VICTORIAN No. 139 ISSN 0159-3285BAR NEWS SUMMER 2006 Appointment of Senior Counsel Welcomes: Justice Elizabeth Curtain, Judge Anthony Howard, Judge David Parsons, Judge Damien Murphy, Judge Lisa Hannon and Magistrate Frank Turner Farewell: Judge Barton Stott Charles Francis Talks of County Court Judges of Yesteryear Postcard from New York City Bar Welcomes Readers Class of 2006 Milestone for the Victorian Bar 2006–2007 Victorian Bar Council Appointment and Retirement of Barfund Board Directors Celebrating Excellence Retiring Chairman’s Dinner Women’s Legal Service Victoria Celebrates 25 Years Fratricide in Labassa Launch of the Good Conduct Guide Extending the Boundary of Right Council of Legal Education Dinner Women Barristers Association Anniversary Dinner A Cricket Story The Essoign Wine Report A Bit About Words/The King’s English Bar Hockey 3 ���������������������������������� �������������������� VICTORIAN BAR NEWS No. 139 SUMMER 2006 Contents EDITORS’ BACKSHEET 5 Something Lost, Something Gained 6 Appointment of Senior Counsel CHAIRMAN’S CUPBOARD 7 The Bar — What Should We be About? ATTORNEY-GENERAL’S COLUMN 9 Taking the Legal System to Even Stronger Ground Welcome: Justice Welcome: Judge Anthony Welcome: Judge David WELCOMES Elizabeth Curtain Howard Parsons 10 Justice Elizabeth Curtain 11 Judge Anthony Howard 12 Judge David Parsons 13 Judge Damien Murphy 14 Judge Lisa Hannon 15 Magistrate Frank Turner FAREWELL 16 Judge Barton Stott NEWS AND VIEWS 17 Charles Francis Talks of County Court Judges Welcome: Judge Damien Welcome: Judge Lisa Welcome: Federal of Yesteryear Murphy Hannon Magistrate Frank Turner 22 Postcard from New York City 23 Verbatim 24 Bar Welcomes Readers Class of 2006 27 Board of Examiners 28 Milestone for the Victorian Bar Mediation Centre 32 2006–2007 Victorian Bar Council 33 Appointment and Retirement of Barfund Board Directors 34 Celebrating Excellence 37 Retiring Chairman’s Dinner Farwell: Judge Barton Charles Francis Talks of Postcard from New York 40 Women’s Legal Service Victoria Celebrates 25 Stott County Court Judges of City Years Yesteryear 43 Fratricide in Labassa 46 Launch of the Good Conduct Guide 48 Extending the Boundary of Right 56 Conference Updates 57 Council of Legal Education Dinner 59 Women Barristers Association Anniversary Dinner 62 A Cricket Story 64 The Essoign Wine Report 65 A Bit About Words/The King’s English Launch of the Good Celebrating Excellence SPORT/Hockey Conduct Guide 67 Bar Hockey LAWYER’S BOOKSHELF 69 Books Reviewed Cover: Victorian Senior Counsel 2006, photographed on the steps of the Victorian Supreme Court shortly before the ceremonial sitting on Tuesday 5 December 2006 (Anthony John Kelly absent overseas). See text on page 6. Milestone for the Victorian Bar Mediation Centre WBA Anniversary Dinner 3 Victorian Bar Council VICTORIAN BAR COUNCIL Chairs of Standing Committees of the Bar Council for the year 2006/2007 Indigenous Lawyers Committee *Executive Committee G *Golvan S.C., C.D. Clerks: Applications Review Committee A *Shand QC, M.W. (Chairman) G *Digby QC, G.J. D *Riordan S.C., P.J. (Senior Vice-Chairman) Charitable and Sporting Donations Committee G *Lacava S.C., P.G. (Junior Vice-Chairman) D *Riordan S.C., P.J. G *Colbran QC, M.J. (Honorary Treasurer) Conciliators for Sexual Harassment and Vilification D Alstergren W. (Assistant Honorary Treasurer) B *Curtain QC, D.E. D *Fajgenbaum QC, J.I. G *Digby QC, G.J. Counsel Committee A Pagone QC, T. G *Colbran QC, M.J. H Tobin S.C., T. Editorial Committee for In Brief and Website News D *McLeod S.C., F.M. Section H McGarvie S.C., R. D *McLeod S.C., Ms F.M. W *Neal S.C., D.J. Equality Before the Law Committee G *Judd, K.E. A *Richards QC, Ms A. D Moshinsky M. L Hannebery, P.J. Ethics Committee R *Fairfield, C.G. G *Lacava S.C., P.G. D *Shaw, C.E. Human Rights Committee G *Anderson, K.J.D. D *Fajgenbaum QC, J.I. D Burns A. Legal Assistance Committee R Harrison D. A *Macaw QC, R.C. B Sharpe Ms, M. Readers’ Course Committee G *Neskovcin Ms, P.A. (Honorary Secretary) B *Hill QC, I.D. B Pitt S. (Assistant Honorary Secretary) Continuing Legal Education Committee Ethics Committee G *Gordon S.C., Ms M.M. G *Lacava S.C., P.G. (Chair) New Barristers’ Standing Committee H *Merralls AM, QC, J.D. G *Bingham, Ms S.L. C *Meagher ED, QC, D.R. S *Willee RFD, QC, P.A. Past Practising Chairmen’s Committee S *Lally QC, W.F. F *Costigan QC, F.X. S Santamaria QC, J. Professional Indemnity Insurance Committee F *Gobbo QC, J.H. H *McGarvie S.C., R. A Manly S.C., R. Professional Standards Education Committee D Davies S.C., J. S *Willee RFD, QC, P.A. P *Williams, I.S. Victorian Bar Dispute Resolution Committee D *Kirton. Ms C.E. C *Maxted R. F *Shiff, Ms P.L. D Moshinsky M. D *Duggan, Ms A.E. D Shaw C. VICTORIAN BAR NEWS Paul Duggan, John Stevens, Richard Printed by: Impact Printing Editors Brear