John McCarthy (ambassador Born 1947)
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John Anthony McCarthy (born 20 October 1947) was the
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
n Ambassador to the Holy See from 2012 to 2016, following the appointment of
Bob Carr Robert John Carr (born 28 September 1947) is an Australian retired politician and journalist who served as the 39th Premier of New South Wales from 1995 to 2005, as the leader of the New South Wales Labor Party, New South Wales branch of the A ...
as foreign minister.


Early life and education

McCarthy was born on 20 October 1947 in
Parkes, New South Wales Parkes is a town in the Central West (New South Wales), Central West region of New South Wales, Australia. It is the main settlement in the local government in Australia, local government area of Parkes Shire. Parkes had a population of 9,83 ...
, the son of Anthony and Eileen McCarthy. He grew up in country
New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...
and attended St Bernard's College,
Katoomba Katoomba is the main town and council seat of the City of Blue Mountains in New South Wales, Australia, and is the administrative centre of Blue Mountains City Council. Situated on the Great Western Highway and the Great Western Railway, Kato ...
. In 1965, he moved to Sydney to study at the
University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD) is a public university, public research university in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in both Australia and Oceania. One of Australia's six sandstone universities, it was one of the ...
as a resident of St John's College. He graduated Bachelor of Arts in 1968 and Bachelor of Laws in 1971. In 1974, he was awarded a post-graduate scholarship to the
University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson and contains his The Lawn, Academical Village, a World H ...
and graduated Master of Laws in 1975.


Professional career

McCarthy was admitted as 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 ...
of the
Supreme Court of NSW The Supreme Court of New South Wales is the highest state court of the Australian State of New South Wales. It has unlimited jurisdiction within the state in civil matters, and hears the most serious criminal matters. Whilst the Supreme Court ...
in 1972, as a barrister of the
Supreme Court In most legal jurisdictions, a supreme court, also known as a court of last resort, apex court, high (or final) court of appeal, and court of final appeal, is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...
in 1976 and appointed Queens Counsel in 1988. McCarthy has appeared in 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 ...
, Privy Council,
Federal Court of Australia The Federal Court of Australia is an Australian superior court which has jurisdiction to deal with most civil disputes governed by federal law (with the exception of family law matters), along with some summary (less serious) and indictable (mo ...
, Supreme Court of New South Wales,
Australian Industrial Relations Commission The Australian Industrial Relations Commission (AIRC), known from 1956 to 1973 as the Commonwealth Conciliation and Arbitration Commission and from 1973 to 1988 as the Australian Conciliation and Arbitration Commission, was a tribunal with powe ...
, NSW Industrial Relations Commission,
Family Court of Australia The Family Court of Australia was a superior Australian federal court of record which deals with family law matters, such as divorce applications, parenting disputes, and the division of property when a couple separate. Together with the Fed ...
, NSW Land and Environment Court, Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC), District Court (NSW) and Magistrates Court (NSW). McCarthy has had an ongoing involvement with constitutional, electoral and organisational issues relating to
Indigenous Australian Indigenous Australians are people with familial heritage from, or recognised membership of, the various ethnic groups living within the territory of contemporary Australia prior to History of Australia (1788–1850), British colonisation. The ...
associations, educational institutions and sporting organisations. McCarthy was senior counsel for the
Dunghutti The Djangadi people, also spelt Dhungatti, Dainggati, Tunggutti or Dunghutti are an Aboriginal Australian people resident in the Macleay River, Macleay Valley of northern New South Wales. Language Dhanggati language, Dhanggati / Dunghutti bel ...
people in 1996 and participated in the negotiation and settling of the first Deed of Agreement (209 years after the first white settlement) between the Crown in New South Wales and an
Indigenous Australian Indigenous Australians are people with familial heritage from, or recognised membership of, the various ethnic groups living within the territory of contemporary Australia prior to History of Australia (1788–1850), British colonisation. The ...
people in respect of
native title in Australia Native title is the set of rights, recognised by Australian law, held by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander groups or individuals to land that derive from their maintenance of their traditional laws and customs. These Aboriginal title righ ...
. He then appeared as senior counsel in the Dunghutti case in the Federal Court in 1997, in which for the first time on the Australian mainland there was a determination of
native title Aboriginal title is a common law doctrine that the land rights of indigenous peoples to customary tenure persist after the assumption of sovereignty to that land by another colonising state. The requirements of proof for the recognition of ab ...
under the ''
Native Title Act 1993 The ''Native Title Act 1993'' (Cth) is an act of the Australian Parliament, the purpose of which is "to provide a national system for the recognition and protection of native title and for its co-existence with the national land management sys ...
''. McCarthy has represented Catholic bishops and Catholic agencies and institutions in many cases. He has also acted as senior counsel for the national president of the
St Vincent de Paul Society The Society of Saint Vincent de Paul (SVP or SVdP or SSVP) is an international voluntary organization in the Catholic Church, founded in 1833 for the service of the poor. Started by Frédéric Ozanam and Emmanuel-Joseph Bailly de Surcy and nam ...
in Australia. McCarthy is senior counsel for the Church of the
Torres Strait The Torres Strait (), also known as Zenadh Kes ( Kalaw Lagaw Ya#Phonology 2, ˆzen̪ad̪ kes, is a strait between Australia and the Melanesian island of New Guinea. It is wide at its narrowest extent. To the south is Cape York Peninsula, ...
, an indigenous church of former Anglicans and for the Anglican Catholic Church of Australia, both of which are seeking full communion with the Catholic Church under the Apostolic (Papal) Constitution, ''Anglicanorum Coetibus''. McCarthy has appeared in cases in the High Court on native title, trade practices and electoral matters. He has also appeared in several cases in relation to the
NRMA The NRMA (trading name of National Roads and Motorists' Association) is an Australian organisation offering roadside assistance, advocacy for motorists and road-users, motoring advice, car servicing, International Driving Permits, travel, and ...
and
the Co-op Bookshop The Co-op was an academic and professional non-profit books retailer in Australia, founded in 1958 before closing in the first half of 2020. History The Co-op was established by students led by the late Malcolm Broun, Celtophile, bibliophile ...
. He was also senior counsel during the revision of their constitutions and rules. Other important cases in which he has appeared include the
Maralinga Maralinga is a desert area around large located in the west of South Australia, within the Great Victoria Desert. The area is best known for being the location of several British nuclear tests in the 1950s. In January 1985, in recognition of ...
and Voyager compensation cases (1991–95). McCarthy has appeared in ICAC inquiries, a
Royal Commission A royal commission is a major ad-hoc formal public inquiry into a defined issue in some monarchies. They have been held in the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Norway, Malaysia, Mauritius and Saudi Arabia. In republics an equi ...
and similar public investigations and inquiries. McCarthy became senior counsel for the Labor Party in NSW in 1988. He appeared for the ALP in courts of disputed returns, electoral boundary commissions and supreme court proceedings. He also advised the ALP National Secretariat on legal and constitutional issues.


