COURT OUT!
Leading woman barrister’s war on her sexist male colleagues who make jokes about skirts and breasts
A YOUNG female barrister has appealed to her male colleagues to stop making ‘jokes about breasts and skirts’ in court.
In a heartfelt plea for better behaviour from men among the elite of the legal profession, she accused them of acting as if ‘they are on a stag do’.
Joanna Hardy, who is a rising star of the criminal bar, also criticised male barristers for treating the women who work with them as servants.
In a series of social media comments, Miss Hardy said: ‘Don’t behave like you’re on a stag do. If you are a male in a male-heavy case, don’t ask the female counsel to fetch the coffee/pour your water.
‘Try to remember their names. Don’t make repetitive jokes about breasts or skirts. Don’t communicate solely in innuendo.’
Her nine Twitter messages, which also included advice on how women lawyers can help each other and a call for cases to begin later in the day to help with childcare, were intended to encourage men to stop pushing women out of the legal profession.
‘ “You’re worse than my wife” is not an acceptable way to conclude a debate about complex legal provisions,’ she advised, adding: ‘No, I don’t want to organise the case dinner.’
Miss Hardy, a member of Red Lion Chambers, which was formerly headed by Director of Public Prosecutions Max Hill QC, was among three barristers chosen to give evidence to MPs last year when the Justice Select Committee wanted to hear about disclosure of evidence in criminal trials.
She headed her social media lecture: ‘We talk a lot about retention of women at the criminal bar. We wring our hands and shake our head as females leave and leave and leave. But what can we actually do?’
Miss Hardy’s high-profile intervention is among repeated complaints from women lawyers that, despite the legal profession’s claims to follow the best equal opportunities practice, sometimes women can face poor treatment or barriers to success.
Newly appointed Supreme Court justice Lady Arden is among those who have recently spoken about how they have been guided away from the most senior jobs.
Lady Arden said that she had been encouraged to work as a relatively lowly solicitor – dealing with everyday clients and jobs such as conveyancing and drawing up wills – rather than following her ambition to become a barrister, who act as courtroom advocates and legal specialists, and from whose ranks almost all judges are chosen.
Lady Arden said in an interview filmed by a campaign group that when she spoke of her ambition, the reaction was ‘lots of sucking of breath’ and comments such as: ‘It’s going to be difficult you know … you can be a solicitor, but you can’t be a barrister. People will never instruct you and you will never be able to get on.’
The legal profession continues to produce its fair share of sex abuse scandals. Last November City law firm Reed Smith sacked a partner following alleged sexual harassment of junior female lawyers.
Another City firm confirmed last month that it had sacked a partner who was suspended after being seen viewing pornography on his office computer.
Chris Henley QC, head of the Criminal Bar Association, recently highlighted a number of incidents in which junior women lawyers appeared to be victimised.
He mentioned one in which a judge told a woman barrister who raised her childcare problems when a trial ran late: ‘You should really think about whether the bar is right for you.’
In another incident, Mr Henley said, a judge took part in an unpleasant exchange of words with a young barrister.
She said afterwards: ‘I don’t think I have ever been shouted at like I was by that judge. Completely unacceptable. He acted like a toddler. I have decided to leave the bar for the time being. A big part of my decision to go is the life I am leading as a very junior criminal barrister.’
‘Females leave and leave and leave’