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In Brief Issue #1112
21Jul
Welcome back to everyone who took a break during these past few weeks.
On Monday evening, I attended the unveiling of the official portrait of Nimal Wikramanayake KC in the Peter O’Callaghan QC Gallery. Back in December, I attended the launch of Nimal’s book, A Life in the Law: A Memoir at the Essoign Club, which details his very long career and the many difficulties he encountered along the way. The Chair of our Arts and Collection Committee, Siobhan Ryan KC, introduced retired County Court Judge Ross Howie KC, who spoke very warmly of Nimal before Nimal responded. It was clear to all present that the event touched Nimal very deeply. In fact, Nimal said the unveiling of the portrait was the proudest moment of his life. My thanks to Siobhan and Ross, and to Graham Robertson who drove the project to get Nimal’s photo into the gallery.
On Wednesday afternoon, I met with the Honourable Chief Justice Anne Ferguson to discuss several topics. In particular, I let her Honour know about the progress of the Preliminary Evaluation Committee so far (we are just over halfway through this year’s batch of silk applicants and will continue to meet each week until mid-August). I then attended the Supreme Court Prize Ceremony in the Supreme Court Library at which the Chief Justice and the Honourable Justice Kristen Walker spoke (both are previous winners of the prize). As you would expect, the current batch of prize winners were all very impressive. I am sure at least some of them will be joining us at the Bar in the years to come.
The Commonwealth’s Attorney-General’s Department is advertising several positions which have become available in our Courts. In particular, applications for judicial appointment to the Federal Court and the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Divisions 1 and 2) are now open. They are due by 4 August. The official departmental notice, and the online expression of interest form, can be found here.
The Melbourne Law School at the University of Melbourne welcomes expressions of interest from members of the Bar in teaching, on a sessional basis, in its JD and Melbourne Law Masters programs. Teaching opportunities arise from time to time across a range of subjects in public and private law. Any expressions of interest may be sent to law-dean@unimelb.edu.au. If you have the time, I encourage you to get involved.
On 24 and 25 October, the Legal Profession Board of Tasmania will be hosting the annual Conference of Regulatory Officers in Hobart. This year’s theme is ‘Regulation: Dealing with BIG issues’, designed to stimulate thinking and engage with colleagues involved in legal regulation. The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Tasmania, the Honourable Alan Blow AO, will be the keynote speaker. Also speaking will be Professor Gino Dal Pont (prolific legal author and Dean of UTAS), Kate Cuthbertson SC (current Secretary and Treasurer of the Tasmanian Bar), and our own Stephen Warne (publisher of the Australian Professional Liability Blog). You can find out more about the conference here.
Sam Hay KC
The Bar Council calls for expressions of interest from members who wish to be considered for appointment to the 5 Year Readers’ Course Exam Review Committee.
The Committee was established to report on the rationale, operation, feasibility, content, and purpose of the Victorian Bar Entrance Exam over the previous 5 years.
Nominations close at 5:00pm, Monday, 31st July 2023 and should be emailed to sharni.doherty@vicbar.com.au.
Expressions of interest are sought from members interested in performing regulatory work for the Victorian Legal Services Board + Commissioner (VLSB+C) and the Bar.
The VLSB+C’s regulatory approach statement provides a detailed summary of the functions and regulatory activities of the VLSB+C, some of which are delegated to the Bar.
If you are interested in performing regulatory work, we encourage you to provide a detailed expression of interest, which should identify any relevant areas of experience or expertise.
Please forward your expressions of interest to ED@vicbar.com.au. The closing date for this EOI is COB, 21 July 2023.
- Dropbox Enterprise is now available through the BCL Technology Subscription Portal. Click here to see our recent communication.
- 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.
- BBlood in the Full Court: Section 100A is on 24 July 2023 from 5:15pm-6:15pm. This CPD is on the recent Full Federal Court decision in B&F Investments Pty Ltd as trustee for the Illuka Park Trust v Commissioner of Taxation [2023] FCAFC 89: the appeal from BBlood Enterprises Pty Ltd v Commissioner of Taxation [2022] FCA 1112, and the latest judicial consideration of section 100A. This is an in-person event and will also be available online via live stream. Click here to RSVP.
