The Mason Papers: Selected Articles and Speeches

Front Cover
Federation Press, 2007 - 442 pages
" There have been times when Australian court judgments have held enormous weight in courts throughout the world, certainly throughout the Commonwealth. Owen Dixon's High Court in the 1950s and Anthony Mason's High Court in the 1980s are examples. If there were an Olympic record for teams of judges - and why not since they have Olympic medals for tae kwon do and beach volleyball - the Mason court would have won gold year after year. The quality of its jurisprudence was the best in the world" - Geoffrey Robertson QC, Sydney Morning Herald, 30th August 2007.This book comprises a selection of articles and speeches by Sir Anthony Mason written and delivered when he was a Justice and later Chief Justice of the High Court of Australia and after his retirement from that Court in 1995. It demonstrates his long standing interest in the judicial process and his desire to communicate to the legal world and the public a more enlightened understanding of the proper scope of judicial law-making and the responsibility of judges for adapting the law to the changing conditions in society. It also displays his acknowledged mastery of public and private law and his belief in the growing significance of international and comparative law in the development of Australian law. The book contains some important speeches and articles on constitutional and administrative law, international law, human rights, equity and contract, the High Court, judicial administration, advocacy, a significant media interview, a State of the Judicature report delivered as the Chief Justice of Australia and his swearing in speeches when appointed as a Justice and later Chief Justice of the High Court. Some of the selected speeches display Sir Anthony's characteristic wit. The book deals with highly topical subjects such as whether Australia should adopt a bill of rights, the health of Australia's democratic institutions, the establishment of an Australian republic, globalization and the decline of parliamentary and national sovereignty. The articles and speeches were chosen and edited by Professor Geoffrey Lindell in consultation with Sir Anthony.

From inside the book

Contents

Future directions in Australian law
11
The use and abuse of precedent
27
The role of the judge at the turn of the century
46
Legislative and judicial lawmaking Can we locate an identifiable boundary?
59
Rights values and legal institutions Reshaping Australian institutions
80
The courts and public opinion
94
The role of a constitutional court in a federation A comparison of the Australian and the United States experience
110
The Australian Constitution in retrospect and prospect
144
Decline of sovereignty Problems for democratic government
276
Themes and tensions underlying the law of contract
296
The place of equity and equitable remedies in the contemporary common law world
309
Judicial independence and the separation of powers some problems old and new
331
Legal research Its function and its importance
345
Sir Anthonys toast to the contributors of the Oxford Companion to the High Court
361
The state of the Australian judicature
364
The role of counsel and appellate advocacy
376

The Convention model for the republic
163
Administrative law reform The vision and the reality
167
The analytical foundations scope and comparative analysis of the judicial review of administrative action
180
A Bill of Rights for Australia
207
Courts Constitutions and fundamental rights
219
Deakins vision Australias progress
236
Democracy and the law
249
The influence of international and transnational law on Australian municipal law
256
Swearing in as Justice of the High Court 8 August 1972
392
Swearing in as Chief Justice of the High Court 6 February 1987
395
Chief Justice comments on fundamental issues facing the judiciary
398
Biographical Details of the Honourable Sir Anthony Mason AC KBE
414
Table of Cases
416
Table of Statutes
426
Index
429
Copyright

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