Increasing attention is now being directed to the fact that diversity and inclusion within the Bar fall below the standards expected in a modern, inclusive legal profession.

Speaking with Lawyers Weekly, barristers Regina Weiss from Derwent and Tamara Chambers, Kellie Edwards from 153 Phillip Chambers and The List Australia, and Sharon Kermath from the Victorian Bar shed light on the ongoing challenges and significant work needed to foster greater diversity within the profession.

Challenges to diversity in the Bar

The barriers to achieving more significant gender and cultural diversity within the Bar are multifaceted, stemming from deeply ingrained structural, financial, and cultural challenges that persist within the profession.

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Weiss, the recipient of the Barrister of the Year award at the Women in Law Awards 2024, acknowledged that while the Bar is “certainly diversifying”, she noted that “there is still a way to go”.

She also highlighted the deep-seated and persistent issue of “impostor syndrome”, which continues to hinder inclusion – a problem, she emphasised, that should not still exist.

According to Weiss, one of the primary obstacles to achieving more significant gender and cultural diversity within the Bar is the financial risk associated with starting a career as a barrister.

“Going to the Bar comes with risks – you are self-employed, and you often don’t know when you will be paid or if the briefs will dry up. This is particularly difficult if you are a working mum or have financial commitments you need to meet on a regular basis, like mortgages and school fees.

“Setting yourself up at the Bar is costly, and if you don’t have the financial support you need from the outset, the risk is simply too great. Practising certificates, insurance, chambers’ fees, Bar fees – they all add up when you are starting out,” Weiss said.

Edwards, who received the Barrister of the Year award at the 2024 Australian Law Awards, also expressed concern about the slow progression in increasing diversity within the Bar. She said: “If it continues at this pace, I’ll be over a hundred before there is parity.”

She identified a significant barrier to gender and cultural diversity within the Bar as the “lack of speaking time in court for women and so a lack of decided cases”.

Edwards also shared her belief that many of the current barriers stem from “the way our minds work and how cultural norms become the ways in which our brains shortcut the calorie-consuming work of real decision making”.

Drawing on the work of psychologists Daniel Kahneman and Amos Tversky, she highlighted how humans often rely on cognitive shortcuts or “heuristics”, in decision making.

“I have been reading a bit more about the work of psychologists Kahneman and Tversky, who won the Nobel prize for their work on how people do not make rational decisions, and the same kinds of heuristics apply to what you expect to see and hear in the law. Including who may or may not be a good advocate in court,” Edwards said.

These unconscious biases, she believes, “are the key and largely unconscious reasons why people end up reproducing what is expected in a given field or profession – the ways in which our brains are hardwired”.

Sharon Kermath, a finalist for the Barrister of the Year Award at the Australian Law Awards for the past six years, expressed how “the Bar is committed to ensure the Bar is representative of the broader community it serves”.

She echoed Weiss’ sentiments by highlighting that “the financial burdens of joining the Bar remain a significant obstacle for individuals from lower socioeconomic backgrounds”.

Kermath said: “Coupled with the demanding nature of independent practice, these costs can deter aspiring barristers, particularly women and culturally diverse future Bar members”.

Strategies to overcome

As the Bar continues to confront the challenges of achieving greater gender and cultural diversity, these barristers have outlined a range of strategies aimed at dismantling the barriers that impede progress.

Kermath believes that one of the most effective strategies for increasing diversity within the Bar is ongoing professional education and mentorship.

“To address these barriers, the Bar continues educating its members through professional development seminars and diversity training,” Kermath said.

She highlighted the importance of “mentorship programs”, which can offer “underrepresented groups” the tools, guidance, and support necessary to succeed in a traditionally exclusive profession.

Kermath also pointed to the vital role of “promoting flexible working arrangements and equitable briefing practices” in improving “retention and [career] advancement rates for all barristers”.

She acknowledged that the Bar has already implemented several initiatives to foster diversity, including creating “equality and diversity committees, mentorship programs, and targeted networking opportunities”.

Kermath explained that introducing these initiatives reflects the Bar’s “genuine commitment” to driving meaningful change and advancing inclusivity within the profession.

Edwards stressed the importance of lawyers reassessing their methods for evaluating a barrister’s success, highlighting that current approaches often overlook the unique challenges and experiences women may encounter in their practice.

“Lawyers need to take a different approach to assessing how women perform where they will not have the same records as men, such as decided cases,” Edwards said.

To address this, she suggests “assessing them by presentations they have done is one way to get over this”.

She added: “Otherwise, it is about creating opportunities for lawyers to meet women barristers to speak with them in person.”

Weiss emphasised the critical role of financial support in addressing the diversity gap, due to the substantial costs associated with launching a career at the Bar.

“Financial assistance schemes and grants aimed at improving gender and cultural diversity would go a long way,” Weiss said.

Initiatives and programs leading the charge

Although significant progress is still required, a range of initiatives have been implemented that actively contribute to fostering greater diversity within the Bar.

Reflecting on her own experience, Weiss emphasised that access to financial support was a crucial initiative she relied on at the start of her career, one that could significantly contribute to promoting diversity within the profession.

“When I went to the Bar three years ago, I was able to apply for an interest-free loan from the Tasmanian Bar Council, which assisted with my establishment fees. That certainly took the pressure off,” Weiss said.

Kermath outlined how initiatives such as the Women Barristers’ Association, the Equality and Diversity Committee and the Bar Council are starting to “pave the way” for effective and meaningful change.

She said: “They not only support underrepresented groups but also raise awareness of the systemic issues within the profession by continuing to address diversity; the Bar can ensure it reflects the diversity and dynamism of the society it serves.”

Edwards also shared how initiatives have been implemented at the state government level to promote gender diversity within the Bar.

“The ACT Government Solicitor has been leading the way in terms of making sure they both encourage women to go to Bar and then brief them once they are at the Bar,” Edwards said.