- Funding of class actions: group costs orders and common fund orders is on 25 July 2023 from 5:15pm-6:15pm. This session will provide an overview of funding in class actions, with a focus on group costs orders in the Supreme Court of Victoria and common fund orders in the Federal Court of Australia. The speakers will discuss whether those funding arrangements provide access to justice and analyse recent developments in the law. This is an in-person event for barristers only and will also be available online via live stream. Click here to RSVP.
- Managing Performance Anxiety is on 26 July 2023 from 5:15pm-6:15pm In this seminar practicing sports psychologist Jacqui Louder will discuss the anxiety provoking topic of performance anxiety – what it looks like and how to manage it. This is an online only event via Zoom. Click here to RSVP.
- Audio and Visual Recordings in Family Law Matters is on 27 July 2023 from 5:15pm-6:15pm. This CPD considers the legality of audio or visual recordings and the use that can be made of these recordings in family law proceedings, with reference to Telecommunications (Interception & Access) Act 1979 (Cth), Evidence Act 2008 (Vic) and Surveillance Devices Act 1999 (Vic), as well as recent decisions. This seminar will also cover useful practicalities that practitioners should be aware of when faced with this complex area of law. This is an in-person event and will also be available online via live stream. Click here to RSVP.
- Intersectionality and how to be an ally is on 31 July 2023 from 5:00pm-6:00pm. In this session, speakers will discuss the implications of recent research which shows that people of colour, people who have a disability or mental illness, people from disadvantaged backgrounds, trans people, and LGBTIQ+ people experience more frequent or more severe discrimination in the legal sector. This is an in-person event and will also be available online via live stream. Click here to RSVP.
- Mediators Discussion Group is on 31 July 2023 from 5:15pm-6:15pm. This seminar is an opportunity for anyone to raise any topics for discussion arising from a mediation they conducted, or a continuing issue they face in, or anything else they wish to have some peer discussion and input on their mediation. This is an in-person event for barristers only and will also be available online via Zoom. Click here to RSVP.
For more upcoming CPD events, please visit our listings here.
Hilton Melbourne Little Queen Street is offering Bar members an exclusive discount on accommodation, as well as on food and beverages.
This exclusive accommodation discount of 15%, also includes 15% discount on food and beverages, and is available by clicking the link here.
Enter the code VICBAR to get a 15% off when dining in.
T&C's apply. Discounts are not to be used in conjunction with any other offer. Percentage off is valid for a maximum discount of $150 per bill. Blackout dates apply.
Offer is valid until 31 August 2023.
Studio 11 is proud to announce the Term 3, 2023 exhibition is installed for your viewing pleasure on Level 11 ODC East.
It comprises a medley of sculpture works by nine local sculptors and seven paintings by Anne Brennan. The acrylic on canvas paintings are inspired by lemon scented gums, Tasmanian forests and roadside trees in rich, organic colours with dynamic twists and turns. Sculpture works by Anderson, Ashkenazi, Ermer, Herreiner, Meszaros, Rickards, Stavovy, Whetton and Wilson speak to playful themes as well as the feminine, motherhood and life phases.
Works are executed in bronze, steel, timber and ceramic. You are invited to come see if you can resist Brown Dog and Scotty Dog at the very least.
There are 27 pieces on show, all of which are available for purchase. Works sheets together with Artist Biographies are ‘on the floor’. The exhibition runs from 10 July – 15 September 2023.
Studio 11 is a voluntarily run initiative. There is no commission payable on purchased works which are available for collection at the end of the exhibition.
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 attached
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 to access the monthly Best Buys!
On 17 July 2023, the Victorian Legal Services Board (‘the Board’) appointed Mr Damian Neylon of Neylon Legal, Level 3, 20-22 McKillop Street, Melbourne, Victoria as Manager of the incorporated law practice JBT Lawyers Pty Ltd (‘the Law Practice’).
The resolution was made pursuant to sections 327(2)(b) and 334 of Schedule 1 to the Legal Profession Uniform Law Application Act 2014 (Vic).
The Law Practice operates from 1/59 Darling Street, South Yarra, Victoria 3141.
