Professor Steven Vaughan, Dean of Law at Monash University, will tell the story of Smith v Fonterra through its lawyers (in-house in government and in industry, in private practice, in NGOs and other third sector organisations), asking what this extraordinary, still-unfolding saga reveals about the Lawyers and Conveyancers Act, a lawyer's overriding duty as an officer of the court, the legal profession's silence, and the place of lawyers in society as products, servants, and agents of the rule of law.

This prestigious annual lecture, established to honour Professor F W Guest, the first full-time Professor and Dean of Otago's Faculty of Law, gathers legal professionals, students, academics, and the public for a thought-provoking discussion. It serves as a key event in the Faculty's calendar, with attendees also including members of Professor Guest’s family, such as his son Jim, now a senior practitioner in Dunedin.