Michael Andrew

Late last year, Auckland-based employment lawyer Shelley Eden received a phone call from a fellow practitioner.

Highly emotional and aggressive, the caller proceeded to berate Eden about the conduct of her client and the unfairness of the case and, as Eden says, “rant and rave” until she could no longer follow the conversation.

The caller finally settled down, but the experience rattled Eden so much that she posted about it on LinkedIn. Within days, her post had gained hundreds of likes and dozens of comments from fellow lawyers sharing similar experiences.

Despite the intensity, Eden says the phone call was not an anomaly. Throughout her career she has had frequent run-ins with confrontational practitioners demonstrating improper and highly emotional behaviour.

“This has occurred ever since I started practice,” she says. “I have had this problem repeatedly with people who just take a really unprofessional approach – whether you call it bullying, whether you call it aggression.

“I think it’s endemic to our profession.”

The law versus the reality

Legislation governs the conduct of legal practitioners through the Lawyers and Conveyancers Act (Lawyers: Conduct and Client Care) Rules 2008. Key requirements mandate that lawyers act with respect, courtesy and honesty towards colleagues, avoid improper or unnecessarily embarrassing conduct and manage conflicts of interest.

However, Eden says the reality of legal practice is far different on the ground, where...

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