The President of the Law Society says she was unaware just how widespread sexual harassment and bullying is in the legal industry until she saw results of a survey released yesterday.
The survey showed that almost a third of Kiwi female lawyers have been sexually harassed in their workplace.
Twenty-eight per cent of lawyers have witnessed sexual harassment in a legal environment during their working life - and only 12 per cent of lawyers who had been sexually harassed said they had formally complained.
Kathryn Beck, speaking this morning to TVNZ 1's Breakfast programme, also apologised to female lawyers who had come to the Society and felt that they were not listened to.
That’s the finding of a Law Society survey that’s prompted an investigation to see what needs to be done to force change. (Source: Other)
"What I'm very conscious of is that, as a law society, we haven't been as responsive as we should have been and we haven't provided the cultural leadership to the profession that we should have done," Ms Beck said.
"To those women that felt that they weren't heard by us and that we weren't a safe place to come - I'm just so sorry."
Ms Beck said she has called on the industry in a letter to commit to making fundamental change, the with response from the industry "overwhelming positive and constructive".
"We are looking for change and thats what needs to happen here ... these facts help give the motivation to make that change.
"To be a good lawyer you need to be of the highest ethical standard - and that does not mean sexually harassing people and bullying people.
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