“If liberty means anything at all, it means the right to tell people what they do not want to hear.” – George Orwell (1903 – 1950), English Author and Journalist



OUR BEGINNINGS
In October 2021, a coalition of eight lawyers and a lone journalist—all united by a shared resolve—met with a U.S.-based documentary producer crafting an exposé on the turbulent history of Australia’s legal and judicial system. His lens zeroed in on the entrenched collegium mindset, a pervasive force deeply embedded within the nation’s courts, most notably in Queensland, New South Wales, and Western Australia.
What began as a series of discussions stretched into late 2022, fueled by the producer’s research and the relentless contributions of this small but formidable group. Among them, the journalist—a lawyer herself and the only woman present—stood as a singular voice, amplifying the call for scrutiny. Their collective efforts sparked broader inquiries and investigations into the conduct of legal professionals across every Australian state and territory.
END THE SELF GOVERNING LAW SOCIETIES, BAR COUNCILS AND LEGAL SERVICES COMMISSIONS
Australia’s justice system, by all accounts, is shackled to a collegium framework that has gutted the checks and balances essential to any civilized society. It is a system rife with nepotism, skewed by biases of race, gender, and religion, and engineered to favor a privileged elite: graduates of private schools, the progeny of judges and politicians—predominantly white, Anglo-Saxon, and male.
The women’s rights movement has, over decades, clawed through some of these barriers, though critics argue this progress owes much to a handful of privileged women joining the fray against the old boys’ club, many becoming like them in the process. Yet, the legal profession remains a self-serving, self-regulating fortress of entitlement, unaccountable to any external authority. It elevates those of the same social pedigree—private school educated, university-polished, and pedigreed—while governments, complicit or cowed, turn a blind eye to the state of decay in the legal system and those empowered to check its excesses..
Historians trace this rot back to the revolutionary tenure of Edward Gough Whitlam, whose appointee, Attorney-General and High Court Justice Lionel Murphy, became a lightning rod for exposing corruption. Murphy’s misconduct unraveled to a point where only death spared him the ignominy of disgraceful removal. He was neither the first nor the last.
A LONG HISTRY OF CORRUPTION AND SUBTERFUGE PROTECTED BY LOFTY CONSTITUTIONAL DOCTRINES
Sir Owen Dixon, celebrated jurist, High Court judge, and former Australian Ambassador to the UN, was later unmasked as less than honorable—ghostwriting dissenting judgments for colleagues in a betrayal of judicial integrity. Yet, to this day, Australian silks and judges venerate Dixon’s words as if they were sacred scripture, ignoring the stain on his legacy. He was not alone it this regard. His conduct of dishonesty and subterfuge remains deeply entrenched in an unaccountable judiciary, protected by the constitutional doctrines of judicial independence and the separation of powers.
In a revelation that continues to cast a long, dark shadow over Australia’s legal elite, it has emerged that Dyson Heydon—once a revered then disgraced Justice of the High Court—engaged in a pattern of sexual harassment against women working under his authority. Worse still, his peers, including then-Chief Justice Murray Gleeson and High Court, Judge Michael McHugh, were fully aware of his predatory behavior. Yet they chose silence over accountability. This wasn’t mere ignorance; it was a calculated betrayal of trust, a quiet complicity that protected a powerful man at the expense of his victims.
THE SCANDLOUS CONDUCT OF SELF GOVERNING, SELF SERVING LAW SOCIETIES
The stain of this scandal deepens with every new detail. Adding insult to injury, the New South Wales Law Society recently rolled out the red carpet for Heydon, granting him unrestricted access to their prestigious resources library to aid in the preparation of his latest book. Not content with merely enabling him, they went further—shamelessly promoting the publication as if his legacy were untarnished, as if the voices of his victims were footnotes to be ignored. This is not just tone-deaf; it’s a slap in the face to every woman and Australian denied justice, who endured his misconduct and to every Australian who expects integrity from those who shape our justice system.
As of March 2025, the courts and government remain eerily silent, their inaction roaring louder than any statement could. This deafening quiet isn’t neutrality—it’s cowardice, a refusal to confront a systemic failure that implicates not just Heydon, but the very institutions meant to uphold fairness and protect the vulnerable. The message is clear: power shields its own, and justice, it seems, is negotiable when the offender wears a robe. How long will this disgrace be allowed to fester before someone—anyone—in authority demands accountability?
The scandals multiply. Lawyers flout norms of justice and fairness—fraternizing with judges over golf games, weekend soirées, private yachts, and holiday retreats, openly discussing cases still under adjudication. Courts, fully aware of this misconduct, shield the worst offenders, perpetuating a culture of impunity. The list of transgressions grows: threats from lawyers, law societies, and judges against those who dare challenge the system are no longer rare—they’re routine. For solicitors and barristers bold enough to confront their own, the financial toll is crushing, and ostracism is all but guaranteed.
A HONORABLE AND PERHAPS FOR SOME THE ONLY WAY OUT
In late 2021, Family Court Justice Guy Andrews took his own life amid an impending inquiry into numerous, serious allegations of bullying, threats, harassment, and judicial misconduct leveled against him by barristers, solicitors, and clients. That same year, despite mounting evidence of corruption within the Family Court—including a groundbreaking lawsuit against sitting Family Court judge Salvatore Vasta— then LCA President, Dr. Jacoba Brasch QC inspite of the evidencce defended the judiciary, arguing that media reports of corruption eroded public trust in the courts and the rule of law.
From this crucible, we emerged in 2022. Our first publication reached over three million readers worldwide, a clarion call silenced only by a sophisticated hack in mid-2024. Now, we rise again—with sharper resolve and fiercer purpose. The fight against this unaccountable bastion of privilege is far from over. We are back, and we are unrelenting.
Edgar Ryan