FEATURE LAW SOCIETY NT Ceremonial Sitting for the Honourable Chief Justice Michael Grant The welcoming ceremonial sitting Solicitor-General Sonia Brownhill, ACT, Mr Garrison; Solicitor-General occurred on Friday 8 July 2016 at the Benjamin O’Loughlin and Tass Liveris. for the Queensland, Mr Dunning; Supreme Court Darwin and presiding Solicitor-General for Tasmania, Mr judges during the ceremony included HIS HONOUR, SOUTHWOOD J: Farrell; Solicitor-General for the the Hon Chief Justice Michael Grant, Your Honour, the Administrator of Victoria, Mr Nile; the President of the the Hon Justice Stephen Southwood, the Northern Territory, Mr John Hardy Bar Association of South Australia, Mr the Hon Justice Judith Kelly, the Hon and Mrs Hardy; Chief Justice of the Andrew Harris; members of the Bar Justice Jenny Blokland, the Hon Justice High Court of Australia, Chief Justice and of the legal profession; ladies and Graham Hiley, the Hon Justice John French; fellow judges of the court; gentlemen, a warm welcome to all Reeves and the Hon Justice former Chief Justices of the Court, of you on this happy occasion when Trevor Riley. Asche and Martin; former judges of we formally welcome Grant CJ as the the court, Angel and Thomas; judges seventh Chief Justice of the Supreme Also in attendance, the Hon Chief of the Local Court; Solicitor-General Court of the Northern Territory. Justice Robert French AC QC, the Hon Brownhill who is representing the Austin Asche AC QC, the Hon Brian Attorney-General; the Speaker of His Honour, Grant CJ’s appointment F Martin AO MBE QC, the Hon David the Legislative Assembly, Ms Kezia has been received with much Angel QC and the Hon Sally Purick; Shadow Attorney-General, Ms enthusiasm and warmth by all of the Thomas AC. Lynne Walker; the President of the judges of the Supreme Court. As his Northern Territory Bar Association, Honour is home-grown, we are all very The following speeches, taken from Mr Ben O’Loughlin; President of the proud of his appointment. A number court transcript, were delivered by Law Society Northern Territory, Mr of us on the court claim to have had a the Hon Justice Stephen Southwood, Tass Liveris; Solicitor-General for the hand in his progress. It makes us seem rather old, but three of us lectured Grant CJ while he was at university. Riley J and I lectured him in civil procedure and Grant CJ went onto write the loose-leaf service on civil procedure for the Northern Territory. Blokland J lectured him in evidence and, she believes, international law. Her Honour is confident, as evidence is everything in the criminal jurisdiction, that the Chief Justice is extremely well-qualified to sit in that jurisdiction. Also, Grant CJ has had the benefit of being my junior counsel on one or two occasions when I was BALANCE SEPTEMBER 2016 at the Bar, and Hiley J’s instructing second. I hope that, too, Darwin where your Honour attended solicitor. Otherwise, he is unspoiled. will change. primary school and your Honour attended Saint Joseph’s College in While we have been on the court, we That has now happened. On behalf of Sydney for your secondary schooling, have all had the opportunity to see the members of the court, I warmly returning to the Territory his Honour become an outstanding welcome your Honour as the seventh during holidays. advocate. As his Honour was born in Chief Justice and we wish you well for the Northern Territory, he has a deep the future. After completing year 12, your understanding and appreciation of Honour spent some time travelling the history and the people of the SOLICITOR-GENERAL BROWNHILL: and working and, at the end of Northern Territory and their great May it please the court. I 1985, took a job as a clerk in the diversity, which is one of the best acknowledge the Larrakia peoples as then Department of Law. Shortly features of the Northern Territory. His the traditional owners of this land. thereafter, the University of Honour has all of the qualities to be On behalf of the Attorney-General, Queensland joined with the University an outstanding Chief Justice. I congratulate your Honour, the College of the Northern Territory to Chief Justice, on your appointment offer a Bachelor of Laws degree. Your In the last paragraph of his book on as the Chief Justice of the Supreme Honour enrolled, being one of the the history of the Supreme Court Court of the Northern Territory. first batch of students to study law in of the Northern Territory, the The Attorney deeply regrets that the Northern Territory. Honourable Dean Mildren QC, who his ministerial responsibilities have was then a judge of the Supreme rendered him unavailable to attend Your Honour combined full-time work Court, wrote: and speak himself on this occasion. I at the Department with full-time have also been asked to convey the study and your Honour ultimately