There's a campaign to change all of Victoria's legislation to make it more gender neutral.
At the moment, the word 'he' is used in legal terminology to signifies all genders. However Bonnie Logan, a Monash University student, wants that adjusted from 'he' to 'the person' or 'they'.
Speaking with The Age, the 23-year-old law student was annoyed at seeing constant male references in legal wording.
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"It has bugged me the whole way along. You're sitting there studying and it's 'he' this and 'he' that: 'The police officer, if he believes etc.' It's an easy thing to change this; it would require one bill," she said.
"We can't expect to shift attitudes and beliefs if one of the most important texts within our society is gender-specific.
"It is important to recognise the power of language. In this context, it confirms the problematic notion that 'he' is the norm, and we have to work around that or apply special interpretation to be considered."
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Ms Logan has been trying to organise a meeting with Victorian Attorney-General Jaclyn Symes to convince her to switch up the legislation wording.
Her attempts have so far fallen on deaf ears so she went through the avenue that gets more attention these days: an online petition.
Bonnie's Change.org campaign has racked up hundreds of signatures since she launched it three weeks ago.
In the petition, Ms Logan said: "Many people will argue it won't make a difference to important issues such as equal pay, violence against women, discrimination against women in minority communities etc. I agree that these are pressing issues, they are of upmost importance to me also.
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"I feel that these problems are built on a society which once thought women or those who do not identify as women were not of enough value to reference in the texts of the law.
"I believe the attitudes that are subconsciously perpetuated by structures such as the text of the law, are one of the core reasons these issues are generated. For me, sitting in law school or working as an electoral officer and reading this everyday was, and is deflating and disempowering, I have also seen firsthand the effect that it has on men who see it as confirmation of their superiority."
She hopes that if legislation is changed women will be more empowered under the eyes of the law.
Ms Symes told The Age she plans to respond to Ms Logan soon and a meeting could happen with her or one of her advisors.
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"We will continue to look at ways to modernise our legislation and justice system to ensure it is inclusive for all Victorians regardless of their gender," she said.
Featured Image Credit: PATopics: Australia