A correction has been made to the Review of Harassment within the Legal Profession, following contact with a survey respondent, Commissioner for Equal Opportunity Jodeen Carney said today.
Ms Carney said a footnote stating that respondents did not refer to incidents of harassment perpetrated by sitting judicial officers has now been deleted.
“I have been contacted by a survey respondent who has told me that one of the incidents she referred to, and which was subsequently referred to in the report, did involve a sitting judicial officer,” she said.
“The review team inferred from the initial response that the matter did not involve a current judicial officer. That is not the case.
“To remedy this, a revised copy of the Report has been placed on the EOC website. The footnote has been removed.
“I commend this woman for contacting me about this matter, and encourage others to do so if they wish.
“I assure anyone who has been the victim of sexual or discriminatory harassment that they can contact my office for advice as to making a complaint, which may include making a complaint to the Judicial Conduct Commissioner.
“I do not propose to provide further details, given assurances of confidentiality made to survey respondents.
“The amended report – absent one footnote – does not alter the substance of any of the case studies or respondents cited in the final Report.”