After practising law for 50 years, one can be excused for going over the set speech time – and that’s what two Gold Coast lawyers did at the recent Queensland Law Society Celebrate Recognise Socialise event.
Robert Boston and Dennis Standfield celebrated 50 years in the profession together with eight lawyers who received 25-year pins from QLS President Genevieve Dee at the Burleigh Heads function.
Dennis, a Partner at Gall Standfield & Smith, started his speech by joking about the length of time that Robert, a consultant and former Partner of Steindls Lawyers & Notary, had spoken for.
“Last week when I was advised that we would have to give a few words – I think it was two minutes,” Dennis said. “I know Robert went over that time. I am going to do the same.
“Certainly, this has crept up on me, believe it or not, and the memories that go back for me are, of course, everyone that has helped me with my career which is still continuing.”
Dennis told the audience that his career got off to an interesting start as a 16-year-old encyclopaedia salesman.
“And one day in I knew it wasn’t made for that,” he said. “On the train back someone told me they were an article clerk and I asked ‘what is that?’
“And he told me and I said, ‘I know Perry Mason, I see him on TV, I’ll try that job’.
“In 1970 it was easy to get jobs. It was. You could just walk into offices and get a job.”
He headed to Ipswich and secured work at Dale & Fallu, a firm dating back to the 1930s, for the “princely wage of $17.10 a week”.
During that time Dennis said he overheard university students, who sometimes did stints in the office, talking about him.
“One said to another one there ‘what’s Dennis whinging about – $17.10 an hour is not too bad,” he recalled to much laughter.
“It was a week not an hour.”
In 1976 he was asked to join the Legal Aid Office in Ipswich and later became Senior Legal Officer in Charge at the Legal Aid Office on the Gold Coast.
He toyed with the idea of taking a position in the Solomon Islands but instead went into private practice.
Dennis said he was planning to retire after doing some calculations.
“I was working out the figures. I’ve spent 75 per cent of my life in legal offices – that’s a long time,” he said.
He said he was enjoying his time on the family farm, spending time with grandchildren – confirming with his wife Gloria that there are seven of them – and working with young lawyers coming through the ranks and “telling them some old stories”.
Dennis also celebrated his 50th wedding anniversary this month with Gloria, who attended the function.
Robert also had family support in the room with his brother Warren, who is a still a Partner in the firm and who also celebrated 50 years in the profession last year.
Until his retirement, Robert managed the litigation practice and then handed over his role to Matthew Jones, who did his undergraduate training at Steindls under Robert’s mentorship and guidance.
“I must confess I haven’t done much practising over the last couple of years since I’ve become a consultant,” Robert said.
“But it’s important for me to maintain my practising certificate just in case they ask me to come back.
“To reflect on 50 years of practising as a solicitor I suppose one must be grateful for not falling foul of the QLS. That’s a real achievement.”
On a more serious note, Robert expressed his gratitude to the senior Partners – brother Warren and Gerry Epstein – for their “years of dedication to the practice and our partnership”.
“The three of us were together as partners for 42 years, until my retirement,” he said.
“There were sometimes bumpy years but always interesting. I wish them well, particularly Mathew Jones and Harley Ward, who were trainee solicitors.
“They are very good men, and I am very proud of their achievements.”
He also wished to recognise and express gratitude “to those solicitors who were of considerable influence to me as a young, articled clerk and junior solicitor”.
They included “real gentlemen” – John O’Connor, his partners Charlie Seymour and Tom Nolte.
Robert also made a “special mention” of another master from Nambour Sam Welsh – “a man of great kindness and humility who used to tell stories of his years as a prisoner of war of the Japanese in the Changi prison. That’s how long ago it was”.
“He left a deep impression on me of the sacrifice that men like Sam made for their country,” he said.
“And lastly Mr Tony Steindl, he was the founder of our firm obviously, and he established the firm having returned from war service. He was a great gentleman and a mentor to Warren, and Gerry and I. And it was an honour and privilege to be working with him, and for him.
“I’d finally like to express my gratitude to my wife Donna for almost 40 years of marriage, four children and selfless support to myself and family.”