Have you heard about the Richard Griffith Library but have never visited? Held in person at the Richard Griffith Library, this short 15-minute tour with a Law Library Victoria Reference Librarian, will demonstrate how to access the library, point out collections and provide an overview of online subscriptions.
Location: Richard Griffith Library, Level 1, Owen Dixon East
Thursday, 24 August 2023, 1:15pm to 1:30pm Tour of the Richard Griffith Library
Thursday, 21 September 2023, 1:15pm to 1:30pm Tour of the Richard Griffith Library
Thursday, 26 October 2023, 1:15pm to 1:30pm Tour of the Richard Griffith Library
Thursday, 23 November 2023, 1:15pm to 1:30pm Tour of the Richard Griffith Library
The Sir Zelman Cowen Centre warmly invites you to attend our Lawyers as Changemakers series.
Happening over May, June and July 2023, Lawyers as Changemakers is a three-part series focusing on Australian lawyers’ contributions and influence in shaping society for good, and the inspiration these stories provide to improve our communities now and into the future.
The final address of the series will be delivered by the Honourable Mark Dreyfus KC MP, Australia's Attorney-General, on the life and legacy of Sir Zelman Cowen. The event will be held in person at the Sir Zelman Cowen Centre (295 Queen Street Melbourne VIC 3000) on Thursday, 27 July 2023, from 5:30-7:30pm (registrations start from 5:15pm).
Register here via Eventbrite.
Democratic Regression and the Rule of Law in Indonesia
2023 Miegunyah Distinguished Visiting Fellowship Public Lecture
Date & time: Thursday, 27 July, 6:00pm - 7:00pm
Location: Melbourne Law School, G08 Theatre, 185 Pelham St, Carlton & Online
Presenters: Professor Jimly Asshiddiqie
Indonesia is a rising power in Asia and a crucial partner for Australia. It underwent sweeping democratisation after the collapse of Soeharto’s New Order regime in 1998 and was held up as a model for other Muslim societies. However, many see the last decade as a time of regression, with Indonesia’s ranking sliding in global democracy indexes, key institutions like the Anti-Corruption Commission and the Constitutional Court facing major challenges, and little progress on human rights. In this lecture, Miegunyah Fellow Professor Jimly Asshiddiqie, founding Chief Justice of Indonesia’s first Constitutional Court and a leading figure in legal and political change in Indonesia over the last two decades, will offer an assessment of the challenges to democratisation and the rule of law in Indonesia in the ‘post-truth’ era, and what could be done to reform the political system.
For those unable to attend in person, a livestream option will be available when you register.
Further information and registration
2023 Flos Greig Public Lecture
Women Making a Difference in the Law: Bridging a Gap Between Law and Life
Date & time: Wednesday, 2 August, 5:30pm - 7:00pm
Location: Old Quadrangle, Building (150) - North Entrance, Melbourne University
Presenters: The Hon. Marilyn Warren AC KC
The Hon. Marilyn Warren AC KC will analyse how women have made a difference in the law, giving an overview of the paths of women as practitioners, academics, reformers, and jurists since 1903, the year Flos Greig graduated as the first woman in law in Victoria. The presentation will also look to what the future holds for women lawyers. Flos Greig was a pioneer whose determination to practise as a solicitor advanced gender equality in the legal profession in Australia in the early twentieth century. Upon graduating from Melbourne Law School in 1903, Flos Greig undertook her articles with Frank Cornwall, later continuing her career with Cornwalls law firm. We hope you can join us for this opportunity to hear The Hon. Marilyn Warren AC KC speak. Light refreshments will be served from 5:30pm in the Foyer, with the lecture starting at 6:00pm in the Library (Level 1).
Melbourne Law School is delighted to have Cornwalls’ involvement in this annual lecture series, recognising Flos Greig’s pioneering spirit which transformed the bases of admission to the Australian legal profession.
