DOCSLIB.ORG

John Walpole Willis, Colonial Judge, Reconsidered

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text

Load more

BOOK REVIEWS 'Australia’s Constitutional Government' Power’ includes a chapter on the powers the Whitlam Government, and whether it of the Constitution. It also includes of the Governor-General with reference was right for the governor-general to have fascinating insights into the historical and to the double dissolution of 1975. It secretly sought the advice of the chief contemporary workings of Australian provides an overview of 11 principle justice of the High Court, Sir Garfield federalism. I think it would be a criticisms of Sir John Kerr’s decision, Barwick, and Justice Sir Anthony Mason worthwhile book for law students and a ranging from whether the governor- (and whether they should have given it). very worthy, enjoyable, and provocative general ignored a convention that the The chapter is fascinating. read for practitioners. Senate not reject appropriation bills This book is not a Constitutional law Review by Charles Gregory essential to ordinary annual services of the textbook, but it includes thorough legal government, to whether the governor- analysis on the most important aspects general had the reserve power to dismiss I Like a Clamour: John Walpole Willis, Colonial Judge, Reconsidered By Max Bonnell | The Federation Press | 2017 world. But with the launch of his latest position themselves on either side of the book, he takes the next logical step in his battlelines, Max seeks to paint a more literary career, marking the collision of nuanced picture of mixed motivations. author, historian and lawyer. Was Willis a pedant or an activist? A man For those who work with Max in of principle and conviction or vindictive commercial litigation and international and self-promoting? Stubborn to a fault arbitration, his choice for the subject or courageously resilient? The answer to of this book – an enigmatic colonial each of these questions raised throughout judge sitting in early nineteenth century the book is, invariably both. Australia – might come as somewhat of In one example, Max teases apart the an incongruence. Fittingly, it is paradox motivations and reasoning underlying and incongruence that come to define the Willis’ decision in Bonjon, a ‘careful man at the centre of this book. demolition of the terra nullius fallacy … On 16 March 2017 Chief Justice John Walpole Willis is a figure shrouded articulated 150 years before the High TF Bathurst AC was the guest of in controversy and intrigue. The book Court reached very similar conclusions in 3 honour at the offices of King & Wood follows his life and legal career from Mabo’. Max warns that this decision was Mallesons to launch a new biography his initial posting in Upper Canada, not motivated by a genuinely sympathetic attitude towards the Aboriginal people of Judge John Walpole Willis.* to his time as first puisne judge of the Court of Civil and Criminal Justice in but rather a conscientious and principled It is a great pleasure to join you British Guiana, and finally his position application of the law, coupled with this evening in launching the first as a judge of the New South Wales a desire to prove this intellect to his comprehensive biography of the colonial Supreme Court and resident judge of Port superiors. In framing Willis in this way, judge John Walpole Willis, I Like a Phillip, chronicling his ability to swiftly Max manages to wrest him from the Clamour, and to give a few short praises fall foul of the establishment in each status of caricature and transform him to the book and its author, Max Bonnell. fledgling community he visited. As Max into a thoroughly humanised, albeit As some of you may or may not know, highlights, for each contentious scenario tragically flawed, individual. Max has been moonlighting as a sports ‘there is a charitable explanation, and The enduring legacy of Willis today writer and historian for some time; he is another that is less flattering to [Willis]’.2 survives not in his judgments, as rigorous by no means a new entrant to the literary While historians to date have sought to and learned as they were, but in his role as Bar News : The Journal of the New South Wales Bar Association [2017] (Autumn) Bar News 69 BOOK REVIEWS 'I Like a Clamour: John Walpole Willis, Colonial Judge, Reconsidered' a bastion of judicial independence. While Late last year, I gave a speech on the there is no doubt that Willis sought judicial career of Sir James Martin who, at self-promotion at every turn, he never various times in the nineteenth century, shied away from conflict, even when occupied the roles of chief justice of it came at the expense of his personal New South Wales, attorney general and advancement. This ‘noisiness’, as the title premier. I found his career fascinating, suggests, goes some way to explaining the but Max’s account of Justice Willis’ even enigma that is Willis. Ultimately, what more so. we can admire him for, and the reason It is evident from this book that Max why he is an historical figure worthy of has spent a great deal of time pouring reconsideration, is that, in Max’s words, through primary resources and surviving ‘he chose to act as an independent judge records, for what is no doubt set to even though he lacked the protections that make true independence possible’.4 Willis’ story was ripe for the telling, its central protagonist is a character of colour As with all good and drama who attracted many a cause biographies, the book célèbre. As one journalist of the time recorded, ‘as there was no theatre in town, brings the historical Judge Willis was reckoned to be “as good period to life, providing as a play’”.5 Max’s book is also peppered with amusing titbits from history, from an insight into the early the unlikely first train accident to Willis’ colonies and, in particular, family connection to Queen Elizabeth II. While the facts alone paint a fascinating the establishment of picture, this book is not just a recital of the Supreme Court facts; it is accompanied by regular and incisive analysis, a credit to the author’s of this state. perceptiveness and ability. As with all good biographies, the book brings the historical period to become the authoritative work on Willis, life, providing an insight into the and a valuable contribution to the early early colonies and, in particular, the history of the legal profession in this state. establishment of the Supreme Court of I congratulate Max for his dedication this state. From this we can see the court and hard work in putting together such a room has changed significantly since the well-researched and insightful book and time of Willis, for one, moustachioed commend it to everyone here tonight. members of the profession were ejected Endnotes from the court and chased to the nearest I express thanks to my Research Director, barber shop. If such a practice remained Ms Bronte Lambourne, for her assistance in the today in the age of the ironic hipster preparation of this address. moustache, I’d be quite preoccupied. 2 Max Bonnell, I Like a Clamour: John Walpole Willis, Colonial Judge, Reconsidered (Federation Press, For another, the chief justice of the time, 2017) 38. James Dowling, is recorded as having 3 Ibid 174. complained ‘neither of my colleagues 4 Ibid 48. particularly love me’.6 I can only hope 5 Ibid 209, citing Edmund Finn, The Chronicles of Early Melbourne 1835-1851 (Heritage Publications, the office of chief justice garners more 1888) 67. affection today. 6 Ibid 105. [2017] (Autumn) Bar News 70 Bar News : The Journal of the New South Wales Bar Association.
Recommended publications
  • Fusion – Fission – Fusion Pre-Judicature Equity Jurisdiction In

