Judges were not afraid to vent their spleen in 2023, but lawyers were not the only object of judicial scorn last year, as judges waded into public discourse and sounded off over issues including complex legislation, media reports, famous social media commentators, and the involvement of government departments in legal proceedings.
Increased obligations to address and prevent sexual harassment passed in late 2022 have left some employers confused about their obligations and, in some cases, eager to fire employees before issuing a warning, says Dentons’ new employment partner Edmund Burke.
International law firm HFW has lured a team of eight lawyers from Clyde & Co, led by a partner known for his litigation funding practice.
A former Atanaskovic Hartnell client is seeking special leave to challenge a judgment from the NSW Court of Appeal that found self-represented law firms can recover costs for work done by their own solicitors, urging the High Court to intervene to clarify a judgment eliminating the so-called Chorley exception.
A tribunal has found a Sydney solicitor guilty of professional misconduct after finding he sent numerous emails that contained profane language and were condescending to a Mills Oakley solicitor during a dispute involving his mother-in-law.
The NSW Court of Appeal has issued a judgment contradicting a finding from its Victorian counterpart, ruling that law firm Atanaskovic Hartnell can recover costs for work done by its own solicitors in a lawsuit against a former client in which the firm represented itself.
The percentage of senior women barristers who were briefed on cases in the past financial year dropped from the previous year, according to the latest report on the peak legal body’s equitable briefing initiative. The proportion of all counsel fees going to women also took a slide, the Law Council of Australia said.
Sydney man Matthew Laba, who appeared in court posing as a lawyer for clients, has been sentenced to nine months’ imprisonment after pleading guilty to charges of practicing law without a licence.
Generative artificial intelligence will completely transform the legal industry, potentially decimating the billable hour in the process, and experts say practitioners who don’t embrace the technology will be swiftly replaced by those who do.
Former Pinsent Masons lawyer George Varma has been recruited to Gilbert + Tobin’s energy and resources team, marking the second lateral hire for the firm’s Perth office this financial year.