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Phillips, John Harber --- "ALRAC: the history" [2000] ALRCRefJl 17; (2000) 76 Australian Law Reform Commission Reform Journal 94


Reform Issue 76 Autumn 2000

This article appeared on pages 94 – 95 & 99 of the original journal.

ALRAC: the history

By Chief Justice John Harber Phillips*

As this issue of Reform is published, the 19th ALRAC conference will be held in Perth. Its theme is Globalisation and law reform: cooperation through technology. It is time, I think, for a history of ALRAC itself. I am no Edward Gibbon, but I shall do my best.

The first Australian Law Reform Agencies Conference (ALRAC) was held in Sydney on 13 and 14 April 1973. The New South Wales Law Reform Commission was the host agency. The Chairman of that Commission, Mr Justice Meares, was elected Chairman of the conference and there seems to be little doubt that ALRAC was his initiative. Among the subjects discussed at the conference were the constitutions of Australian and overseas law reform agencies; cooperation between agencies; a proposed Australian Law Reform Commission and relations with the media. It was agreed that a further conference would be held in about two years.

The second ALRAC was held in April 1975, again in Sydney. By this time, the Australian Law Reform Commission had been formed and its Chairman, Justice Michael Kirby, who was to play such a prominent role in law reform in succeeding years, was in attendance. A Victorian Law Reform Commissioner had also been appointed and was present. He was Mr TW Smith QC, the greatly respected father of my colleague on the Supreme Court of Victoria. Dr Robin Sharwood attended by invitation of the Victorian Law Foundation and there were overseas guests from the United States and Canada. Mr Justice Meares was again elected as Chairman of the conference. Discussions included law reform in Australia and overseas, and uniform laws.

In May 1976, the third ALRAC was held in Canberra. The list of participants was now greatly expanded and representatives attended from New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Canada, Fiji, Malaysia, Mauritius and several African countries. Justice Kirby was elected conference chairman. A delegation of 12 attended from the Commonwealth Attorney-General’s Department and the conference was opened by the Hon RJ Ellicot QC, the Attorney-General. The then Dr D Malcolm, Chairman of the Western Australian Law Reform Commission (now Chief Justice Malcolm AC) presented a paper.

The fourth ALRAC returned to Sydney in July 1977. I have not been able to discover why the interval between conferences was abbreviated, but I have noted that the 19th Australian Legal Convention followed immediately after the ALRAC and this may have been the beginning of an association which was continued in later years. The conference proposed an ‘Australian Law Reform Digest’.

Perth was the venue for the fifth ALRAC in June 1979. The conference was opened by the Chief Justice, Sir Francis Burt. Mr Justice Zelling and Mr Justice Wootten gave complementary papers: ‘Law Reform in Retrospect - the Achievements’ and ‘Law Reform in Prospect - the Possibilities’. Justice Kirby spoke on ‘International Cooperation in Law Reform’. Again, many law reformers from overseas attended including a Dr Olivier, a Conseiller in the Cour de Cassation in Paris.

In July 1981, law reformers journeyed to Hobart for the sixth ALRAC. The conference was addressed by Sir Michael Kerr, the Chairman of the Law Commission for England and Wales. He spoke on the ‘Political Aspects of Law Reform’. The conference resolved to accept a new procedure for the notification to participate in agencies of new references and new research programs. The conference also resolved that the seventh ALRAC be held in Adelaide in 1982, as indeed it was, on Friday 24 September. Chief Justice King opened the conference. A major paper was given by the then Professor Sackville (now Justice Sackville), the Chairman of the Law Commission of New South Wales. His topic was ‘Some Reflections on the Role of the Law Reform Commission’. The paper led to wide-ranging discussion among the participants.

The eighth ALRAC was held in Brisbane in July 1983. The then Commonwealth Attorney-General, the Hon Gareth Evans, spoke on ‘Uniform Law Reform and the Case for a National Law Reform Advisory Council’. Mr HH Jackson, of the Western Australian Law Reform Commission presented a paper ‘The Cost Effectiveness of Law Reform Methods’. Justice Kirby advised that the ‘Law Reform Digest’ had been published and would be launched after the conference by the Attorney-General.

