Farewell McHugh (1 Viewer)

[ManlyChief]

Howdie there all,
I just got this notice from SULS about one of the final addresses by Justice McHugh. I say you should all be welcome - it is a 'public' forum after all - and so I am reproducing the notice below.
Hope you can come, hugs and love

SULS Public Forums 2005 Final Address

The Hon. Justice Michael H. McHugh AC, High Court of Australia​

The Final Address of the Sydney University Law Society's Public Forums programme for this year will be delivered by retiring High Court judge the Hon Justice Michael H. McHugh AC of the High Court of Australia next week on Wednesday 12th October at 1.00pm in the Assembly Hall, Sydney Law School.

After seventeen years serving as a Justice of the High Court, the Forum will mark one of His Honour’s final public engagements before the conclusion of his distinguished term at the end of this month. All staff and students are invited to attend this event.

Thank you to the Faculty and the many students who have supported the Public Forums programme and the Law Society throughout the year. For more information on other events, please visit the SULS website at http://www.suls.org.au

 

[prosaic]

Thanks for that - indeed it's sad to see him go.

What is the forum on? Hopefully he'll answer some questions re: pure economic loss...

 

[ManlyChief]

Thanks for that - indeed it's sad to see him go.

What is the forum on? Hopefully he'll answer some questions re: pure economic loss...

Hmmm ... good question, I'm not too sure, but I'll go anyway.

Maybe he will be able to tell us more on Gleeson's Dopplegaenger

 

[MoonlightSonata]

I want to go... but I have a moot Wednesday night and I'll probably be preparing for it. But maybe I can spare some time during the day and visit my old pal USYD..

 

[ManlyChief]

I want to go... but I have a moot Wednesday night and I'll probably be preparing for it. But maybe I can spare some time during the day and visit my old pal USYD..

Oh do. I'll make sure someone puts on the kettle for tea and crumpets.

It shall be ever so grand.
Hug.

 

[MoonlightSonata]

I have the Gleeson frowning disease, I am told - look for a disgruntled looking, brown/blonde haired young fellow in a black, pinstriped suit

Where is the assembly hall?

 

[ManlyChief]

I have the Gleeson frowning disease, I am told - look for a disgruntled looking, brown/blonde haired young fellow in a black, pinstriped suit

Where is the assembly hall?

I prefer to think of Gleeson's frowns as a judicial "come hither and douse me with decided authority" pout.

I shall wear a white rose in the left button hole of my dinner jacket.

As for the Assembly Hall, it is in the dungeon of the St James' Campus Law School building, i.e. not on the main campus but in Philip Street in town. The doorway to the hall is on the Eastern side of the ground floor. Please refer to the map below (those of you who are alert will note that the composer of this particular map failed to include the 'old' part of the Supreme Court, next to St James' ... tisk tisk tisk)

Any bus going down Elizabeth Street will stop outside the building and the closest railway stations are Martin Place and St James'.

 

[MoonlightSonata]

I don't think I'll be able to make it - I am going insane on this moot problem

 

[Frigid]

I prefer to think of Gleeson's frowns as a judicial "come hither and douse me with decided authority" pout.

I shall wear a white rose in the left button hole of my dinner jacket.

how long is the speech? i'll come on lunch break if less than an hr!

 

[ManlyChief]

how long is the speech? i'll come on lunch break if less than an hr!

The forums are usually about a 50 minute address (or less if the speaker/audience gets bored, e.g. when kevin rudd came to address us last year - that man bored himself ...)

As for lunch - the NSW leagues club is next door ...

Interesting point - at a dinner party tonight it was said that you can tell the type of USyd law student by where they go for lunch:

(a) the level 5 caffeteria in the law school with a packed lunch (stingy nerd);
(b) the level 5 caffeteria in the law school buying your lunch from the Union outlet (nerd with a death wish);
(c) the Royal Botanic Gardens/Hyd Park/the Domain with a packed lunch (stingy but arty and 'free spirited');
(d) the nsw leagues club (cool);
(e) the library/assembly hall for a public forum/feminist legal theory group/special leave applications accross the road (nerdy nerd - congrats you will probably get the medal);
(f) the Lindt cafe or Cafe Silks or oysters down at the Quay (far too much money - are you full fee paying?);
(g) Cook+Philip swimming pool/gym and a protien shake (hot but stoopid - but hot, so that's ok, I'll still sleep with you); or
(h) Harry's Cafe de Wheels under centerpoint (you are either Gummow J or you have a cruch on him and want to see him 'without his robes on' is you catch my drift ...).

Who'd have thunk luncheon arrangements would yeild such accurate character analysis?

