 9288, office@historyvictoria.org.au
This annual one-day Conference will be held in Sydney as a hybrid event with the option of in-person attendance or online attendance, on Saturday, 6 May 2023.
The Conference, which has been held since 1989, provides an opportunity for those interested in Competition Law to update their knowledge on the specific areas covered by this year’s conference including:
- Gina Cass-Gottlieb Chair, ACCC
The ACCC’s 2023 outlook and priorities for competition enforcement
- Brent Fisse Principal, Brent Fisse Lawyers
Australian Cartel Law: Recent Developments
- Professor Julie Clarke Associate Dean, University of Melbourne
Proof of Purpose
- Liza Carver Commissioner, ACCC
Implementation of codes of conduct in digital platforms
- Dr Luke Wainscoat Senior Economist, HoustonKemp
Are ex ante regulations required to curb the market power of digital markets
For full details, please download the combined flyer and registration form here.
If you would like to contribute relevant news, events, and updates for barristers and the legal profession to In Brief, please send an email with your content to inbrief@vicbar.com.au or complete this submission form.
Deadline for the next issue:5pm, 5th April 2023