No joke, even a wink is sexual harassment among lawyers

 

The inappropriate acts listed in the Bar Council circular include suggestive gestures, and physical contact that makes one uncomfortable. (File pic)

PETALING JAYA: Winking, wolf-whistling and even petting someone on the head constitute sexual harassment, according to a circular issued by the Bar Council last week.

Such acts, including inappropriate comments on one’s appearance – derogatory or otherwise – are among the examples listed in the circular aimed at curbing sexual harassment among the legal fraternity.

Gestures, including those suggestive in nature, or physical contact that makes one uncomfortable, even if done in jest, are also deemed inappropriate.

And while the Bar did not provide any reason for issuing the circular, it is understood to have been prompted by a couple of cases recently.

Meanwhile, threatening or intimidating a colleague for refusing advances would be considered sexual coercion, the Bar said.

“This may include explicit or implicit threats of negative consequences, such as job loss, demotion or damage to one ’s professional reputation, if they reject inappropriate requests,” the circular read.

The Bar Council went on to advise victims to submit complaints of such incidents through its Peer Support Network, which was launched two years ago, and assured complainants of confidentiality.

V Kokila Vaani.

When contacted, the Selangor representative in the Bar Council, V Kokila Vaani, said there have been a few complaints of sexual harassment in the legal profession of late, but most of the victims resorted to lodging police reports and initiating civil suits in a bid to resolve them.

“My view is that even a single case in the legal profession is considered one too many as lawyers are there to protect the people and not harass them.

“So, it’s good for the Bar Council to specify the acts that are considered as sexual harassment, and the reminder circular issued recently is timely,” the former Selangor Bar chief told FMT.

Two years ago, the Bar Council approved a clause in its rules which states that sexual harassment constituted misconduct under Section 94(3) of the Legal Profession Act.

It states that any act of sexual harassment by an advocate and solicitor or a pupil in a professional capacity or in a professional setting amounts to misconduct. - FMT