New Judges
The appointment of new judges has continued unabated. On 5th October, Justice Logan was sworn in as a Justice of the Federal Court, and I had the privilege of representing the Association at that ceremony. A copy of my remarks is included in this edition.
As I then recorded, the Association’s thanks are due to Justice Logan for the very substantial contributions he made to our profession and the affairs of the Association, including as Chairman of our Public Law Committee, as Deputy Chairman of our Continuing Professional Development Committee, as a participant in the CPD program and at the Bar Practice Course, and as a director of Barristers Services Pty Ltd.
Justice Murphy was sworn in as a Justice of the Family Court on 11th October. Michael Stewart SC represented the Association on that occasion, and his speech will appear in the November edition. Similarly, my remarks on the occasion of the swearing-in of Justice McMeekin yesterday as a Judge of the Supreme Court of Queensland will be published then.
Silk
In view of the public interest in the appointment of senior counsel, it might be useful for me to say a few words about the process.
It is the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court who decides whether any senior counsel are to be appointed in Queensland, and, if so, who, but those decisions are made by the Chief Justice only after a very extensive, and intensive, consultation process. Full details of this process are set out in the Appointment and Consultation Protocol and the Criteria for Appointment of Senior Counsel, both of which documents are published on the Association website at http://www.qldbar.asn.au/.
Members of the Bar (and some others) are consulted at an early stage in the process, in the course of the preparation of a list of candidates who the Senior Counsel Consultation Group (the “SCCG”) suggests are suitable for consideration by the Chief Justice. The SCCG itself consists of barristers – the Association’s President and Vice-President (as ex officio members), and three Senior Counsel nominated by the President and approved by the Council, not more than one of whom may be a member of the Council.
This year the members of the SCCG (in addition to myself and the Vice-President) were Robert Mulholland QC, John Griffin QC (who replaced Jean Dalton SC when she became unavailable after her initial appointment) and Peter Ambrose SC.
If my memory is accurate, there were 42 applications this year. The form of the application (also published on the Association website) is very detailed, including provision for extensive details of the applicant’s experience and qualifications for appointment as senior counsel.
The SCCG sought comment about the relevant qualities of each of the applicants from some 600 or so people in the categories described in the Protocol: most, but not all, of those people are practising barristers. A very substantial number of those asked for comments responded to that request. A significant proportion of the responses were in a detailed written form, using or adapting a form of questionnaire sent out by the SCCG.
In evaluating information obtained through consultation, the members of the SCCG took into account only information relevant to the stated criteria for appointment and only that information which was within the personal knowledge of the person consulted.
Where necessary, members of the SCCG also spoke to persons consulted about their responses to obtain more detail, to clear up any ambiguities, and to ensure that comments were based on the consulted person’s personal knowledge.
The members of the SCCG analysed the applications by each of the 42 applicants and the responses received during the consultation process. The group met and discussed the applications and the responses, before finalising their list of candidates.
As required by the Protocol, the role of the SCCG concluded at the beginning of October, when I provided the Chief Justice with the list provided by the SCCG.
As this short summary indicates, the process was demanding and time consuming for the members of the SCCG. So far as the President and Vice-President are concerned, participation in this process is simply one of the requirements of those offices, but the other members simply volunteered when asked. They did so without hesitation, despite appreciating the burden involved.
On behalf of the Association I express my sincere thanks to the members of the SCCG for their willing and conscientious discharge of this professional obligation.
Costs Disclosure and Costs Agreements
It is obvious that barristers generally are keen to comply with the costs disclosure requirements of the Legal Profession Act 2007, as is reflected in the enthusiastic attendances at the CPDs on this topic held in Brisbane and, more recently, in Rockhampton and Townsville.
The Association is currently planning to hold a further CPD on this important matter before the end of the year in Brisbane, and hopefully also in Cairns if mutually convenient dates can be found.
In the meantime, members are reminded of our ethical obligations to comply with the costs disclosure regime currently in force under this legislation, and of the practical value of entering into costs agreements. The papers from the earlier CPD are on the Association’s website.
Volunteers
One of the hallmarks of a profession is that its members volunteer their own time to advance the profession’s aims for the good of the community. Active participation in the Association’s affairs is also one of the most obvious ways of maintaining the Bar’s ideals and its collegiate spirit.
It will be apparent from what I have already said that we are in the fortunate position that our members, including our senior silks, do readily volunteer for the necessary and difficult roles required by our profession.
On the other hand, over the last few months, the Bar has lost to the Bench some of our most substantial contributors to the Bar’s professional affairs. Although we can confidently expect that these new judges will continue to contribute as far as is consistent with their judicial responsibilities, their departures necessarily make room for new participants. It is very encouraging to report that some have already recognised this and contacted me to volunteer their services in particular area, and I have no doubt that this trend will continue.
Hugh Fraser