Other professional and community service

McCarthy has received a number of statutory appointments, including the Legal Aid Commission of New South Wales (Review Committee),
Administrative Decisions Tribunal of New South Wales The Administrative Decisions Tribunal of New South Wales (ADT) was established in 1997 and was replaced in 2014 by the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT). It did not have general jurisdiction, but had various jurisdictions conferred by ...
(Legal Services Division),
University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD) is a public university, public research university in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in both Australia and Oceania. One of Australia's six sandstone universities, it was one of the ...
Senate,
Sydney Cricket Ground Trust The Sydney Cricket and Sports Ground Trust (popularly known as the Sydney Cricket Ground Trust or SCG Trust) was an agency of the Government of New South Wales that operated the Sydney Cricket Ground and Sydney Football Stadium in Sydney, New So ...
,
Australian Law Reform Commission The Australian Law Reform Commission (often abbreviated to ALRC) is an Australian independent statutory body established to conduct reviews into the law of Australia. The reviews, also called inquiries or references, are referred to the ALRC by ...
, Olympic Games Sydney 2000 and Museum of Contemporary Art (Sydney). Other offices in which McCarthy has served include Pro-Chancellor University of Sydney (2005–10), President of the St Thomas More Society – the Guild of Catholic Lawyers (1993-05), Board Member of St Margaret's Hospital, Sydney (1997–99), and Australian Board member of international Catholic charity
Aid to the Church in Need Aid to the Church in Need (, , ) is an international Catholic pastoral aid organization, which yearly offers financial support to more than 5,000 projects worldwide. Aid to the Church in Need's General Secretariat and Project Headquarters is in ...
(1994–present). Since 2007 he has been a member of the
Order of Malta The Sovereign Military Order of Malta (SMOM), officially the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, of Rhodes and of Malta, and commonly known as the Order of Malta or the Knights of Malta, is a Catholic Church, Cathol ...
. He is a co-founder of the Chester A. Arthur Society. McCarthy has been a member of
Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party (ALP), also known as the Labor Party or simply Labor, is the major Centre-left politics, centre-left List of political parties in Australia, political party in Australia and one of two Major party, major parties in Po ...
(ALP) since 1963. He has been a branch official, NSW Conference delegate, National Conference delegate and a member of ALP policy committees. In 2006, McCarthy received a Papal Knighthood, being appointed Knight Commander of the
Order of St Gregory the Great The Pontifical Equestrian Order of St. Gregory the Great (; ) was established on 1 September 1831, by Pope Gregory XVI, seven months after his election as Pope. The order is one of the five orders of knighthood of the Holy See. The honor is b ...
by the Holy See for services to the Catholic Church and the wider Australian community. In 2012, he received an honorary award from the University of Sydney when he was appointed an Honorary Fellow of the University.