    Fusion – Fission – Fusion Pre-Judicature Equity Jurisdiction In

    M Leeming, “Fusion-Fission-Fusion: Pre-Judicature Equity Jurisdiction in New South Wales 1824- 1972 in J Goldberg et al (eds), Equity and Law: Fusion and Fission (Cambridge UP 2019), 118-143. Fusion – Fission – Fusion Pre-Judicature Equity Jurisdiction in New South Wales 1824 - 1972 Mark Leeming* Introduction Here is a vivid account of the pre-Judicature Act system which prevailed in New South Wales at the end of the nineteenth century and its origins: To the litigant who sought damages before an Equity Judge, a grant of Probate before a Divorce Judge or an injunction before a Common Law Judge, there could be no remedy. He had come to the wrong Court, so it was said. He might well have enquired on what historical basis he could thus be denied justice. It cannot be questioned that the Court required specialization to function properly and that a case obviously falling within one jurisdiction ought not to be heard by a Judge sitting in another jurisdiction. Yet from this the fallacious extension was made that a Judge sitting in one jurisdiction could not in any circumstances hear a case which ought to have originated in another jurisdiction.1 The words are those of the distinguished Australian legal historian J.M. Bennett. There is no doubt that the jurisdictions at common law and in equity came to be treated in many respects as if they were separate courts, despite the failure of sustained efforts to create a separate equity court; despite it being clear that there was a single Supreme Court of New South Wales with full jurisdiction at common law and in equity; and despite efforts by its first Chief Justice, Sir Francis Forbes, in the opposite direction.
  • Journal of the C. J. La Trobe Society Inc. Vol 17, No 1, March 2018 ISSN 1447‑4026 La Trobeana Journal of the C J La Trobe Society Inc Vol 17, No 1, March 2018

    Journal of the C. J. La Trobe Society Inc. Vol 17, No 1, March 2018 ISSN 1447‑4026 La Trobeana Journal of the C J La Trobe Society Inc Vol 17, No 1, March 2018

