Alan Reginald Neaves (8 January 1925 – 25 November 2022) was an Australian public servant, lawyer and judge, best known for his role as head of the Attorney-General's Department between 1979 and 1983, and as a Federal Court judge between 1983 and 1995.

Life and career

Neaves was born in January 1925 in the Sydney suburb of

Glebe A glebe (, also known as church furlong, rectory manor or parson's close(s)) is an area of land within an ecclesiastical parish used to support a parish priest. The land may be owned by the church, or its profits may be reserved to the church. ...

, the son of Ida Florence and Henry Neaves. Neaves joined the Attorney-General's Department in 1942. After war service with the

Royal Australian Air Force The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) is the principal Air force, aerial warfare force of Australia, a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Australian Army. Constitutionally the Governor-Gener ...

, he graduated in law with first class honours from the University of Sydney in 1948, and was admitted to the New South Wales Bar in 1949. In December 1974, Neaves was appointed the next Crown Solicitor, to commence in February 1975. The post came after five years in Sydney as head of the Deputy Crown Solicitor's Office. He was appointed

Secretary A secretary, administrative assistant, executive assistant, personal secretary, or other similar titles is an individual whose work consists of supporting management, including executives, using a variety of project management, program evalu ...

of the Attorney-General's Department in July 1979. In 1980 then Prime Minister

Malcolm Fraser John Malcolm Fraser (; 21 May 1930 – 20 March 2015) was an Australian politician who served as the 22nd prime minister of Australia from 1975 to 1983. He held office as the leader of the Liberal Party of Australia, and is the fourth List of ...

set up a Royal Commission into the activities of the Painters and Dockers Union, appointing

Frank Costigan Francis Xavier Costigan, , (14 January 1931 – 13 April 2009) was an Australian lawyer, Royal Commissioner and social justice activist. Costigan is renowned for presiding over the Costigan Commission into organised crime. Background an ...

as Royal Commissioner. The Costigan Commission inquiry period lasted until 1984, and in the process the Attorney-General's Department came under fire from the Labor Party after criticism by the Commission. When the Labor Party was elected and

Bob Hawke Robert James Lee Hawke (9 December 1929 – 16 May 2019) was an Australian politician and trade unionist who served as the 23rd prime minister of Australia from 1983 to 1991. He held office as the Australian Labor Party, leader of the La ...

became Prime Minister, among the new Government's first order of business was to remove Neaves from his position as Secretary of the Attorney-General's Department. He was appointed a judge of the Federal Court on 11 March 1983. Neaves remained a Judge of the Federal Court until 8 January 1995, when he reached the mandatory retirement age of 70.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Neaves, Alan 1925 births 2022 deaths Judges of the Federal Court of Australia Secretaries of Australian Government departments 20th-century Australian public servants Australian barristers Royal Australian Air Force personnel of World War II Sydney Law School alumni