and Peter Lithgow (Book 69–79 Fallon Street, Gerard Nash QC, Paul Elliott QC and Reviews) Brunswick Vic. 3056 Judy Benson David Johns (Photography) This publication may be cited as Editorial Board Published by The Victorian Bar Inc. (2006) 139 Vic B.N. Julian Burnside QC Owen Dixon Chambers, Graeme Thompson 205 William Street, Melbourne 3000. Advertising Publications Management Pty Ltd Editorial Consultant Registration No. A 0034304 S 38 Essex Road, Surrey Hills, David Wilken Opinions expressed are not necessarily Victoria 3127 Editorial Committee those of the Bar Council or the Bar or Telephone: (03) 9888 5977 John Kaufman QC, William F. Gillies, of any person other than the author. Facsimile: (03) 9888 5919 Carolyn Sparke, Georgina Schoff, E-mail: [email protected] 4 5 Editors’ Backsheet Something Lost, Something Gained S summer approaches and simul- taneously the calendar year draws Ato a close, it is timely to review our collective report card for 2006 before the new year with all its myriad problems has to be dealt with. How have we fared as a profession? What remains to be done? Have we achieved closure where it was meet and right to do so or is there still unfinished business? LOST CONFIDENCE? One challenging perspective was pro- vided by the Reverend Tim Costello, chief executive of World Vision, when he posed the question “Have Lawyers Lost Their Confidence?” Speaking at a breakfast at the Essoign Club in October, jointly sponsored by the Melbourne Catholic Lawyers Association and the Christian Lawyers Society at which about 100 solici- tors and barristers attended, Reverend Costello drew on the biblical story of the life in order to answer the big questions. In concluding, the speaker exhorted young lawyer who, living in a Civil Code Similarly the law — which deals princi- lawyers to seek out that authenticity society and yet steeped in deeply religious pally with relationships with each other which demonstrated that they cared theocratic Mosaic law, asked what he had — has much to teach by way of analogy about their neighbours — whether each to do to inherit eternal life. Although it about faith and relationships with the other as colleagues, or clients, or the was a spiritual question it emanated from spiritual. Further, any sort of relationship greater system they served. the law surrounding that young man in between humankind and their God was In echoes of that sentiment, the his daily life and practice. In the ensuing impossible without meaningful and rich President of the Court of Appeal, Justice dialogue with Jesus, he was asked what relationships with each other, whether Chris Maxwell, presiding at admissions the law taught on the point. “Love the this be on the personal, professional, soci- ceremonies in November for new entrants Lord your God, and love your neighbour etal, national or sovereign plane. as officers, barristers and solicitors of the as yourself,” he replied. “Then go and do Reverend Costello went on to draw a Supreme Court of Victoria, bestowed on likewise. But the lawyer persisted and, parallel between the position of Islam in the enthusiastic throng in the Banco Court seeking to justify himself, asked “who is the contemporary world and the concept some words of wisdom. He invited the my neighbour?” There follows one of the of the separation of Church and State, recent admissions in particular to try to most famous parables in all of the Bible, which was still a novel concept in the remember in future years why essentially arguably in literature: the story of the early twentieth century. For much of the they had chosen to enter the profession Good Samaritan. This very story became past 2000 years (he said) religion had of being a lawyer in the first place; and one of the central ideas in the speech of been poured onto disputes like “oil onto he encouraged them to engage in ‘activ- Lord Atkins in Donoghue v Stevenson fire”, whether those disputes centred on ism’, not in the narrowly party political or [1932] AC 562 when the English House land, resources or opportunities. The law demagoguery sense of that expression, of Lords laid down the principles of the enabled those disputes to flourish (as but in the sense of committing themselves law of negligence in tort, finding a new Dickens expanded upon in Bleak House), to ‘making a difference’. While clearly this duty which arose not from contractual to an inter-generational art form. While is excellent advice at any time, and above relations but in terms of an intrinsic rela- it took the West two millennia to resolve all inspiring to hear on the day of one’s tionship between those bound together by that tension, Islam has only just embarked admission to an ancient and honourable the owing of duty and those to whom it is on that same quest, and so it follows that profession, it was also something of a owed.