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Victorian Bar virtually welcomes 48 new members
For the first time in its history, the Victorian Bar has welcomed 48 new barristers who will “virtually” sign the Bar Roll as part of their graduation ceremony.
Naomi Neilson
The group of 48 barristers is the first to complete much of the Bar’s Readers Course by videoconference amid restrictions imposed by the COVID-19 outbreak. There are 27 men and 21 women signing the roll, who all have a variety of professional experience.
“I’d also like to express gratitude for their mentors, experienced members of the bar, who will guide and support the readers throughout their first six months as fledgling barristers.”
CEO Katherine Lorenz said the ceremony represented a “monumental achievement” for the new barristers, who were interrupted only three weeks into the in-person delivery and moved seamlessly towards studying remotely following the COVID-19 outbreak.
Of the 140 sessions in the course, more than 50 were conducted via videoconference. It was an “amazing feat” completed under “quite challenging circumstances”.
“This group therefore represents the bar’s core strengths for resilience, dexterity and for collaboration,” Ms Lorenz said. “I am very proud of our education team and I look forward to seeing the new group of readers flourish as successful barristers.”
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Naomi Neilson
Naomi Neilson is a senior journalist with a focus on court reporting for Lawyers Weekly.
You can email Naomi at:
