Women in Law - Where Are They?

Almost twenty years ago, the Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC) published a ground-breaking report - Equality Before the Law: Justice for Women - which addressed the lack of women's participation in legal and political institutions. 

This has been identified as a serious issue within the profession. Not only does it hinder women's access to justice, positioning them as 'outsiders' in the law, but also leads to a lack of representation of female concerns at the legislative stage. 

The concern now is that matters may not have improved since the 1994 report as much as might be expected. Women now make up 61.4% of law graduates, up from 50%; however, female participation remains clustered around the lower ranks of the profession, and represent only 20% of partners and 20% of members of the bar.

The Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission last year published its report on sex discrimination, harassment and flexibility within the profession, which aligned with similar studies suggesting that there was a priority need for a more inclusive work environment, and the need to promote awareness of discrimination, harassment and bullying in the workplace.

Women also remain underrepresented in parliament, where the number of female representatives was only 30% in 2012. The newly appointed Abbott cabinet has one woman out of 19 members, with only five women in the ministry (17%). The Inter-Parliamentary Union identifies certain political processes common among countries with higher female representation, such as the way electoral systems are structured, temporary measures such as quotas and political opportunity. These are largely lacking in Australia.

There also remain a number of practical barriers to women's engagement in Parliament or the Legal Profession. Sitting hours and working hours, lack of child-care, inability to bring children into parliament or to a legal practice all reflect the ongoing assumption that women have responsibility for rearing children.

The 1994 report also highlighted the lack of participation of women from non-English speaking backgrounds, and from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander backgrounds. This issue remains significant, especially as Nova Peris became the first Aboriginal woman elected to the national parliament in the last federal election. 

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Women's Agenda