The ethical infrastructure of legal practice in larger law firms: values, policy and behaviour

The article examines the impact of the cultures and organisational structures of large law firms on individual lawyers' ethics. The paper suggests that large law firms in Australia should consciously design and implement 'ethical infrastructures' to both counteract pressures for misbehaviour and positively promote ethical behaviour and discussion. The paper goes on to explain what implementing ethical infrastructures in law firms could and should mean by reference to what Australian law firms are already doing and US innovations in this area. Finally, the paper warns that the 'ethical infrastructure' of a firm should not be seen merely as the formal ethics policies explicitly enunciated by management. Formal and legalistic ethical infrastructures that fail to support or encourage the development of individual lawyers' awareness oftheir own ethical values and ethical judgment in practice will be useless

Monitor, strategist, resource-gatherer or colleague? : regulating the independent director.

The independent director who comes in from outside to sit on the corporate board has become a feature of Australian corporate governance. These directors are seen as a solution to a number of corporate governance problems. This thesis examines the theory and regulation surrounding the independent director. The examination begins with the concept of independence. Regulation in Australia, and elsewhere, constructs independence criteria based on the idea that independence flows from the construction of extrinsic, structural barriers that prevent certain relationships. This is useful in establishing the legitimacy of the corporation's governance arrangements, but does not sit well with the idea that these directors should make a substantive contribution to the board decision-making. This thesis argues therefore that the concept of independence should be expanded to recognise a deeper form of independence, independence of mind. The thesis proposes four 'ideal types' of independent directors that promote independence of mind. These are the Monitor, who monitors management and performance; the Strategist, who provides advice; the Resource-Gatherer, who links the corporation to external resources; and the Colleague, who promotes collegiality within the board, and with management. These are investigated through the use of case study analysis and semi-structured interviews (n=10) in order to examine the extent to which they reflect the way directors work. Finally the thesis makes recommendations about how the existing 'soft law' regulation can be, and should be, amended to provide a clear and compelling vision of the independent director for the future

Monitor, strategist, resource-gatherer or colleague? : regulating the independent director.

The independent director who comes in from outside to sit on the corporate board has become a feature of Australian corporate governance. These directors are seen as a solution to a number of corporate governance problems. This thesis examines the theory and regulation surrounding the independent director. The examination begins with the concept of independence. Regulation in Australia, and elsewhere, constructs independence criteria based on the idea that independence flows from the construction of extrinsic, structural barriers that prevent certain relationships. This is useful in establishing the legitimacy of the corporation's governance arrangements, but does not sit well with the idea that these directors should make a substantive contribution to the board decision-making. This thesis argues therefore that the concept of independence should be expanded to recognise a deeper form of independence, independence of mind. The thesis proposes four 'ideal types' of independent directors that promote independence of mind. These are the Monitor, who monitors management and performance; the Strategist, who provides advice; the Resource-Gatherer, who links the corporation to external resources; and the Colleague, who promotes collegiality within the board, and with management. These are investigated through the use of case study analysis and semi-structured interviews (n=10) in order to examine the extent to which they reflect the way directors work. Finally the thesis makes recommendations about how the existing 'soft law' regulation can be, and should be, amended to provide a clear and compelling vision of the independent director for the future

A company ID: corporate governance

The independent director is hailed as a tool to monitor and improve corporate management and decision making. This role is premised on the belief that directors who are independent of a corporation can be faithful guardians of its interests. However, powerful group influences can sully this, write Kath Hall and Suzanne Le Mire

Judicial conduct: crafting a system that enhances institutional integrity

This article proffers an alternative system for handling complaints about the judiciary, tailored to fit within Australia\u27s constitutional constraints whilst promoting the institutional integrity of the judiciary. Abstract Judges are human. It is their humanity that allows them to pass judgement on the complexities of fact and law in cases before them. However, their humanity also means they are subject to the usual gamut of human frailties. Problematic judicial conduct remains rare in Australia. However, failing to acknowledge and address it has the potential to damage the integrity of the courts and undermine the ability of individual judges to fulfil the judicial function. In this article we examine the requirements for a ‘good’ complaints system through a comparative analysis of systems operating in Australia and overseas. We proffer an alternative system for Australia, tailored to fit within our constitutional constraints whilst promoting the institutional integrity of the judiciary