Sir William Edward Stanley Forster (15 June 1921 – 31 January 1997) was an Australian judge. He was the first Chief Justice of the

Supreme Court of the Northern Territory The Supreme Court of the Northern Territory is the superior court for the Australian Territory of the Northern Territory. It has unlimited jurisdiction within the territory in civil matters, and hears the most serious criminal matters. It is a ...

holding that position from 1979 to 1985. Before that, he was the first (and only)

Chief Judge Chief judge may refer to: In lower or circuit courts The highest-ranking or most senior member of a lower court or circuit court with more than one judge. * Chief judge (Australia) * Chief judge (United States) In supreme courts Some of Chief ...

from 1977 to 1979 and Senior Judge from 1971 to 1977, all positions which were effectively the same.

Early life and education

William Edward Stanley Forster was born in

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

on 15 June 1921 and, after moving to

Adelaide Adelaide ( , ; ) is the list of Australian capital cities, capital and most populous city of South Australia, as well as the list of cities in Australia by population, fifth-most populous city in Australia. The name "Adelaide" may refer to ei ...

in 1929, attended

St Peter's College, Adelaide St Peter's College (officially The Anglican Church of Australia Collegiate School of Saint Peter, but commonly known as Saints) is an Private school, independent Anglican Church of Australia, Anglican Primary school, primary and Secondary school ...

. Forster graduated with 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 ...

from the

University of Adelaide The University of Adelaide is a public university, public research university based in Adelaide, South Australia. Established in 1874, it is the third-oldest university in Australia. Its main campus in the Adelaide city centre includes many Sa ...

. He was in the

Royal Australian Air Force The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) is the principal Air force, aerial warfare force of Australia, a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Australian Army. Constitutionally the Governor-Gener ...

from 1940 to 1946.

Career

Forster was lecturer of law and procedure and of

criminal law Criminal law is the body of law that relates to crime. It proscribes conduct perceived as threatening, harmful, or otherwise endangering to the property, health, safety, and Well-being, welfare of people inclusive of one's self. Most criminal l ...

from 1957 to 1958 at the University of Adelaide. Forster was a

magistrate The term magistrate is used in a variety of systems of governments and laws to refer to a civilian officer who administers the law. In ancient Rome, a '' magistratus'' was one of the highest ranking government officers, and possessed both judi ...

at the Adelaide Magistrates Court from 1959 to 1961. He was Deputy Master of the

Supreme Court of South Australia The Supreme Court of South Australia is the superior court of the Australian state of South Australia. The Supreme Court is the highest South Australian court in the Australian court hierarchy. It has unlimited jurisdiction within the state in ...

from 1961 to 1966, and Master from 1966 to 1971. He was District Registrar 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 ...

from 1966 to 1971 and before that was District Registrar from 1961 to 1966.

Northern Territory Supreme Court judge

Forster was appointed Senior Judge of the

on 28 June 1971 and replaced Justice Blackburn who had taken up appointment with the

Supreme Court of the Australian Capital Territory The Supreme Court of the Australian Capital Territory is the highest court of the Australian Capital Territory (ACT). It has unlimited jurisdiction within the territory in civil matters and hears the most serious criminal matters. The court ha ...

. After

Cyclone Tracy Severe Tropical Cyclone Tracy was a small but destructive tropical cyclone that devastated the city of Darwin, Northern Territory, Darwin, in the Northern Territory of Australia, in December 1974. The small but developing easterly storm was or ...

had destroyed Darwin in 1974, Justice Forster ensured the

was fully functional by March 1975.

Other roles and activities

Forster was a member of the Standing Committee Senate at the University of Adelaide from 1967 to 1971. He was a member of the Aboriginal Theatre Foundation from 1972 to 1975, and president of the Northern Territory division of the

Australian Red Cross Australian Red Cross, formally Australian Red Cross Society, is a humanitarian aid and community services charity in Australia. Tracing its history back to 1914 and being incorporated by royal charter in 1941, Australian Red Cross Society is ...

from 1973 to 1985. He chaired the board of the

Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory The Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory (MAGNT) is the main museum in the Northern Territory. The headquarters of the museum is located in the inner Darwin, Northern Territory, Darwin suburb of The Gardens, Northern Territory, The ...

from 1974 to 1985. He chaired the Northern Territory Parole Board from 1976 to 1985, and held a

dormant commission A dormant commission is a commission in a Commonwealth realm that lies dormant or sleeping until a particular event triggers it. A commission in this case means an appointment to a particular government office, which the reigning monarch of the ...

as Acting Administrator of the Northern Territory from 1976 to 1985. He was also a Justice of the

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 ...

from 1977 to 1989.

Awards and honours

Forster was honoured as a

Knight Bachelor The title of Knight Bachelor is the basic rank granted to a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not inducted as a member of one of the organised Order of chivalry, orders of chivalry; it is a part of the Orders, decorations, and medals ...

in 1982 for services to law, and was the only person to be

knight A knight is a person granted an honorary title of a knighthood by a head of state (including the pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church, or the country, especially in a military capacity. The concept of a knighthood ...

ed for services to the

Northern Territory The Northern Territory (abbreviated as NT; known formally as the Northern Territory of Australia and informally as the Territory) is an states and territories of Australia, Australian internal territory in the central and central-northern regi ...

Death and legacy

In 1976, Forster was responsible for the introduction of the "Anunga Rules" which, established guidelines for the interrogation of Aboriginal and non-English-speaking persons by

Northern Territory Police The Northern Territory Police Force is the police body that has legal jurisdiction over the Northern Territory of Australia. This police service has 1,607 police members (2021-22 financial year) made up of 83 senior sergeants, 228 sergeants, 912 ...

to ensure that admissions were voluntarily obtained. Forster was a champion of the local legal profession and upon his retirement expressed a wish that vacancies on the Bench be filled by local practitioners. All appointments to the Supreme Court from 1991 (other than that of Chief Justice

Brian Ross Martin Brian Ross Martin (born 2 September 1947) is an Australian jurist. He was a judge of the Supreme Court of South Australia before being appointed Chief Justice of the Northern Territory, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Northern Terri ...

in 2004) have been from the local profession. He retired in 1985 due to ill-health, and relocated to

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 ...

. He died on 31 January 1997. William Forster Chambers in Darwin now carries his name, being officially named by him on 30 October 1987, after his retirement.

References

External links

The Honourable William Edward Stanley Forster
at the Supreme Court of the Northern Territory
Sir William Forster (1921 - 1997)
Obituary by Tom Pauling QC {{DEFAULTSORT:Forster, William Australian Knights Bachelor Judges of the Federal Court of Australia Chief justices of the Northern Territory Judges of the Supreme Court of the Northern Territory People from Darwin, Northern Territory People educated at St Peter's College, Adelaide 20th-century Australian judges 1921 births 1997 deaths Judges of the Supreme Court of Christmas Island Judges of the Supreme Court of the Cocos (Keeling) Islands