I have a claim to fame. I am related in some rather distant way to TS Elliot. When I was in my teens I went to visit Aunt Abigail in Concord Massachusetts and met the Elliot family although Elliot himself had moved to the UK many years earlier and died a few years before my visit. I only mention this because I have just seen for the first time the Biopic film, a Quiet Passion about the life of Emily Dickinson in New England who is regarded as the most prominent female poets in the English language. She was a remarkable woman who embraced equality with men in the same uncompromising way that she dealt with many things in her repressed and claustrophobic life. 

One scene in the film particularly resonated with me. Emily was taking issue with her brother Austin, a married man, who had an affair with a married woman. Austin indicated that whilst such behaviour was excusable in him, it would be unforgiveable for his own wife to behave in such a way. Emily admonished him for his double standards and then asked him to imagine being a woman for just a short period of time to see if he, Austin could suffer it.

Society has come a long way since 1850’s but we are reminded that is was only 100 years ago that only some women first obtained the right to vote in the UK; and then only after a sustained campaign and following the social changes brought about by the First World War. Even today, equality of opportunity is still a long way off and inequality of pay is an endemic and intractable fact which is proving very difficult to shift as the news of Carrie Gracie’s resignation from her role as Foreign Affairs Editor for China with the BBC shows. Iceland has just become the first Nation to make payment of differential rates of pay to men and women a criminal offence and we wait to assess its impact. 

Male behaviour, which asserts the right to act inappropriately towards women, is being exposed left right and centre in the world of celebrity and politics. The Golden Globe ceremony in LA last night shows the depth of feeling about this issue in the entertainment world.  A substantial proportion of women still report unacceptable behaviour in the work place. It was good to see that even in Alabama, Judge Moore didn’t quite make it to the Senate after allegations of inappropriate conduct although the President himself was elected despite similar accusations and that is worrying.

The Criminal Justice system is another area of concern. Theodore Johnson who had killed two girlfriends was freed from a secure unit and given the opportunity to kill a third partner.  It’s hard to imagine how a woman might have been released in similar circumstances.

There is no doubt that the ethos of an organisation is set by its leadership. Intolerance of any misbehaviour sets a tone which is difficult for people to traverse. I hope our business is one in which we exhibit equality and respect towards all our workforce but we have to be always on our guard to ensure that inappropriate attitudes are not tolerated in any circumstance. Having a mixed gender Board is very important.

The law plays an important part in ensuring that equality and diversity are values that are upheld by our legal system. Despite its flaws, our legal system is an appropriate means to ensure fair treatment.  I am glad that we play our part as a law firm in ensuring that justice can still prevail when all else fails. We still have a long way to go before Emily Dickinson can rest easily in her grave.