Alec James Southwell (1 November 1926 – 26 January 2018)
was a judge from 3 April 1979 until 11 April 1997 in the
Supreme Court of Victoria
The Supreme Court of Victoria is the highest court in the Australian state of Victoria. Founded in 1852, it is a superior court of common law and equity, with unlimited and inherent jurisdiction within the state.
The Supreme Court compr ...
, which is the
highest ranking court in the
Australian
State
State may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Literature
* ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State
* ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States
* '' Our ...
of
Victoria
Victoria most commonly refers to:
* Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia
* Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada
* Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory
* Victoria, Seychelle ...
. At the time of his retirement, Southwell was believed to be Australia's longest-serving judge.
Early life
Southwell was educated at
Melbourne Grammar School
(Pray and Work)
, established = 1849 (on present site since 1858 - the celebrated date of foundation)
, type = Independent, co-educational primary, single-sex boys secondary, day and boarding
, denomination ...
and the
University of Melbourne
The University of Melbourne is a public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in Victoria. Its main campus is located in Parkville, an inner suburb n ...
.
[
Southwell served with the ]Royal Australian Naval Reserve
The Royal Australian Naval Reserve (RANR) is the volunteer reserve force of the Royal Australian Navy in Australia.
The current Royal Australian Naval Reserve was formed in June 1973 by merging the former RANR (Seagoing) and the Royal Australia ...
in New Guinea
New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; id, Papua, or , historically ) is the world's second-largest island with an area of . Located in Oceania in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is separated from Australia by the wide Torr ...
and Morotai
Morotai Island ( id, Pulau Morotai) is an island in the Halmahera group of eastern Indonesia's Maluku Islands (Moluccas). It is one of Indonesia's northernmost islands.
Morotai is a rugged, forested island lying to the north of Halmahera. It ha ...
in the later part of World War II.[
]
Legal career
He was appointed a Queen's Counsel
In the United Kingdom and in some Commonwealth countries, a King's Counsel (post-nominal initials KC) during the reign of a king, or Queen's Counsel (post-nominal initials QC) during the reign of a queen, is a lawyer (usually a barrister or ...
in 1968 and a County Court
A county court is a court based in or with a jurisdiction covering one or more county, counties, which are administrative divisions (subnational entities) within a country, not to be confused with the medieval system of ''county courts'' held by t ...
judge in 1969.[
Southwell was part of the full bench that quashed a conviction of Michael Glennon for charges of paedophilia while he was a Catholic priest. Southwell was the dissenting judge who held that the decision could lead to a situation where adverse media publicity could prevent someone from ever facing trial. The situation had been precipitated by ]Derryn Hinch
Derryn Nigel Hinch (born 9 February 1944) is a New Zealand-born media personality, politician, actor, journalist and published author. He is best known for his career in Australia, on Melbourne radio and television. He served as a Senator for ...
had used his radio program to campaign against Glennon.[
]
Following retirement
Following his retirement, he remained a reserve judge of the Supreme Court of Victoria and a member of the Legal Profession Tribunal which considers disciplinary cases against lawyers until 2001.[
In 2002, Southwell was appointed by the Roman Catholic Church to investigate accusations of sexual abuse against Archbishop ]George Pell
George Pell (born 8 June 1941) is an Australian cardinal of the Catholic Church. He served as the inaugural prefect of the Secretariat for the Economy between 2014 and 2019, and was a member of the Council of Cardinal Advisers between 2013 an ...
.
See also
* Judiciary of Australia
The judiciary of Australia comprises judges who sit in federal courts and courts of the States and Territories of Australia. The High Court of Australia sits at the apex of the Australian court hierarchy as the ultimate court of appeal on matte ...
* List of judges of the Supreme Court of Victoria
* Southwell inquiry The Southwell inquiry was an investigation by AJ Southwell, a former Australian judge, into sexual abuse in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Melbourne, specifically allegations that in 1961 George Pell, then a seminarian and later Archbishop of ...
* Victorian Bar Association
The Victorian Bar is the bar association of the Australian State of Victoria. The current President of the Bar is Roisin Annesley KC. Its members are barristers registered to practice in Victoria. On 30 June 2020, there were 2,179 counsels ...
References
Judges of the Supreme Court of Victoria
2018 deaths
1926 births
Australian King's Counsel
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