Kenneth Grenville Gee QC (17 March 1915 – 20 January 2008) was an Australian judge and barrister.

Background

Gee was born in Auburn to solicitor Dion Gee and Emmeline, ''née'' Grenville. He was educated at Homebush Primary School and

Fort Street Boys' High School Fort Street High School (FSHS) is a Education in Australia#Government schools, New South Wales government run, Mixed-sex school, co-educational, Selective school (New South Wales), academically selective, secondary school, secondary day school, ...

, and then studied law 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 ...

, graduating with a

Bachelor of Law 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 ...

in 1937. Becoming a solicitor, he was initially a member of the Labor Party, but his

Marxism Marxism is a political philosophy and method of socioeconomic analysis. It uses a dialectical and materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to analyse class relations, social conflict, ...

saw him expelled during Jack Lang's purges. Invited to join the

Communist Party of Australia The Communist Party of Australia (CPA), known as the Australian Communist Party (ACP) from 1944 to 1951, was an Australian communist party founded in 1920. The party existed until roughly 1991, with its membership and influence having been ...

, he declined because of the Nazi–Soviet Pact and instead he joined the tiny

Trotskyist Trotskyism (, ) is the political ideology and branch of Marxism developed by Russian revolutionary and intellectual Leon Trotsky along with some other members of the Left Opposition and the Fourth International. Trotsky described himself as an ...

Communist League. In 1941 he abandoned the law to work as an organiser for the League, led by Nick Origlass and Jack Wishart; during this period he worked as a boilermaker's labourer and was known as "Comrade Roberts". He had been friends at school with John Kerr, a future

Governor-General Governor-general (plural governors-general), or governor general (plural governors general), is the title of an official, most prominently associated with the British Empire. In the context of the governors-general and former British colonies, ...

; he had by this stage regular contacts with

Laurie Short Laurence Elwyn Short (15 December 1915 – 24 March 2009) was an Australian trade union leader and leading figure in the Australian Labor Party (ALP). Short was the national secretary of the Federated Ironworkers' Association (FIA), now part of ...

and

Jim McClelland James Robert McClelland (3 June 1915 – 16 January 1999) was an Australian lawyer, politician, and judge. He was a member of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) and served as a Senator for New South Wales from 1971 to 1978. He briefly held minist ...

, who would go on to significant careers in ALP politics.

Family life

Gee married pharmacist Isobel Russell in 1940. Their three children included the novelist

Kate Grenville Catherine Elizabeth Grenville (born 1950) is an Australian author. She has published fifteen books, including fiction, non-fiction, biography, and books about the writing process. In 2001, she won the Orange Prize for Fiction, Orange Prize for ...

. He and Isobel later divorced, and Gee remarried Elaine Hearn, with whom he also had a child.

Politics

Abandoning the Communist League in 1945, Gee returned to his legal practice; he was called to the Bar in 1947 and became crown prosecutor. In 1949 he rejoined the Labor Party and stood unsuccessfully in the federal election for the safe

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * Generally, a supporter of the political philosophy liberalism. Liberals may be politically left or right but tend to be centrist. * An adherent of a Liberal Party (See also Liberal parties by country ...

seat of Bradfield. In 1973 he was appointed

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 ...

and he became a judge on the

District Court District courts are a category of courts which exists in several nations, some call them "small case court" usually as the lowest level of the hierarchy. These courts generally work under a higher court which exercises control over the lower co ...

in 1975, serving until his retirement in 1985. He was occupied in semi-retirement as a member of the Serious Offenders Review Board and a consultant to the Judicial Commission. In later years Gee's political views altered; he became an anti-communist, supporting the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

and the nationalists in

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...

. His publications included a memoir, ''Comrade Roberts: Recollections of a Trotskyite'' (2006); a novel, ''A Maid from Heaven'' (1966); and a non-fiction work, ''The Saving of South Vietnam'' (1972).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gee, Ken 1915 births 2008 deaths Australian barristers Australian King's Counsel 20th-century Australian judges University of Sydney alumni Judges of the District Court of NSW Lawyers from Sydney