The Victorian Bar Council has revealed it accessed the email accounts of barristers as part of an investigation into a homophobic notice posted in a Melbourne law chamber. The notice, which appeared on 10 August 2022 in the lifts of Owen Dixon Chambers East, was written under the bar's letterhead and referenced a spoof committee seeking new members but stating that 'white, male heterosexuals' need not apply.
In a statement sent to barristers on Tuesday, bar president Sam Hay KC said the council used software to search for the term 'LGBTQMS'—the acronym used in the notice, with 'MS' standing for 'mud screwers'. The search returned several hits, most of which were disregarded, but approximately 10 emails were identified as relevant. A council employee reviewed the subject lines of those emails and opened one.
The investigation identified the person allegedly responsible for the notice. However, Hay assured members that such access would not occur again unless authorised by law, and that the council is reviewing its privacy and information management policies. 'There is now a very clear and shared understanding between the bar council and the Victorian Bar that the electronic environments used by members are to be maintained in the strictest confidence,' Hay said.
The notice called for nominations to the spoof 'LGBTQMS' review committee, claiming that members of minority groups had expressed concerns about briefs not being 'disproportionately directed to them'. It stated that membership was open to barristers of more than ten years' call who fell into at least one of the categories represented by the acronym, thus excluding 'white, male heterosexuals'. The previous bar council president, Róisín Annesley KC, condemned the notice and said a complaint had been made to the Legal Services Commissioner.