Finally, it may be surprising to regret of the Attorney-General for the completed your degree with first- realise that, although the court Commonwealth that he is unable to class Honours in 1991; thanks, no has been in existence for a century, be here. doubt, to the assistance of their and there were judges of the Honours who lectured your Honour in Northern Territory for twenty-five By this appointment, as your Honour, the subjects referred to. During that years before that, there has never Southwood J recognised, your Honour period, your Honour’s studies were been a Territory-born judge. The continues an ongoing theme in your placed on hold for an eight-month closest we have come in having two Honour’s professional life, becoming secondment to the law firm, Freehills, judges who has spent some of their the first Territory-born appointed in Sydney, which had been engaged by childhood in the Territory and one as a judge of this Court, and also, the Northern Territory Government judge whose mother was born in obviously, the first Territory-born to act in defending a very large claim Darwin. Not that long ago, the first Chief Justice. Your Honour was born in the Federal Court. Territory-born barrister took Silk at the old Darwin Hospital and spent and we are still waiting for the the first five years of your life in Pine Your Honour’s first daughter, Creek. Your Honour then returned to Courtney, was born while you → 13 FEATURE LAW SOCIETY NT Ceremonial Sitting for the Honourable Chief Justice Michael Grant and your wife, Marita, were living constitutionally valid. In 1997–98, In 2007, your Honour was appointed in Sydney and Freehills were so your Honour was also instructor for as the Solicitor-General for the impressed with your Honour’s the Territory in Wynbyne v Marshall Northern Territory; and so, became potential that they offered you a job. in the Court of Appeal and the High the first-born, Territory-born Luckily for the Territory, your Honour Court special leave application, Solicitor General. Your Honour’s and Marita decided that Darwin was a involving a constitutional challenge first appearance before the Full better place than Sydney for bringing to the Territory’s mandatory Bench of the High Court in that up kids. sentencing legislation. These role was in Gypsy Jokers Motorcycle were seminal decisions about the Club v Commissioner of Police. The With your degree completed, Territory’s capacity to make laws in case concerned a cable challenge to your Honour remained with the the exercise of the powers conferred Western Australian law, permitting Department and the Solicitor for by the Northern Territory (Self the Police Commissioner to put the Northern Territory and took the Government) Act. before the Court confidential roles of article clerk, then solicitor, information which would not be and then, solicitor-advocate. In each In 1998, your Honour was appointed disclosed to any other party. of those roles, your Honour excelled. as the Director of Litigation in the Your Honour also lectured at Charles Attorney General’s Department. Your Your Honour’s greatest challenge in Darwin University in torts, taxation Honour was called to the Bar in 1999 the case was deciding what to say as law, and advanced taxation law, and and joined William Forster Chambers. the most junior, and, therefore, last was a special tutor for Indigenous Your Honour’s stellar skills and heard, Solicitor-General amongst the students undertaking legal studies. reputation as an advocate ensured six S-G’s intervening in the matter. that from the outset, your Honour Last did not mean least, as your On the home-front, your Honour had a successful and ridiculously Honour was engaged in somewhat and Marita had two more daughters, busy practice, where back-to-back rigorous debate by Kirby and Kiefal Jamie and Hannah, and your Honour’s trials and working all hours were JJ’s; but your Honour’s performance gender minority status in the family commonplace. clearly confirmed your Honour as was not overcome by acquiring a the perfect choice for the Solicitor- male dog; he was a Labradoodle. That reputation only grew as your General position. That status is evidenced today by the Honour practiced in a broad range of presence in court of not only your civil matters; notably, constitutional In the role over the past nine years, mum and your wife and your three law, property law, administrative law, your Honour has represented and daughters, but also your four nieces. medical and professional negligence, advised six different Attorneys- Your brother, Tony, is present as well. and personal injuries. In 2006, your General, the Cabinet Office, the The support of your family has, no Honour took Silk and became the first Legislative Assembly, ministers and doubt, been fundamental in your Territory-born Queen’s Counsel.