As lawmakers, judges find themselves in a very unique position of privilege and power.Once appointed, judges are free to act and make decisions independently from the executive arm of government, and without the influence of ‘blood, guns and money’ (as Michael Kirby put it in his address to ANU students on Monday 13 October). Michael Kirby is a fine example of a judge who has not been afraid to depart from precedent where he considers that the law is in serious need of reform.
The judge has consistently decided cases before him with several questions in mind: will we, in twenty or thirty years from now, look back to the present day and say that the courts acted fairly towards its citizens and non-citizens? That the lawmakers respected and valued the place in society of the Aboriginal people, of women, of gays, and of immigrants? Or will we wonder at the backwardness of our legal system – in a so-called modern country.
This is a man who has acted in a position of power with a clean conscience. His background is interesting in that he is the only High Court judge who has been educated entirely through the public schooling system. With a family upbringing that exposed him to minority cultures and political dissent from an early age, Kirby has approached legal matters with greater sensitivity and social conscience than may have been possible without these rich life experiences.
This has led me to hope that through careful selection of appointed judges, more diversity will someday find its way to the Bench to lift the heavy weight of conservatism that is the current flavour of majority judgments.
It would be great to see more dissenting opinions that show that Judges are properly debating the issues before them.
All the best to Virginia Bell in filling a rather large pair of boots – boots that have trodden down many a road less travelled in search of a just and fair community – and in bringing fresh thinking to her decisions. A competent and compassionate judge is one whose decisions strike a balance between head and heart. Bell’s contributions to date with respect to fair application of the law appear to be a promising start.