thought that new laws may finally solve the problem of domestic violence, or more bits are grafted on to the corporations law. All these are doomed to fail, so the cycle continues. At some times in the ‘80s and ‘90s, though, it seemed to me that WA was rather better than many other jurisdictions at thoughtful, practical - even properly resourced - reform, which was not taken up elsewhere simply because other jurisdictions never thought to look west. I have wondered if that advantage has gradually been eroded.
What advice can your Honour offer to young legal practitioners?
If your Honour could now change one law in WA, what would it be? While I had a few candidates, as a single important change to the law it is hard to go past current calls for a substantial increase in the age of criminal responsibility. During the whole of my legal career, it has been blindingly obvious to me and to anyone who encounters either child offenders or child victims of crime that we are failing many children in our community. Such a reform would at least ensure that the state does less harm.
Advice to senior legal professionals? Mentor and invest in the junior legal professionals. You are the key to the longterm development of the profession.
What top three books could your Honour recommend to our readers? So hard to choose! In the last 12 months, I’ve enjoyed: A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles (novel) Too Much Lip by Melissa Lucashenko (novel) Inhaling the Mahatma by Christopher Kremmer (essay/memoir)
Life lessons It is true that I worked reasonably hard and made the most of my opportunities. It is also true that most of those opportunities were pure luck. I have never forgotten that “...the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong...but time and chance happeneth to them all”; I have found this either humbling or consoling, depending on the circumstances. Sinclair Lewis is little read these days, though in 1930 he won the Nobel prize for literature. In his novel Main Street one of the characters suggests that the most important work any of us can do is “to keep on looking at one thing after another ... and ask why it is, and who first laid down the law that it had to be that way.” Precedent and predictability are important, in law and in life. However, I am glad that I didn’t take the nice quiet life which was considered appropriate for women of my day, and the times in my career at which I was happiest involved either law reform, or advocacy or decisions which asked and tried to answer the “why” questions.
Her Honour Judy Eckert The first woman to serve as President of the Law Society of Western Australia A graduate of the University of Western Australia Faculty of Law, her Honour Judy Eckert was the first woman to serve as president of the Law Society of Western Australia (1995-6). She was admitted as a legal practitioner in 1981 after completing her articles with Northmore, Hale, Davey and Leake (now Minter Ellison). In 1986, only four years after her admission, she became that firm’s first female partner. In 1991, her Honour joined the WA Crown Solicitor’s Office, where she practised for eleven years and where she conducted a major review of the WA Legal Aid Commission. She joined the WA bar in 2002, the year she was also made a Life Member of the Law Society of Western Australia. In 2005 she was appointed a Judge of the District Court of Western Australia as a prelude to her appointment as Deputy President of the State Administrative Tribunal (SAT), sitting in the Human Rights stream. Her Honour played a significant role in drafting the SAT legislation package which, at the time, was the largest piece of legislation ever to pass the WA parliament. In 2011, ill health led to her Honour’s early retirement.
Reflections on her career path and the legal profession: I fell into law as a natural progression from my interests. During high school, I was very politically involved and invested in social welfare and justice. I had a teacher who provided great mentorship to me, and made me interested in world issues, politics and social justice – and importantly, gave me confidence in my intellectual abilities and made me believe in myself. At that time, I was at boarding school and vividly remember going home for the holidays
1. Write short, sharp sentences – understand how to write, write clearly, give law a good name. 2. Get involved in the Law Society – it is really important to foster collegiality within the legal profession. This is where you socialise, meet different people and network. 3. Be good to other people whether they are clients or a person on the street. 4. Go and travel! When I was young, I left the law for two years to go travelling throughout Australia. This was an eye-opening experience and one of my fondest memories was working in a bookshop in Darwin!
and discussing economics with my father and family at the dinner table. We enjoyed discussing world economics and listening to the federal budget, and I became fascinated by the impact it had on people. Through that, I realised how few rights people had and wanted to do something about it. My father, who was a minister in religion, often invited visitors to come stay at our home. My father and I would partake in lively conversations about world issues around the dinner table with his visitors, and I think I was influenced by all these different perspectives, which expanded my thinking and understanding of the world. Looking back at my childhood and upbringing, I was fortunate to grow up in a loving family and have people in my life who provided valuable mentorship to me, shaping my views and my life. My father was the most important role model and mentor in my life. As mentioned before, I also had a teacher in secondary school whose mentorship encouraged me to learn and become interested in the world and develop my critical thinking. We often do not realise the impact others can have on our lives, how our own lives can be shaped by others. I would therefore encourage members of the legal profession to take up opportunities for mentorship – whether as a mentee or mentor. One of my proudest achievements was showing that there was a place for women in law. We were different to men, but I did not have to take on male characteristics to succeed in law. Today, women still face various challenges, especially when raising a young family. I think that law firms need to accept that it will cost a lot more in the long run if mothers are not given sufficient maternity leave and time with their family. Essentially, work/life balance issues are not “women’s issues”, but “management issues”.
23
