A Criminal Bar Association survey is suggesting nearly nine in 10 New Zealand criminal lawyers say they've seen or been the victim of harassment or bullying at work.
Chief Justice, Dame Sian Elias, has responded to the survey, saying she expects all judges to deal with litigants, witnesses and counsel with respect and courtesy.
"Bullying of counsel is not acceptable. That is made clear in the Guidelines for Judicial Conduct. If it is occurring I and the heads of the bench want to know about it and we want to stop it," she said.
"If proper standards are not observed, I encourage those who are affected or who have observed such behaviour to raise their concerns with the head of bench or with me or to make a complaint to the Independent Judicial Conduct Commissioner," Dame Sian said.
She says she will be discussing the findings from the survey with the Criminal Bar Association to determine what steps should be taken.
The survey of 300 anonymous lawyers found more than a quarter who witnessed problems reported seeing sexual harassment.
The release of the results came after revelations about complaints of sexual misconduct against lawyers at top law firm Russell McVeagh and subsequent protests.
About 89 per cent of those taking the survey said they had "personally experienced or witnessed" harassment or bullying, with 28 per cent of those having seen unwelcomed sexual attention and 27 per cent describing "threats".
More than half said they had seen shouting, and 46 per cent witnessed harassment based on gender.
But the survey also found fewer than 17 per cent of the participants made an official compliant, with only about seven per cent saying they thought it had fixed the problem.
Former Lawyer Olivia Wensley today told Three's the Nation that the size of New Zealand's law industry made it hard to openly make complaints.
"The legal profession is small in New Zealand. There are grave implications professionally for speaking out," she said.
Judges in particular were singled out by the survey's respondents.
About 65 per cent of respondents who had seen harassment or bullying said they had witnessed a judge do it, compared to 43 per cent who pointed the finger at colleagues, 33 per cent at opposing consul and 31 per cent at clients.
SHARE ME