A comparison to one of the world’s most influential common law judges reflected the standing of Justice Peter Applegarth in the profession, at his valedictory ceremony on Friday.
Chief Justice Helen Bowskill spoke about her retiring colleague with reverence and affection, likening his approach to that of Lord Atkin, of Donoghue v Stevenson fame.
“There are many parallels between Lord Atkin and Justice Applegarth, including their early starts at Magdalene College, Oxford,” she said.
“The description of Lord Atkin as a person whose humane and compassionate spirit was the most constant feature of his work, could be applied equally to Justice Applegarth.”
The packed ceremony in the Banco Court in Brisbane was attended by serving and retired judges of state and federal courts and tribunals, including High Court Justice James Edelman, Federal Court Justice Darryl Rangiah, and former Chief Justice Catherine Holmes.
Representatives from the profession spoke in glowing terms of Justice Applegarth, who before his appointment in 2008, practised as a barrister in Brisbane for almost 22 years, including eight as a silk.
Chief Justice Bowskill said His Honour’s enthusiasm for his work was obvious and infectious.
“Others speaking today will no doubt mention the many remarkable elements of Justice Applegarth’s CV. What they reveal is a person of unparalleled ability, as a legal scholar, practical lawyer, thoughtful judge and empathetic human being, with a generosity of not only spirit but action, demonstrated by his commitment to the discipline of law, to social justice and to the community,” she said.
She pointed out that at his swearing-in, he was described as an “intelligent and tenacious advocate, who put his heart into every case”, and this sparked concern that he might worry too much about the cases he had to decide.
“But it was observed that if that was the worst that could be said on his retirement from the court, the litigants of Queensland will have been well satisfied,” she said.
“Justice Applegarth has worried just the right amount about the cases he has had to decide and he has put his heart into every one of them.
“He has also contributed his brilliant legal mind and remarkable work ethic, producing many important judgments of this court in both the trial division and in the Court of Appeal, too many to do justice by isolating any.”
Chief Justice Bowskill also pointed to his education roles which included at the Academy of Law, University of Queensland Law School and Griffith University Law School; as well as his time with the Queensland Law Reform Commission, where he oversaw reviews of the state’s laws in relation to Voluntary Assisted Dying and the decriminalisation of the sex work industry.
Chief Justice Bowskill speaks at the ceremony.
“Justice Applegarth is a quite remarkable – one might even say unique – combination of academic scholar, fierce advocate, practical lawyer, brilliant writer and generous volunteer,” she said.
“He is also a most wonderful colleague whose hard work, kindness, generosity and support knows no bounds.
“Justice Applegarth’s many associates would no doubt all confirm that he has played a pivotal role in their development, not only as lawyers, but as deep-thinking members of society, and given His Honour’s many roles outside of the court, his positive influence on many young and not so young people cannot be underestimated.”
Attorney-General Yvette D’Ath said His Honour had dealt with most challenging parts of a judicial career with intellect, sensitivity and calm, even in the most complex, difficult and emotionally charged cases.
Queensland Bar Association President Damien O’Brien pointed to Justice Applegarth’s 2020 appointment as a Member of the Order of Australia for significant service to the law, judiciary and social justice.
“Your Honour has all the attributes one would want in a judge,” he said.
“Your Honour quickly identified the real issues, asked insightful and probing questions of both witness and counsel, was always practical and efficient in the running of a trial, and delivered timely judgments that succinctly identified and dealt with the issues that needed to be decided.
“Your Honour always dispensed justice without fear or favour and you did so with respect for the parties and the legal representatives who appeared before Your Honour.
“Despite bearing the heavy load that comes with being a Supreme Court judge, and all the work and personal sacrifice that necessarily involves, Your Honour has always been unfailingly polite and considerate to all those who appear before him.
“For all those reasons, it’s important that to be recorded here today at this public ceremony that the barristers of Queensland regard Your Honour as a truly great judge, a judge who is always reflective of the best of the judiciary.”
Queensland Law Society President Rebecca Fogerty said Justice Applegarth’s courtroom was “imbued with intellectual vitality and self-awareness”.
“In the demanding and sometimes solitary process of judging, Your Honour’s decisions are influential not only for their rationality and clarity, but because ultimately, Your Honour was interested in what was right and true,” she said.
“Your vast range of interests across law, literature and history enabled you, as a judge, to draw upon your significant knowledge in one field in support of analyses you developed in others. In Your Honour’s hands, law has context, structure, and exists with wonder. Your Honour’s judgments will endure.”
Justice Applegarth enjoyed a laugh at his farewell.
Justice Applegarth – who was once an associate to Justices John Macrossan and Jeffrey Spender – said he was initially reluctant to take on a judge role, considering judges to be in a “different league”, but admitted that joining the bench was one of the best decisions he had made.
He paid tribute to his many mentors, as well as his “sister judges and brother judges” including former Justices Ann Lyons and Phillip McMurdo; his associates and court staff.
“I wish to record my thanks to those who have appeared before me. I am sorry for interrupting you so much. This habit goes back to my childhood, and my mother’s side of the family who were very Irish and talkative. I learned at any early age that if you did not talk over the top of someone, you were never going to get a word in. That bad habit was been impossible to jettison,” he said.
“More seriously, your answers to my interrupting questions helped me make better decisions. My judgments relied on the quality of your submissions more than my independent research.”
His Honour thanked the many people who helped him to the point of being offered a judicial position.
“The work is unrelenting, and it has its share of stress and sadness. Many of the things that make the work stressful also make it satisfying. I am still addicted to the adrenaline rush of walking into a busy callover in the Applications List: the judicial equivalent of opening the batting in a T20 game,” he said.
He said he was always keen to produce a decision as soon as he reasonably could.
“The parties deserved it, and I knew that the judgments were not going to get any easier to write the longer I left them on the shelf,” he said.
“While none of my judgments was as good as I had planned, or as good as they could have been with more editing, I content myself that most of them were good enough.
“If, as we should, we assess our work by the standards of our more brilliant colleagues, then we are bound to be disappointed. But aspiring to meet their standards makes for better decisions and improves the quality of justice.”
The father of three and grandfather of two paid tribute to his social worker wife, who he said modelled the parenting that was so often missing for defendants in his court, and who was the major reason for his departure.
“One big reason I became a judge is because, as a very young child, I had a mother who read to me, and I had parents who made me feel secure and loved. I have been blessed to have been married for 40 years to a woman who reads to children and makes them feel loved,” he said.
“My work as a judge is nearly over. My work is not. Instead, I will be working from home.”
Share this article