Olivia Wensley

Olivia Wensley (born 25 April 1985) is a former litigation lawyer and New Zealand #MeToo advocate.[1] She is the Chief Executive Officer of Startup Queenstown Lakes.[2] Wensley has inspired hundreds to share their sexual harassment stories[3] and has been credited with being a catalyst of the #MeToo movement in New Zealand.[4]

Olivia B M Wensley
Born (1985-04-25) 25 April 1985
New Zealand
EducationBachelor of Laws
Alma materUniversity of Canterbury, University of Waikato
OccupationCEO
OrganizationStartup Queenstown Lakes
Known forMeToo Activism

Biography

Wensley studied law at the University of Canterbury and the University of Waikato, and worked as a lawyer in New Zealand, Australia and Singapore.[5]

On 28 February 2018, Wensley published a piece on LinkedIn titled We Need to Talk About Law's Dirty Little Secret, which was re-published by Stuff.co.nz.[6] The article described sexual harassment Wensley had experienced at law firms; it quickly went viral and attracted international media attention.[7][8] In speaking out, Wensley helped uncover other women's stories of rape, assault and harassment in the legal profession.[9]

Wensley has been a vocal critic of the New Zealand Law Society's handling of the Russell McVeagh scandal, where it has been alleged that multiple interns were sexually assaulted and harassed during the summer of 2016/2017 - causing national outrage.[10][11] Wensley has called for stronger sanctions against sexual offenders in the legal profession.[12]

In March 2018, Wensley met with the New Zealand Minister of Justice, Andrew Little[13] who has supported Wensley's call for wider reformation of workplace harassment law in New Zealand.[14]

In 2019 Wensley was nominated for New Zealander of the Year.[15]

References
  1. "Michelle Duff: The five women who brought a firm to its knees". Stuff. Retrieved 18 July 2019.
  2. "Lift Off - New Startup CEO locked on success". Crux. Retrieved 28 February 2020.
  3. "Law's dirty little secret is exposed. What next?". Otago Daily Times Online News. 25 March 2018. Retrieved 18 July 2019.
  4. "#Metoo and the need for a lawyers' union". Stuff. Retrieved 18 July 2019.
  5. "Law firm 'like a frat house': former employee". Otago Daily Times Online News. 1 March 2018. Retrieved 14 September 2019.
  6. "We need to talk about law's dirty little secret". Stuff. Retrieved 18 July 2019.
  7. "Culture Shift Conference 2018". www.workplacebullying.org. Retrieved 18 July 2019.
  8. "Law firm slammed: 'It was like a frat house'". NewsComAu. 28 February 2018. Retrieved 18 July 2019.
  9. "Otago law students not ready to forgive Russell McVeagh". Stuff. Retrieved 18 July 2019.
  10. "Widespread harassment being 'swept under the carpet' - former lawyer Olivia Wensley". Newshub. 27 March 2018. Retrieved 18 July 2019.
  11. "What Russell McVeagh told its summer clerks". Newsroom. 13 March 2018. Retrieved 18 July 2019.
  12. "Law firm partner fined $12,500 for sexually harassing staff". Stuff. Retrieved 18 July 2019.
  13. "Unacceptable culture and conduct". The Beehive. Retrieved 18 July 2019.
  14. "Andrew Little reaffirms commitment to tackling workplace harassment". Newshub. 28 March 2018. Retrieved 18 July 2019.
  15. Friday; September 2018, 7; Zeal, 10:16 am Press Release: New; Awards, er Of The Year. "2019 New Zealander of the Year Awards Update | Scoop News". www.scoop.co.nz. Retrieved 18 July 2019.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.