The 25-year medal recipients were:
John Campbell
A graduate of Bond University with a Bachelor of Laws, John has more than 20 years of experience in dispute resolution.
John has mediated and represented clients in a broad spectrum of matters from straightforward disputes to complex, multi-party cases involving significant financial stakes and sensitive political issues.
His clientele includes individuals, corporations, charities, and government bodies, with appearances before all Queensland courts and various specialist tribunals and commissions.
John is Principal of National Mediation and Dispute Resolution Consultancy and has been a member of the QLS Dispute Resolution committee since 2012.
In addition to his legal practice, John is actively involved in teaching, training, and coaching for government departments and leading universities.
Karen Dobozy
Karen graduated Griffith University in 1997 with a Bachelor of Laws / Japanese and also completed a year-long exchange at Seikei University in Tokyo.
Karen started her articles with McCullough Robertson in their Gold Coast office in early 1998, and stayed with them, practising property law, corporate/commercial law, and estate planning until the closure of their Gold Coast office in early 2003 and started with MinterEllison (Gold Coast), now Redemont, and has been there ever since.
Karen’s career focus has shifted to becoming more involved in the growth of the next generation of lawyers.
Paul Hamilton
Originally from North Queensland, Paul began his legal career as an articled clerk at McKays Solicitors after graduating with an LLB (Hons) from the University of Queensland in 1998.
Admitted as a solicitor in 2000 Paul has worked exclusively in criminal defence since 2003.
After relocating to the Gold Coast in 2005, Paul joined Price & Roobottom (now Potts Lawyers), later working with Anderson Fredericks Turner before joining Legal Aid Queensland in 2021.
Gina Hughes
A graduate of Bond University with Honours in 1998, Gina was admitted to practice in January 2001. Establishing her own practice in 2004, she has built a thriving practice at Mermaid Beach, focusing on property law, family law, commercial matters, and Wills and Estates.
Gina is a passionate supporter of the arts, sponsoring an annual creative writing contest, and has proudly assisted the Hungarian community in Brisbane with legal matters, drawing on her heritage and bilingual expertise.
A pioneer of remote work, she enjoys travelling with her family and has worked from locations as diverse as Ayers Rock and Mt Fuji.
Ross Lee
Ross graduated from QUT in 2000 with a Bachelor of Laws.
He is a nationally accredited mediator and a skilled litigation advocate, handling disputes across commercial, property, building, body corporate, insolvency, estate, and civil matters.
Ross also has a strong background in insurance law and holds accredited as an ANZIIF Certified Insurance Professional.
Ross is a past president of the Gold Coast Law Association, a QLS Senior Counsellor, and the founding president of My Community Legal. Ross continues to serve the community as the governing director of the Mudgeeraba Foundation.
Ian MacAllan
A graduate of QUT, Ian is the Principal of MacAllan Lawyers, a firm he established in 2003 on Tamborine Mountain, where he’s lived for the past 25 years.
Ian works extensively in the areas of wills and estates, conveyancing, and family law, and has a passion for providing strategic trust and estate planning advice.
Ian is very involved in the Tamborine Mountain community regularly performing pro-bono work for clients in need and contributing his legal expertise to assist local not-for-profit associations and community groups.
Carolyn Salam
Carolyn is an Associate Professor of Law in Environmental Law at Bond University, where she was a University Gold Medallist and international law moot coach. She has been a visiting lecturer at Nagoya University’s Graduate School of Law program in Cross-Border Institutional Design, delivering a postgraduate statutory drafting intensive.
Carolyn is a UDIA Women in Development Excellence Award winner.
She sits on the UDIA Queensland Supply, Planning, and Environment Committee and on the Queensland Environmental Law Association Legislation and Policy Review Sub-Committee.
Simon Taylor
A graduate of the University of Queensland, Simon began his legal career in plaintiff insurance litigation in Sydney before returning to Queensland in 2001, drawn by his love of the beach and surfing.
From 2006 he transitioned into commercial litigation and local government prosecution, and in 2018 started Gold Coast Litigation Lawyers to focus exclusively on commercial and litigation matters.
Simon is the Queensland Chapter President of the Australian Lawyers Surfing Association and values lifestyle and happiness as central to his professional journey.
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