News & Events | Victorian Bar

21May

Featured Event

Victorian Bar Dinner 2021

All members of the Bar and Judiciary are warmly invited to the Dinner on Friday, 21 May 2021, 7:00pm at the Plaza Ballroom. The event is black tie and will feature guest speaker The Honourable Justice Simon Steward of the High Court of Australia.

4May

Featured Event

The Victorian Bar Ramadan Iftar Dinner

The Victorian Bar together with the Australian Intercultural Society invites you to the 2021 Ramadan Iftar Dinner, where members from a cross-section of Melbourne's diverse society come together to share a meal and conversations.

The Deputy Chair of The Victorian Bar's Equality and Diversity Committee, Astrid Haban-Beer, will MC a panel session on ‘Gender Equality and Cultural Diversity in the Law’ with Her Honour Magistrate Urfa Masood and Barristers Rutendo Muchinguri and Daye Gang.

Latest News & Events

16Apr

In Brief

In Brief Issue #1006

Retirement of The Hon. Justice Peter Almond

On 31 March this year, Justice Peter Almond retired as a judge of the Supreme Court of Victoria, having been appointed on 27 July 2010.

Unfortunately, due to Covid restrictions, there was no formal farewell. His Honour did, however, record a final address which can be accessed here.

We thank His Honour for his service to the people of Victoria and wish him well in retirement.

9Apr

In Brief

In Brief Issue #1005

Anniversary

Monday marks a most important occasion in the history of the Victorian Bar. On 12 April 1841, a Crown Prosecutor and four barristers (including Sir Redmond Barry KCMG QC) were admitted at the inaugural sitting of the Supreme Court in Melbourne. Dr Peter Yule, the author of the History of the Victorian Bar (currently in print), identifies this date as one that has the strongest case to mark the establishment of the Victorian Bar. Victoria was then the Port Phillip District of the colony of New South Wales. It would be a further ten years before Victoria separated from NSW to become a colony in its own right, and a further sixty years before Victoria became a state of the new Commonwealth of Australia. It is remarkable to consider that the Bar is, in a sense, older than Victoria as an institution and will celebrate its 180^th anniversary this Monday. The Arts & Collections Committee has curated a 180^th Anniversary display on the walkway between Owen Dixon Chambers East and West, which I would commend to members.

1Apr

In Brief

In Brief Issue #1004

Executive Director

I am pleased to announce that the Bar Council has concluded the process for the appointment of a new Executive Director to run the Bar office. We had a very strong field of candidates and anticipate we will be in a position to make a formal announcement next week.

Meeting with the Victorian Attorney-General

26Mar

In Brief

In Brief Issue #1003

Open Justice Pilot Project

19Mar

In Brief

In Brief Issue #1002

I have received correspondence from members regarding last week’s In Brief message, including correspondence that members may have seen in media reports. I am grateful to those who have written to me for taking the time to express their views and concerns. I always welcome feedback from members. I will provide a considered response to the authors of that correspondence shortly.

12Mar

In Brief

In Brief Issue #1001

First, may I thank Senior Vice President Róisín Annesley QC for taking on the authorship of In Brief for its landmark 1000th edition last week. Reading the original edition illustrates that some issues are perennial, such as fees and Chambers accommodation. Nonetheless, it is clear that the Bar is now a very different place from 1992, the discussion about mutual recognition being a case in point.

5Mar

In Brief

In Brief Issue #1000

This is the 1000th edition of In Brief! The first edition was issued to members on 1 December 1992 – I include it here for your interest. Whilst the format and the manner of delivery have changed, the purpose of In Brief remains the same. Perhaps not surprisingly, many of the issues raised in the 1st edition – independence of the judiciary, funding for legal aid, Chambers accommodation and conduct issues – are still current. Notable is the author's prediction of 'court-ordered mediation at a level not previously seen'!

26Feb

In Brief

In Brief Issue #999

Members may have seen an advertisement in the weekend paper for the position of Executive Director of the Bar office. Both the title and some of the functions of the person we will engage in running the administrative side of the Bar have changed. The changes are in line with the current Bar Council's view that the Bar Council and Bar office's respective functions needed to be differently and better delineated. We hope to complete the process of engaging a new person for this role in the next few weeks and will advise members accordingly.

19Feb

In Brief

In Brief Issue #998

Thankfully, we have emerged from the recent lockdown on schedule and the Courts and Chambers have reopened. Online hearings largely continued uninterrupted.

Bar Council

12Feb

In Brief

In Brief Issue #997

As previously indicated, the Bar Council met last Saturday, 6 February for a strategy day to discuss a range of issues which have and will affect our practices and the operation of the Bar. It was a very useful exercise, conducted in good spirit. Hopefully, the fruits of the day will become apparent to members in the near future.