CENTRAL QUEENSLAND LAW ASSOCIATION DINNER TO CELEBRATE THE CENTENARY OF THE FIRST CENTRAL JUDGE
The Hon Sir Gerard Brennan, AC KBE Chief Justice of Australia
1 December 1995
Rockhampton, Q
I am delighted and honoured to be invited to propose a toast
to the Central Judges. Apart from the fact that my father was
the longest serving Central Judge - whose record will be eclipsed
by Mr. Justice Demack if Rockhampton is fortunate to retain
him here - I have known six of the 9 Judges who have served
in that capacity and this toast gives me an opportunity to say
something about the importance of the Central Judiciary to the
community whom it serves. 1. Mr. Justice Power 1895-1910 2. Mr. Justice Lukin 1910-1922 3. Mr. Justice Jameson 1922 (April-December) 4. Sir James Blair 1922-1925 5. Mr. Justice Brennan 1925-1947 6. Sir Joseph Sheehy 1947-1965 7. Mr. Justice D.M. Campbell 1965-1973 8. Mr. Justice Kelly 1973-1978 9. Mr. Justice Demack 1978-
Tonight's celebration of 100 years of judicial service in the
Central District is an occasion for tribute to those who have
rendered that service. It was not always easy. The Central Judges
were judicially isolated and, even with today's ease of transport
and communication, there is still a significant separation of
the Judge from both his peers and, of necessity, from the community
which he serves. It is an occasion for thanksgiving for the
services of all the Judges who have served as Judges in the
Central District, whether as the Central Judge of the Supreme
Court or as a resident Judge of the District Court. In particular
this evening we pay a tribute to those Judges present who are
serving or have served in those capacities.
But the occasion is also an instruction about the society in
which we live and the future of this country for which we hope.
Oftentimes, a reference to our society or our future is taken
as a reference to some passing political policy or political
aspiration. But when we speak about our society or our future
in the context of the judicial branch of government, we are
speaking about something far more fundamental and, we hope,
more enduring. We are speaking about the rule of law.
The rule of a uniform law, uniformly applied, is the legacy
of 800 years of legal history. In the second half of the twelfth
century, when Henry II put the practice of the local administration
of justice on a firm footing and subjected the local interests
of the Crown to judicial procedure, his reforms, says Holdsworth 1 -
- "tended to strengthen the belief... that the maintenance
of a supreme law was the great aim of government. It is
a belief which is a condition precedent for the stability
of any sort of constitutional government".
Henry's reforms -
- "caused the idea of the supremacy of the law to
be no mere technicality of the lawyers or abstraction of
the philosophers, but an article in the political creed,
and a apart of the political instinct of all Englishmen."
These were the sentiments expressed by T.J. Byrnes, the Attorney
General who, in introducing the Bill which led to the Act creating
the Central District and the office of Central Judge said this 2 :
- "[T]here is no subject of greater importance to
the people of any civilised nation than the constitution
of the tribunals which have ultimately to decide on the
highest rights of the people."
The 1895 Act which created the office of Central Judge did not
command the universal support of the Legislative Assembly. The
Northern District lost one of its two Judges to Rockhampton
and that loss was the subject of considerable debate. But the
argument from Central Queensland, eloquently put by Mr. Curtis
(then member for Rockhampton) was that 3 -
- "Central Queensland is in a far more advanced position
in every way than Moreton Bay was at the time of separation...
and yet immediately after separation Moreton Bay had two
judges. The population of Central Queensland is more than
twice the population Moreton Bay had in those days, and
its revenue is five or six times as much and I contend that
the Central division, by reason of its extent of territory,
its resources, its population, its revenue, its export and
import trade, is in every way entitled to a resident judge
at Rockhampton."
That argument carried the day. Tonight it is worth reflecting
on the reasons why the office of Central Judge was created.
A large territory, the demands of industry and commerce which
cannot be carried on except in the environment of the rule of
law, a significant population whose peace, security and relationships
cannot be assured except by the rule of law, public revenue
which cannot be efficiently raised and the administration of
government which cannot be adequately controlled except by the
rule of law. We have become so accustomed to the rule of law
in our peaceful society that we are as unaware of the mechanisms
for sustaining it as we are unaware of the air we breathe. If
there were no judges to enforce the rule of law, competently
and impartially and, let it not be overlooked, if there were
no lawyers who advised on and applied the rule of law in the
daily work of their chambers and offices, we would not have
the society we value and future generations would have to begin
again the upward path from savagery.
The rule of law is not maintained by force; it is maintained
by confidence. For 100 years, that confidence has been preserved
by the Central Judges. If it were otherwise, we would not be
here tonight. But we are here tonight, and we give thanks for
the service of the Central Judges who have brought the peace
and order which are essential to our society.
1 |
History of English Law, (7th ed), vol 1, 284. |
2 |
Hansard of the Legislative Assembly of 21 November
1895 p.1744. |
3 |
Hansard of the Legislative Assembly of 5 December 1895
p.1951. |
|