Henry Edward Cosgrove AM QC (9 November 1922 – 22 February 2010) was an Australian judge. Cosgrove's father,

Robert Cosgrove Sir Robert Cosgrove (28 December 1884 – 25 August 1969) was an Australian politician who was the 30th and longest-serving Premier of Tasmania. He held office for over 18 years, serving from 1939 to 1947 and from 1948 to 1958. His involve ...

, would serve as

Premier of Tasmania The premier of Tasmania is the head of the executive government in the Australian state of Tasmania. By convention, the leader of the party or political grouping which has majority support in the House of Assembly is invited by the governor of Ta ...

from 1939 to 1947. He attended St Virgil's College from 1929 to 1939, graduating

dux ''Dux'' (; plural: ''ducēs'') is Latin for "leader" (from the noun ''dux, ducis'', "leader, general") and later for duke and its variant forms (doge, duce, etc.). During the Roman Republic and for the first centuries of the Roman Empire, ''dux' ...

and with the Dr James Scott Memorial Prize for English Composition. He enrolled in a commerce degree with the

Australian National University The Australian National University (ANU) is a public research university located in Canberra, the capital of Australia. Its main campus in Acton encompasses seven teaching and research colleges, in addition to several national academies and ...

in 1940 but suspended his study in 1941 to enlist in the Australian Imperial Force, serving in

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu Hiri Motu, also known as Police Motu, Pidgin Motu, or just Hiri, is a language of Papua New Guinea, which is spoken in surrounding areas of Port Moresby (Capital of Papua New Guinea). It is a simplified version of ...

and

New Britain New Britain ( tpi, Niu Briten) is the largest island in the Bismarck Archipelago, part of the Islands Region of Papua New Guinea. It is separated from New Guinea by a northwest corner of the Solomon Sea (or with an island hop of Umboi the Dam ...

. He graduated in May 1948, and began working as a research officer with the Bureau of Census and Statistics in 1946. In 1952 Cosgrove enrolled in a law degree at the

University of Tasmania The University of Tasmania (UTAS) is a public research university, primarily located in Tasmania, Australia. Founded in 1890, it is Australia's fourth oldest university. Christ College, one of the university's residential colleges, first pro ...

. After distinguishing himself scholastically he graduated with First Class Honours in 1955 and was called to the Bar in 1956. He worked as a partner in the law firm Murdock, Clarke and Neasey from 1956 and was a lecturer in criminal law from 1959. Appointed

Queen's Counsel In the United Kingdom and in some Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth countries, a King's Counsel (Post-nominal letters, post-nominal initials KC) during the reign of a king, or Queen's Counsel (post-nominal initials QC) during the reign of ...

in 1974, he was raised a Judge of the

Supreme Court of Tasmania The Supreme Court of Tasmania is the highest State court in the Australian State of Tasmania. In the Australian court hierarchy, the Supreme Court of Tasmania is in the middle level, with both an appellate jurisdiction over lower courts, and de ...

in 1977. He served on the bench until his retirement in 1988. One of the famous cases Cosgrove sat on was the marathon trial of Randall Askeland who was found guilty of the murder of his wife. He was later Law Reform Commissioner (1988–91), Chairman of the Superannuation Accumulation Fund (1989–92), President of the Retirement Benefits Fund (1990–95) and Chairman of the Legal Aid Commission of Tasmania (1991). Cosgrove was appointed a

Member of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Gove ...

in 1993. Cosgrove died in 2010.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cosgrove, Henry 1922 births 2010 deaths Australian barristers Australian public servants Australian King's Counsel Judges of the Supreme Court of Tasmania Members of the Order of Australia Australian National University alumni University of Tasmania alumni