Ambassador to the Holy See

On 29 April 2012, Australian prime minister,
Julia Gillard Julia Eileen Gillard (born 29 September 1961) is an Australian former politician who served as the 27th prime minister of Australia from 2010 to 2013. She held office as the leader of the Labor Party (ALP), having previously served as the ...
, and foreign minister,
Bob Carr Robert John Carr (born 28 September 1947) is an Australian retired politician and journalist who served as the 39th Premier of New South Wales from 1995 to 2005, as the leader of the New South Wales Labor Party, New South Wales branch of the A ...
, announced the appointment of McCarthy as Australia's Ambassador to the Holy See. McCarthy discussed the position with ''The Catholic Weekly'': "It is always a privilege and an honour to be called on to represent your country. I am thankful to our Government for the opportunity to represent Australia in this important role in this great place, and to be able to go with Christine to the Eternal City and to have the occasion, opportunity and the presence of the Holy Father (i.e., the Pope) to put Australia’s case and to represent my country in that way. I am on a 90-degree learning curve, I learn more every day. Ambassadors to the Holy See go back into the fable of time. The journey I undertake for Australia is the oldest continuous political journey in the world and in history. It goes back to the fourth century of the Christian era." Acknowledging his predecessor in Rome: "
Tim Fischer Timothy Andrew Fischer (3 May 1946 – 22 August 2019) was an Australian politician and diplomat who served as leader of the National Party of Australia, National Party from 1990 to 1999. He was the tenth Deputy Prime Minister of Australia, d ...
is a benchmark; he is also a challenge. There are some challenges I will not take up. I will never compete with Tim about trains and about the range of hats that I may have. However, I do hope to follow him in being able to put to the dicasteries and congregations of the Holy See, positions that Australia has on human rights, inter-faith dialogue, food security, peace in our world and region, all areas in which the Holy See has influence." Taking up his posting in August 2012, McCarthy presented his diplomatic credentials to Pope Benedict XVI on 5 November 2012. He led the development of St Peters Cricket Club in 2013 and then the
Vatican Cricket Team The Vatican Cricket Team is an amateur cricket club established by the Vatican for the Catholic Church to foster ties where the sport is popular, such as the British Commonwealth including India and the Caribbean, thereby encouraging inter-fait ...
in 2014. McCarthy concluded his mission to the Holy See on 29 January 2016. McCarthy was appointed a
Member 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 ...
in the 2025 King's Birthday Honours for "significant service to the Catholic Church in Australia, to the law, and to sports administration".


Family life

McCarthy married Christine Anne Slattery in the Chapel of St John's College, University of Sydney in 1973, and was married for 50 years until Christine's death in November 2023. Christine McCarthy DSS was an accomplished musician, concert pianist, accompanist and composer, the National Convenor of the Society for Eucharistic Adoration, served on the Liturgical Commission for the
Archdiocese of Sydney The Archdiocese of Sydney () is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church. Its episcopal see is Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Erected in 1842, the archdiocese is the metropolitan see for the suffragan ...
, and wrote and lectured extensively on Catholic themes. The McCarthys have three daughters and three sons, Theresa, Claire, Anthony, James, Helena and Gerard. Their second daughter,
Claire McCarthy Claire McCarthy is an Australian screenwriter, director, producer, and visual artist. Early life McCarthy was born in Sydney, the daughter of Christine, an author and concert pianist, and John McCarthy KC. She attended Meriden School in ...
is an acclaimed Australian film director. Their second son, Father James McCarthy, is a priest of the Archdiocese of Sydney; he studied for the priesthood in Rome and was ordained in 2009.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McCarthy, John A. 1947 births Living people Australian King's Counsel Ambassadors of Australia to the Holy See Australian people of Irish descent Knights Commander of the Order of St Gregory the Great Members of the Order of Australia People from Parkes, New South Wales 20th-century King's Counsel University of Sydney alumni University of Virginia School of Law alumni