Trolling over Christian Porter case ‘disturbing’ and ‘sexist’, says lawyer Rebekah Giles

Defamation lawyer Rebekah Giles has opened up about the vicious trolling she received over the Christian Porter case.

Rebekah Giles. Picture: Nick Cubbin

Leading lawyer Rebekah Giles said she was viciously trolled for representing former attorney-general Christian Porter in his defamation action against the ABC.

She said she received endless hate mail that was “highly abusive, often sexist and misogynist”. “There was a disturbing element to that case,” she said.

“It is a fairly recent phenomenon of people ­conflating lawyers with their ­clients – and it should be resisted. It is deeply anti-intellectual.”

She speculated that some of the trolling regarding the Porter case seemed to be motivated by a kind of misplaced feminism – the idea that women shouldn’t bat for the wrong team.

“I’ve always taken my role as a lawyer very seriously, and the right to representation is absolutely fundamental to that,” she said. “Polarising people often need representation the most. For me, it certainly doesn’t rule them out.”

Ms Giles believes a male lawyer would not have been subject to the same level of vitriol over the case. “As a successful female, you have to deal with things that would never happen to men,” she said. “You are sexualised and your sexuality is used as a weapon against you. And it happens in the law all the time.

“Strong female lawyers are seen as aggressive or nasty and are frequently ridiculed. My physical appearance is often linked to descriptions of me professionally. Last week, I received correspondence from someone who had seen me on television suggesting that the way I wear my hair made me look harsh.”

How does she respond? “It’s all white noise,” she said. “The mob always moves on. Ultimately, the best response is to build a successful practice by consistently achieving great results.”