Geoffrey Arthur Akeroyd Nettle (born 2 December 1950) is a former Justice of the

High Court of Australia The High Court of Australia is the apex court of the Australian legal system. It exercises original and appellate jurisdiction on matters specified in the Constitution of Australia and supplementary legislation. The High Court was establi ...

, the highest court in the

Australian court hierarchy The judiciary of Australia comprises judges who sit in federal courts and courts of the States and territories of Australia, States and Territories of Australia. The High Court of Australia sits at the apex of the Australian court hierarchy as t ...

, who served from 3 February 2015 to 30 November 2020. Prior to his appointment to the High Court, he served as a

judge A judge is a person who wiktionary:preside, presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a judicial panel. In an adversarial system, the judge hears all the witnesses and any other Evidence (law), evidence presented by the barris ...

at the Court of Appeal,

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 compri ...

, where he presided from June 2004 to 2015.

Early life and education

Geoffrey Nettle was born in Cottesloe,

Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...

, a beachside suburb of

Perth Perth () is the list of Australian capital cities, capital city of Western Australia. It is the list of cities in Australia by population, fourth-most-populous city in Australia, with a population of over 2.3 million within Greater Perth . The ...

and moved to Victoria at an early age. Nettle received his secondary education at Wesley College,

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

. Nettle completed a

Bachelor of Economics A Bachelor of Economics (BEc or BEcon)Bureau of Labor StatisticsHow to Become an Economist/ref> is an academic degree, awarded to students who have completed specialised undergraduate studies in economics. Variants include the "Bachelor of Econo ...

at the

Australian National University The Australian National University (ANU) is a public university, public research university and member of the Group of Eight (Australian universities), Group of Eight, located in Canberra, the capital of Australia. Its main campus in Acton, A ...

followed by a

Bachelor of Laws A Bachelor of Laws (; LLB) is an undergraduate law degree offered in most common law countries as the primary law degree and serves as the first professional qualification for legal practitioners. This degree requires the study of core legal subje ...

, for which he received First Class Honours, at the

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne (colloquially known as Melbourne University) is a public university, public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in the state ...

in 1975. While studying at Melbourne, he was a resident at Trinity College, where he rowed and played rugby. Nettle then completed a Bachelor of Civil Laws with First-Class Honours at Magdalen College,

Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...

Career

Nettle was admitted to practice in 1977 and was a

solicitor A solicitor is a lawyer who traditionally deals with most of the legal matters in some jurisdictions. A person must have legally defined qualifications, which vary from one jurisdiction to another, to be described as a solicitor and enabled to p ...

with Mallesons Stephen Jaques (now King & Wood Mallesons). He was called to the bar in November 1982. He became a

Queen's Counsel A King's Counsel (Post-nominal letters, post-nominal initials KC) is a senior lawyer appointed by the monarch (or their Viceroy, viceregal representative) of some Commonwealth realms as a "Counsel learned in the law". When the reigning monarc ...

in 1992. His major areas of practice were commercial law, taxation, constitutional law and administrative law. In 2001, Nettle was the crown prosecutor in the extradition case of Konrāds Kalējs, an alleged Nazi collaborationist. Nettle was appointed a Judge of the

, Trial Division, in 2002, and a Judge of Appeal of the Victorian Court of Appeal, Supreme Court of Victoria, in 2004.Attorney-General's announcement
Retrieved 4 December 2014. Unusually for an Appeal Justice, in 2013, he presided over the trial at first instance of Adrian Ernest Bayley for the rape and murder of Jill Meagher in

, Australia.

High Court

On 4 December 2014, the Commonwealth Attorney-General, Senator

George Brandis George Henry Brandis (born 22 June 1957) is an Australian former politician. He was a Australian Senate, Senator for Queensland from 2000 to 2018, representing the Liberal Party of Australia, Liberal Party, and was a Cabinet (Australia), cabin ...

, announced that Nettle would become a justice of the

, replacing Justice Susan Crennan. He took office on 3 February 2015, at the age of 64, making him the oldest person ever appointed to the High Court. He served a maximum of only five years and ten months on the court.Ageing Amendment - Section 72 and the Mandatory Retirement Age of Judges
University of Sydney Constitutional Critique, 28 May 2015. Retrieved 11 August 2018. and retired on 30 November 2020, the day before his 70th birthday.

Awards and honours

On Australia Day 2019, Nettle was appointed a

Companion of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an Australian honours and awards system, Australian honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Monarch ...

"for eminent service to the judiciary, and to the law, to criminal and civil appeals reform, to legal education, and to professional standards".

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nettle, Geoffrey 1950 births Living people Justices of the High Court of Australia Judges of the Supreme Court of Victoria Australian King's Counsel Australian National University alumni People educated at Trinity College (University of Melbourne) Alumni of Magdalen College, Oxford Companions of the Order of Australia