    SPECIAL EDITION Journal of the C. J. La Trobe Society Inc. Vol 17, No 1, March 2018 ISSN 1447‑4026 La Trobeana Journal of the C J La Trobe Society Inc Vol 17, No 1, March 2018 ISSN 1447‑4026 The C J La Trobe Society Inc was formed in 2001 to promote understanding and appreciation of the life, work and times of Charles Joseph La Trobe, Victoria’s first Lieutenant‑Governor. www.latrobesociety.org.au La Trobeana is published three times a year: in March, July and November. The journal publishes peer‑reviewed articles, as well as other written contributions, that explore themes in the life and times of Charles Joseph La Trobe, aspects of the colonial period of Victoria’s history, and the wider La Trobe family. La Trobeana is kindly sponsored by Mr Peter Lovell LOVELL CHEN ARCHITECTS & HERITAGE CONSULTANTS Editorial Committee Helen Armstrong and Dianne Reilly (Honorary Editors) John Botham, Loreen Chambers, Susan Priestley, Fay Woodhouse Designer Michael Owen [email protected] For copies of guidelines for contributors contact: The Honorary Secretary: Dr Dianne Reilly AM The C J La Trobe Society P O Box 65 Port Melbourne Vic 3207 Phone: 9646 2112 Email: [email protected] FRONT COVER Thomas Woolner, 1825‑1892, sculptor Charles Joseph La Trobe, 1853 Bronze portrait medallion showing the left profile of Charles Joseph La Trobe, diam. 24cm. Signature and date incised in bronze l.r.: T. Woolner Sc. 1853: / M La Trobe, Charles Joseph, 1801‑1875. Accessioned 1894 Pictures Collection, State Library of Victoria, H5489 2 • Journal of the C J La Trobe Society Contents La Trobe and the Aboriginal People II 4 A Word from the President Reports and Notices Articles 65 Forthcoming events 5 Fred Cahir 67 Contributions welcome Charles Joseph La Trobe and his administration of the Wadawurrung, Note 1839‑1853 This edition of La Trobeana includes images and names of deceased people; it may also include 17 Maggie Black words offensive to Indigenous Australians.
  • Chasing the Chimera: the Rule of Law in the British Empire and the Comparative Turn in Legal History

    Chasing the Chimera: the Rule of Law in the British Empire and the Comparative Turn in Legal History

    Chasing the Chimera: The Rule of Law in the British Empire and the Comparative Turn in Legal History John McLaren This article compares the imposition, application and evolution of the Rule of Law in colonial territories and their populations within the British Empire as evidence of a ‘Comparative Turn’ in exploring metro- politan and colonial legal cultures and their interrelationships. The purpose of the study is not primarily to either justify or criticise that concept, but to suggest that its complexity, contingency and controversy provides fertile soil for research relating to law and justice, and their ideologies across the British Empire. Elsewhere there might be the sultan’s caprice, the lit de justice, judicial torture, the slow-grinding mills of the canon law’s bureaucracy, and the auto-da-fé of the Inquisition. In England, by contrast, king and magis- trates were beneath the law, which was the even-handed guardian of every Englishman’s life, liberties, and property. Blindfolded Justice weighed all equitably in her scales. The courts were open, and worked by known and due process. Eupeptic fanfares such as those on the unique blessings of being a free-born Englishman under the Anglo-Saxon-derived common law were omnipresent background music. Anyone, from Lord Chancellors to rioters, could be heard piping them (though for very different purposes).1 There is inherent value and potential in comparing the legal cultures of former British colonial territories to demonstrate the processes of the translation of legal culture and ideology, not only from the metropolis to the colonies, but between the colonies themselves, and the institutional and personal networks and trajectories that facilitated these movements.
  • Creditor Advantage, a Capitalist Land Market, and Upper Canada's Missing Court

    Creditor Advantage, a Capitalist Land Market, and Upper Canada's Missing Court

    Osgoode Hall Law Journal Volume 28 Issue 4 Volume 28, Number 4 (Winter 1990) Article 6 10-1-1990 While Equity Slumbered: Creditor Advantage, A Capitalist Land Market, and Upper Canada's Missing Court John C. Weaver Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.osgoode.yorku.ca/ohlj Part of the Legal History Commons Article This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License. Citation Information Weaver, John C.. "While Equity Slumbered: Creditor Advantage, A Capitalist Land Market, and Upper Canada's Missing Court." Osgoode Hall Law Journal 28.4 (1990) : 871-914. https://digitalcommons.osgoode.yorku.ca/ohlj/vol28/iss4/6 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Journals at Osgoode Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Osgoode Hall Law Journal by an authorized editor of Osgoode Digital Commons. While Equity Slumbered: Creditor Advantage, A Capitalist Land Market, and Upper Canada's Missing Court Abstract Until 1837, Upper Canada had no Court of Chancery. This omission forced stop-gap measures which in the area of mortgages produced a muddle. The confusion introduced into the land market led to protracted controversies among politicians and jurists during the 1820s and 1830s. The many complex principles and motives raised by the lack of an equitable jurisdiction generated much legislative controversy and experimentation. John Beverley Robinson often was central to vital discussions where he revealed both his intelligence and social biases favouring gentlemen of capital. Extremely complicated issues have deflected attention from the central issue: whether the colony needed equity, whether it needed to follow English law.
  • 1 JUDGE WILLIS, BONJON and the RECOGNITION of ABORIGINAL LAW. Janine Rizzetti Introduction the Case of R V Bonjon Could Have