In June 1984, the ALRAC returned to Sydney for the ninth conference. Among the leading papers was one presented by Mr James Spigelman (presently Chief Justice Spigelman of New South Wales) on ‘Sanctions and Remedies in Law Reform’. It was resolved to hold the 10th ALRAC in Melbourne on 7 August 1985 to coincide with the Australian Legal Convention. When this conference was held its themes were ‘Community Law Reform’ and ‘Codification’. Justice Kirby, now President of the New South Wales Court of Appeal and honoured by Her Majesty The Queen, Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George, spoke on the design of a law reform research project.

The 11th ALRAC was the first to be held outside Australia. Its venue was Wellington, New Zealand, and it was hosted by the recently constituted New Zealand Law Commission. Its President, the Rt Hon Sir Owen Woodhouse, welcomed the delegates. The President of the ALRC, the Hon Xavier Connor AO QC, spoke on ‘Aspirations of Law Reformers’. The conference resolved that the ALRC seek discussions with the Commonwealth Attorney-General concerning proposals for collaboration between the ALRC and the Standing Committee of Attorneys-General.

Perth was again the venue for the 12th ALRAC in September. The theme of the conference was cooperation between law reform agencies. Professor David Kelly, Chairperson of the Victorian Law Reform Commission, listed a number of areas where duplication had already occurred in Australasian law reform efforts. This ALRAC was the first to be opened by a High Court Judge, Justice Toohey, and Lord Ackner, Lord of Appeal in Ordinary, gave a paper on the ‘English Procedure for Judicial Review’.

The Australian Law Reform Commission hosted the 13th ALRAC in Canberra on 3 September 1988. The newly appointed Tasmanian Law Reform Commissioner Mr Justice Cosgrove attended. Ms Helen Gamble, the Chair of the NSWLRC, provided a paper on ‘Interstate Agency Cooperation’.

With a theme of ‘The Commissions of the 1990s - What does the future hold?’ the 14th ALRAC was held in Sydney in August 1989. Mr Jack Goldring, an ALRC Commissioner and a revered figure in law reform, addressed the question of its privatisation. The President of the NZLC, Sir Owen Woodhouse, noted that it had been agreed in the past that a Committee be established by Australian and New Zealand Law Reform Agencies (it was not until 1996 that the Council of Australian and New Zealand Law Reform was formed).

It was my great pleasure to attend the ALRAC in Hobart in 1993 as a representative of the then fledgling Victorian Law Reform Advisory Council. (The Victorian Law Reform Commission had been abolished.) It was there that I met our host, Professor Don Chalmers, and his able assistant, Ms Allison Trimble. Together they formed the Tasmanian Law Reform Commissioner’s Office. They may have been small in number, but their enthusiasm and output was very substantial. It was a rewarding experience to work with them in succeeding years.

I was honoured to be a co-Chairman of the ALRAC held in Melbourne in September 1997. My colleague was Victor Perton MP, the Chair of the Victorian Parliamentary Law Reform Committee. The conference was opened by Sir Zelman Cowen. Law students debated with gusto for the Michael Kirby Trophy. Justice Robert French spoke on ‘Law Reform and Indigenous Rights’. A feature of this ALRAC was the very large contingent of overseas participants. Justice David Baragwanath, President of the New Zealand Law Commission, spoke on the impact to that country of human rights legislation and Dr Bhadra Ranchod, South African High Commissioner, spoke on ‘South Africa’s Experience’ in the session devoted to overcoming discrimination against Indigenous people.

I very much regret that it has not been possible to have mentioned by name the very many participants who have also made significant contributions to the ALRAC series. But I hope I have conveyed, by the mention of individuals and topics, the breadth and vitality of the conferences. Mr Justice Meares would be truly proud of his brainchild.

* The Hon Justice John Harber Phillips AC is the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Victoria. He is also Chairman of the Australian and New Zealand Council of Law Reform.


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