Further information and registration
Living on in the Law: Naming Laws after Homicide Victims
The Peter Brett Memorial Lecture 2023
Date & time: Thursday, 17 August, 6:00pm - 8:00pm
Location: Melbourne Law School, G08 Theatre, 185 Pelham St, Carlton
Presenter: Professor Arlie Loughnan
In recent decades, in Australia, a number of laws have been named after victims of crime. This practice, which Professor Arlie Loughnan calls eponymous law, now encompasses the creation of numerous new laws or legal amendments. In this lecture, Professor Arlie Loughnan points to this practice as a fascinating aspect of the making of criminal law. She will focus on two dimensions of the practice of naming laws after homicide victims. First, this practice is a way in which the families of the crime victims give meaning to their loss through crime. An examination of publicly reported statements by victims’ families reveals a wide range of motives, from honouring the victim to helping to ensure other families do not go through the same trauma. Professor Loughnan asks if this practice reflects the rise of popular punitivism in the current era. Second, eponymous law represents a distinct aspect of the changing relationship between criminal law and victims of crime. This becomes apparent through the contextualisation of this practice as emerging against a background set by the rise of the victims’ rights movement in Australia from the 1970s, the massive growth of criminal legislation since this time, and an apparent increase in the political popularity of victim-oriented law reform. What does this mean for the place of criminal law in contemporary Australian society?
Please join friends and colleagues of Melbourne Law School after the lecture for post-reception drinks and light refreshments from 7:00pm.
Registrations now open for Resolution Institute’s flagship mediation training with a 20% discount on membership.
Do you need to enhance your mediation skills, follow a new career path, or develop your negotiation and conflict resolution skills?
Then why not join our experienced trainer Anne Sutherland in Melbourne (21–25 August) for our mediation training and take your career to new heights?
Our highly sought-after mediation training meets the requirements for the National Mediation Accreditation System in Australia and includes personalised coaching and feedback from highly skilled mediators. Upon completion of the course, you will receive 20% off your membership for your first year which will gain you exclusive access to a range of our membership benefits.
For more info & to register, please visit the link above. You can also write to us at learning@resolution.institute or call +61 2 9251 3366
Deakin Law School would like to invite members of the Victorian Bar to arbitrate in the 2023 Alfred Deakin International Commercial Arbitration Moot, proudly sponsored by Allens Linklaters and CIArb.
This competition provides the opportunity for over 140 students from across 12 countries to hone their international commercial law skills, network with like-minded young lawyers, and practice in-court advocacy.
This year's competition will take place via Zoom on 4 and 5 September (Preliminary Rounds) and 11 and 12 September (Elimination Rounds and Finals).
To register to arbitrate for this year's competition, please click here.
For more information regarding the Moot, please click here.
Register to Judge - 11th Michael Kirby Contract Law Moot Competition 25 - 28 September 2023
We would like to invite barristers to participate in the 11th annual Michael Kirby Contract Law Moot Competition, 25 - 28 September 2023, at Victoria Law School, Melbourne.
Click here and add your availability details.
ABOUT THE KIRBY MOOT
Australia’s only Contract Law Moot, the Kirby Moot, is one of the largest competitions of its kind. It is a fixture in the legal calendar and has support from the County Court of Victoria, members of the Victorian Bar, various law firms and legal training institutions.
WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT
- University participation from across Australia.
- Only two teams per university will be eligible to register.
- A moot problem closely resembling a real-life contract law dispute.
- Students gain formative, regular feedback from practitioners. They develop fundamental lawyering skills, including problem-solving, legal analysis, reasoning and research, communication (oral and written), management and teamwork.
For more information, please visit the website here.
Monash Law is one of the largest and most dynamic law schools in Australia. We seek Expressions of Interest in working with our team of experienced educators and leading academics.
As a casual (sessional) academic staff member you are an important part of the faculty’s teaching program. You will assist the Law Faculty to maintain a high quality in teaching and learning and to satisfy students’ learning requirements for units and courses, and increase flexibility in subject offerings.
You are encouraged to submit an Expression of Interest application if you have obtained an Australian law degree with excellent results, have relevant experience and you have the capability to work within our teaching teams. Casual work may be available in seminar teaching, tutoring and marking, in private and public law units and clinical offerings at Clayton and in the City Chambers. We have particular need for tutors in Torts, Constitutional Law, Evidence, Civil Procedure and Administrative Law, for classes during business hours.
Please contact us via our Expression of Interest portal.
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, 27th July 2023