    1 JUDGE WILLIS, BONJON and the RECOGNITION of ABORIGINAL LAW. Janine Rizzetti Introduction the Case of R V Bonjon Could Have

    JUDGE WILLIS, BONJON AND THE RECOGNITION OF ABORIGINAL LAW. Janine Rizzetti Introduction The case of R v Bonjon could have been one of the foundational cases in Indigenous legal autonomy. It touched on all the big early 19th century legal questions regarding Indigenous Australians: the legal status of British settlement, whether Aborigines could be said to have their own law, and whether British law applied in crimes committed between Aboriginal people themselves. It could, too, have been the most significant case in the career of Mr Justice John Walpole Willis. But it was to be neither a foundational case, nor a career highlight. Instead, if R v Bonjon is known at all, it exists as an aberration, quickly over-ruled at the time, and often referred to in passing or even consigned to a footnote in later discussions of the amenability of Indigenous Australians to British law. The case was heard in September 1841 before Willis in his capacity as the first resident Supreme Court judge for the district of Port Phillip, known as Victoria since 1851. Willis, who is best known for his irascibility and subsequent dismissal from office was perceived, both at the time and later, to be no particular friend to Aboriginal people. Yet in Bonjon Willis expressed an argument that was to have resonances in the Mabo decision and Paul Keating’s Redfern Address- both in 1992. In a departure from the judgment given by others in The Crown v Murrell five years earlier, Willis argued that the Supreme Court had no jurisdiction over crimes committed by Aborigines against one another.

  • Felons, Mutineers and Other Learned Friends

    Felons, Mutineers and Other Learned Friends: A History of the Development of the Colonial Bar in Australia, and the Contribution of its Advocates to the Evolution of the Colonies 1788-1856. CATHERINE ELIZABETH DOUGLAS BA(Hons) LLB(Hons) Macquarie University Department of Law Submitted for consideration on 31 March 2007 M A C Q U A R I t HIGHER DEGREE THESIS AUTHOR’S CONSENT DOCTORAL T his is to certify th at I, . ... Lr.! A .... being a candidate for the degree of Doctor of — 1®-'’- ^ .........................................................am aware of the policy of the University relating to the retention and use of higher degree theses as contained in the University’s Doctoral Degree Rules generally, and in particular rule 7( 10). In the light of this policy and the policy of the above Rules, 1 agree to allow a copy of my thesis to be deposited in the University Library for consultation, loan and photocopying forthwith. M j - Signature of Candidate D ate this .day o f . .20 O j MACQUARIE UNIVERSITY—SYDNEY The Academic Senate on 13 July 2007 resolved that Catherine Elizabeth Douglas had satisfied the requirements for admission to the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. This thesis represents a major part of the prescribed program of study. CONTENTS Summary 4 Statement 5 Acknowledgements 6 Abbreviations 7 Preface 8 A Starting Point: Origins and Myths 10 Part One: Colonial New South Wales 1788-1856 27 1. Running the Penitentiary: 1788-1809 28 2. The Game of Kings: 1809-1823 52 3. Raising the Bar: 1823-1856 73 Interlude: Meanwhile, Back in Britain..

  • Forbes Flyer No 34 (Autumn 2017)

    Forbes Flyer No 34 (Autumn 2017) The newsletter of the Francis Forbes Society for Australian Legal History History reports itself The proposed sell-offs of the NSW Land Titles Office and the Commonwealth ASIC registers are in the news. At one level, the debate is the same debate whenever privatization is flagged: how does one compare public value and private value, and if there is private value in public value, why so often does the asset sell so far beneath it? This debate raises or at least touches on a wider question. Not simply “What is the value of public information?” but “Why should a monetary value be given to public information?” The idea that public information belongs to the commons and that rights of exploitation exist as a reasoned exception is a dangerous anachronism; information is property, and property is alienable. Or so the argument goes. And there is any number of reasoned retorts. (And different views; for a positive view of intellectual property and a belief that property rights serve human values, see Ghosh, Shubha, “The fable of the commons: exclusivity and the construction of intellectual property markets” (2007) 40 U.C. Davis L. Rev. 3, 855-890.) Mark Finnane’s 2016 Plunkett Lecture touched on this important competition of ideas, with an audience treated to an informed and entertaining analysis of the criminal trial as a microcosm of society. Also, we review Max Bonnell’s intriguing biography of that elusive colonial judge, John Walpole Willis. The book was published by Federation Press earlier this year and launched in March by the NSW chief justice.
  • Imagereal Capture