 

[BillytheFIsh]

Did you discuss what kind of law student it makes you if you sit around speaking about these things in social settings?

What kind of law student does it make you if you not only study law and work in the law, but post on a law-related website? *hangs head in shame*

Ah well... at least I'm getting paid to sit here and post.

 

[prosaic]

Oh, the woe of waking up way past the scheduled hour and not being able to find one's pants (a real practical problem, really).

Please post anything interesting which he'll have said.

Thanks, hope it'll be splendid .

 

[Frigid]

sorry i didn't go... i'm having a logistics nightmare at the moment organising witness examination... >.<

hopefully the address will be up here in a few days' time...

What kind of law student does it make you if you not only study law and work in the law, but post on a law-related website? *hangs head in shame*

in my opinion, it makes us - to borrow supermod anti's old personalised status - "overenthusiasticundergrads".

live.breathe.love.law. (btw i haven't done my readings in a while )

btw, two new speeches by Kirbz <3

Tribute to the Right Honourable Sir Harry Gibbs GCMG AC KBE at the Sir Harry Gibbs Mooting Competition, 10 October 2005 (pdf)

The Learning of Values: Memories of Strathfield North Primary School (pdf)

reading the latter, these little quotes brought a smile to my face:

"And so my time at North Strathfield Public School came to an end at the close of 1948. I transferred to Summer Hill Opportunity School. I had to walk to Strathfield Station and take the train to Summer Hill. The process of maturing and growing up was underway. It was quite a ting to travel alone by train from Strathfield to Summer Hill. But it was perfectly safe. The trains ran on time."

"Mr Casimir was not all bad. Well in advance of his time, he taught us in fourth class about the evils of smoking. It was a constant theme of his. It was unusual and memorable because such instruction was so rare at that time. My grandmother, Normie, smoked. But my parents did not. I did not really need Mr Casimir's instruction. Yet, years later, when I made my first furtive experiments with cigarettes, I am sure that my rejection of the weed was, in large part, because I felt Mr Casimir was standing nearby, brandishing his cane."

 

[BillytheFIsh]

Hehe... having never seen a "transcript" of a judge's speech on the net after having actually seen it I didn't realise how much they departed from it.

Makes sense though - what he said was much more light-hearted and he played to his audience well.

He cracked everyone up when he went through the titles of the Order of St Michael and St George:

CMG: Call Me God
KCMG: Kindly Call Me God
GCMG: God Calls me God

As for the "overenthusiasticundergrads" - I won't be one in 30 days! WOOOOYEEAAAHH

EDIT: Found this during my daily trawl of HC cases/transcripts:

McHugh Ceremonial Sitting

 

[capa]

Great judge! But, honestly, i'd like to see a change. His judgements were very black letter and were seldom creative (then again, I think a conservative judge is good for clear application and consistency). It would be nice to read a judgement on par with a great thinker like Kirby J though.

Anyone know who will replace McHugh J? I hear it is a female but I cannot recall.

Cheers

 

[hfis]

His judgements were very black letter and were seldom creative

I find there are two extremes with judgements. The first you have mentioned: boring and dry. Then you get wonderful, whimsical works of art like Denning LJ's "Cricket" judgement. Why oh why can't they find a nice, easy to read middle ground?

 

[ManlyChief]

He cracked everyone up when he went through the titles of the Order of St Michael and St George:

CMG: Call Me God
KCMG: Kindly Call Me God
GCMG: God Calls me God

I hope his Honour properly credited this witticism to Yes Minister where it came from (spoken by Bernard Wolley, if I'm not mistaken in the episode 'Doing the Honours'). I would hate to add plagarism to my already extensive list of Kirby Naughties.

Great judge! But, honestly, i'd like to see a change. His judgements were very black letter and were seldom creative (then again, I think a conservative judge is good for clear application and consistency). It would be nice to read a judgement on par with a great thinker like Kirby J though.

Personally, I don't actually have a problem with 'black letter law'. Judicial creativity has limited validity and utility. Give me Gummow or Dixon over Kirby any day.

 

[Meldrum]

Dicks-on and Cum-oww? Over Kirby?

That's odd. Real odd.

 

[ManlyChief]

Pish posh. VOX DIXONI, VOX DEI. Seriously.

And seriously, Gummow is the intellectual heavy weight of the current court.

And he looks soooooo cute with his bald head peeking over the bench.

 

[Meldrum]

And seriously, Gummow is the intellectual heavy weight of the current court.

And he looks soooooo cute with his bald head peeking over the bench.

See, that's the problem. His heavy weight and bald head are starting to turn him bland. He's begining to remind me of George Costanza.

I refer to the famed Serenity Now and Shrinkage decisions of the late 90's.