Make a Report about Sexual Harassment
On this page
How to make a report about sexual harassment
Make a report about sexual harassment you experienced or witnessed in the legal profession here:
The sexual harassment reporting tool, developed by Elker, is a safe space to report sexual harassment experienced or witnessed in the legal profession, with the option of anonymity.
The Elker portal is available online 24 hours a day, 7 days per week. You can remain completely anonymous while making your report. While anonymous, you can communicate with the LPBT Response Team by encrypted 2-way chat. Read more about the Elker portal here.
Please indicate if you have any requirements or preferences in relation to communication, including whether you require an interpreter.
You can contact the LPBT Response Team by:
- Calling us on (03) 6226 3000 and requesting to speak to a member of the LPBT Response Team
- Emailing harassmentcomplaints@lpbt.com.au
- Logging a report using the Elker reporting tool
More about making a report or complaint of sexual harassment
The Board has a dedicated team who have received specialised training, to support reporting of sexual harassment.
The LPBT Response Team are responsible for receiving and handling all reports and complaints of sexual harassment.
Informal Report
You can make an informal report via the Elker portal here
The portal will log your matter, provide you with some preliminary information, connect you to the LPBT
Response Team and provide you with a mechanism for checking on your matter’s progress.
A report is not considered a formal complaint, however, making an informal report does not prevent a person from making a formal complaint at a later time.
The Elker portal is designed to make reporting incidents of harassment easier. Some key benefits
and features of the Elker portal are:
- A reporter can remain anonymous throughout the process or provide contact details.
- There is a ‘quick exit’ button within the reporting tool that allows a reporter to quickly leave the site if they are concerned about someone looking over their shoulder.
- A list of support services is provided for assistance or support.
- A reporter can select whether they want to be contacted or not, and their preferred method of communication.
- Anyone can make a report; either the person who experienced the harassment or a third party or witness.
- There is a free text area where a reporter can provide as much or as little information as they want.
While we will not be able to investigate your specific incident, we will be able to track and monitor incidents. The information disclosed in informal reports helps alert the Board to sexual harassment occurring within the Tasmanian legal profession. Your report may help inform education and training or help us monitor hot spots of harassment.
Formal Complaint
You can also make a formal complaint against a practitioner, which is managed by the team via our regular complaints process, via our online complaints form:
If you are not sure which pathway is right for you, you can speak confidentially to one of our Response Team Members to understand more about the process.
If you decide to make a complaint to the Board you must put your complaint in writing.
Once you have lodged a complaint with the Board, the information you have provided will normally be sent to the lawyer concerned and they will respond to your complaint. If the Board thinks that the conduct of the lawyer may amount to either unsatisfactory professional conduct or professional misconduct, it will appoint an investigator.
Resources
The Board have developed a number of resources which provide information about sexual harassment and what you might consider doing if you are experiencing or witnessing sexual harassment:
Guide for people experiencing sexual harassment
Guide for people witnessing sexual harassment
FAQs – making a report or complaint of sexual harassment to the Board
Fact Sheet – Sexual Harassment
Case Study
Amy is a junior solicitor at a law practice. She called to discuss her experience of sexual harassment perpetrated by a male barrister who the law practice regularly briefs. The behaviour involved persistent invites to after work drinks and sexually suggestive comments and jokes.
Amy has not only been the recipient of the behaviour but has also witnessed it against others. When she raised the behaviour with one of the managing partners, his response was to remove the file from her and allocate it to a male solicitor. One of the female partners is aware of the barrister’s behaviour so refuses to brief him but the law practice continues to do so.
Amy is fearful to report the behaviour formally, as she is concerned about her reputation and the effect it may have on her career.
Learn more about how your data is protected when using Elker here.