    Imagereal Capture

    JOHN WALPOLE WILLIS: FIRST RESIDENT JUDGE IN VICTORIA (a) Introduction John Walpole Willis was the first resident Judge in the district of Port Phillip of the Supreme Court of New South Wales, on its extension to that district. A controversial, sometimes eccentric man, he opened the . first sittings of the court on Monday, 12 April 18411 and held office for just over two years. During that period, he polarised the small Melbourne community, alienated the entire legal and executive establishment, and brought disrepute on himself and his court. He created such controversy and opposition amongst infiuential sections of the community, that Governor Gipps, acting on numerous complaints, removed him from office in June 1843.2 I The traditional view of Willis supports this dismissal. Contemporaries and subsequent writers considered him an argumentative, volatile and cantankerous man, both on and off the bench, a man Ewlhose habitual sarcasm is unbecoming, whose facetiousness is indecorous, whose domineering is improper, whose fidgeting is a sign of censurable irn- patience and whose system of 'summing up' is partial to the last degree.3 This writer, however, considers this view to be grossly unbalanced, if not erroneous, and that Willis's judicial career, far from warranting sum- mary dismissal, deserves some recognition, if not acclaim. Willis posses- sed a brilliant, scholarly mind, sound legal knowledge and was imbibed with the highest ideals of a judge's role. He had a highly developed sense of justice and unquestionable professional integrity. He was impartial? hardworking, a stickler for punctuality and court procedure, and was lauded for 'fearless independenceY5and 'wisdom and integrity of judicial decisions .
  • Victorian Historical Journal Issue 287 Vol

    Victorian Historical Journal Issue 287 Vol

    Royal Historical Society of Victoria VICTORIAN HISTORICAL JOURNAL ISSUE 287 VOL. 88, No. 1 – JUNE 2017 239 A’Beckett Street Melbourne, Victoria 3000 Australia +61 3 9326 9288 VICTORIAN HISTORICAL JOURNAL VOLUME 88, NUMBER 1, JUNE 2017 www.historyvictoria.org.au ROYAL HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF VICTORIA VHJ COVER JUNE 2017 DRAFT 1.indd 1 26/05/2017 1:23 PM VICTORIAN HISTORICAL JOURNAL ROYAL HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF VICTORIA Th e Royal Historical Society of Victoria is a community organisation comprising people from many fi elds committed to collecting, researching and sharing an understanding of the history of Victoria. Th e Victorian Historical Journal is a fully refereed journal dedicated to Australian, and especially Victorian, history produced twice yearly by the Publications Committee, Royal Historical Society of Victoria. PUBLICATIONS COMMITTEE Jill Barnard Marilyn Bowler Richard Broome (Convenor) Marie Clark Mimi Colligan Don Garden (President, RHSV) Don Gibb David Harris (Editor, Victorian Historical Journal) Kate Prinsley Marian Quartly (Editor, History News) John Rickard Judith Smart (Review Editor) Chips Sowerwine Carole Woods BECOME A MEMBER Membership of the Royal Historical Society of Victoria is open. All those with an interest in history are welcome to join. Subscriptions can be purchased at: Royal Historical Society of Victoria 239 A’Beckett Street Melbourne, Victoria 3000, Australia Telephone: 03 9326 9288 Email: offi [email protected] www.historyvictoria.org.au Journals are also available for purchase online: www.historyvictoria.org.au/publications/victorian-historical-journal
  • Sorely Tried: Democracy and Trial by Jury in New South Wales

