‘My pupil master stripped out of his suit in front of me in the office’
At the start of her career, author Harriet Tyce encountered some questionable behaviour – but thought it must be her own fault…
When we are starting out in our careers, we are vulnerable to abuse from those more senior to us. We will always err on the side of blaming ourselves in ambiguous situations because we are so anxious to please.
When I was 22, I was a pupil barrister. My pupil master, many years older than me, took me off for long drunken lunches, confided in me about his marriage problems and stripped off to change out of his suit in his office. at the time I didn’t see a problem with it. Everyone knew he was an excessive character.
the following year, I had a different pupil master. this one was a workaholic. If I didn’t get the work done for him quickly enough, I told myself I deserved to be screamed at. If I didn’t show sufficient enthusiasm for being in Chambers seven days a week working on his cases, I reasoned it must be because I didn’t have the vocation for the job.
Darker, though, was the story of the pupil in another chambers who was a victim of “persistent” sexual harassment. ultimately there was a finding by the bar Council against the pupil master in question and a small financial penalty was levied against him. a solid, concrete case, you’d think. but no. I heard them talk. senior women barristers had encountered far worse when they were younger, they said. she was too sensitive. He was a good man and it wasn’t fair to disrupt his career for something so minor.
Despite the findings he continues to work in the legal profession. I can’t find any trace on the internet of the pupil who made the complaint. speaking out doesn’t seem to have done her legal career much good.
Now, 25 years on, the #Metoo movement has opened my eyes to the abuse of power. I’d say to my 22-year-old self that I should have asked the older man to stop taking off his clothes in front of me. and if he didn’t stop, I should have complained. I should have told the second pupil master his expectations were unrealistic.
I’m told that the bar standards board takes sexual harassment against barristers very seriously. the more that women speak up, the more light is cast into the darkness that allows these abuses to take place. It’s a change I hope won’t take another 25 years.
Blood Orange by Harriet Tyce (£12.99, Wildfire) is out on 21 Feb w&h
‘#Metoo has opened my eyes to the abuse of power’