    Sorely Tried: Democracy and Trial by Jury in New South Wales

    Sorely tried Democracy and trial by jury in New South Wales By Ian Barker QC Barker, Ian, 1935‐ . Sorely tried : democracy and trial by jury in New South Wales. Includes index. ISBN 0 9751103 0 6. 1. Jury ‐ New South Wales ‐ History ‐ 1788‐1851. I. Title. (Series : Francis Forbes Lectures ‐ 2002). 347.9440752 3 | Foreword Ian Barker QC’s paper on the history of trial by jury in New South Wales, here published in revised form, was presented in the Banco Court of the Supreme Court of New South Wales on 28 November 2002 as the inaugural Francis Forbes Lecture. That lecture, and the Francis Forbes Society for Australian Legal History that sponsored it, were named for Sir Francis Forbes. Forbes, knighted upon his retirement, was the first chief justice of the Supreme Court of New South Wales, between 1824 and 1837. At a ceremonial sitting of the court held on 17 May 1999 to mark the 175th anniversary of its first sitting in 1824, the Premier of New South Wales described Forbes as Australia’s first democrat.1 He has a substantial claim on all Australians as a founder of the rule of law in this country. The principal biography of the great man remains Dr CH Currey’s Sir Francis Forbes; the first chief justice of the Supreme Court of New South Wales2 (out of print but readily obtainable). However, through the indefatigable work of Dr JM Bennett, we now also have Some papers of Sir Francis Forbes and, as one of the first volumes in Dr Bennett’s Lives of the Australian chief justices series, Sir Francis Forbes.
  • Hordern House Rare Books • Manuscripts • Paintings • Prints

    Hordern House Rare Books • Manuscripts • Paintings • Prints

    THE COLLECTION OF ROBERT EDWARDS AO EDWARDS ROBERT OF THE COLLECTION HORDERN HOUSE RARE BOOKS • MANUSCRIPTS • PAINTINGS • PRINTS THE COLLECTION OF ROBERT EDWARDS AO HORDERN HOUSE HORDERN HORDERN HOUSE RARE BOOKS • MANUSCRIPTS • PAINTINGS • PRINTS A selection of fine books and manuscripts, maps and graphic material chiefly from THE COLLECTION OF ROBERT EDWARDS AO Including significant material on the early Australian colonies, with a particular focus on inland and coastal exploration in the first century of settlement 77 VICTORIA STREET • POTTS POINT • SYDNEY NSW 2011 • AUSTRALIA TELEPHONE (02) 9356 4411 • FAX (02) 9357 3635 www.hordern.com • [email protected] INTRODUCTION ver my life as an antiquarian bookseller one of the great pleasures has been meeting charming and wise people. The shared interest in historically important books, paintings and manuscripts has always helped to form a Olink that bridges countries and cultures and makes conversations flow easily. Such exchanges have been deeply enriching for me and none more so than the long friendship I have enjoyed with Bob Edwards. Bob’s gentle demeanour veils a strong character; he is an intelligent collector and an insightful man. Over the decades we have been friends, our shared bookshop cups of tea have always been accompanied by wide-ranging and fascinating discussions – anthropology, Aboriginal art, museum exhibitions, development of new museums and galleries, books, politics and our families – nothing has been too big or too small for us to discuss. Bob has an open mind and a generous spirit and I have been fortunate to see him at times when he has been taking small breaks from his hectic work life.
  • Barron Field and the Supreme Court of Civil Judicature: Law, Personality and Politics in New South Wales, 1816–1824

    Barron Field and the Supreme Court of Civil Judicature: Law, Personality and Politics in New South Wales, 1816–1824

    Barron Field and the Supreme Court of Civil Judicature: law, personality and politics in New South Wales, 1816–1824 Ronald Coleman Solomon A thesis in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy University of New South Wales School of Humanities Faculty of Arts and Sciences Submitted March 2013 PLEASE TYPE THE UNIVERSITY OF NEW SOUTH WALES Thesis/Dissertation Sheet Surname or Family name: Solomon First name: Ronald Other name: Coleman Abbreviation for degree as given in the University calendar: PhD School: Humanities Faculty: Arts and Social Sciences Title: Barron Field and the Supreme Court of Civil Judicature: law, personality and politics in New South Wales, 1816-1824 Abstract 350 words maximum: (PLEASE TYPE) My thesis traces the progress and selection of a man of middling class, a direct descendant of Oliver Cromwell, to appointment as j udge in the superior court of civil law in the colony of New South Wales in 1816. On arrival in the colony Judge Field chose not to accept the company of Governor Macquarie when he learnt this entailed associating with ex-convicts. Instead Field joined the exclusive society of free settlers dominated by John Macarthur who pursued political beliefs of repression of emancipated convicts. Thereafter, an emancipist attorney commenced a political campaign against exclusivists with Field as their spokesman. This campaign began and ended in the courts as the only venue available for political conflict. The campaign revealed the importance of the role of the courts in colonial society. Not only the free but recently freed and prisoners made use of the courts.