34 Facts About Garfield Barwick

Garfield Barwick had earlier been a Liberal Party politician, serving as a minister in the Menzies government from 1958 to 1964.

Garfield Barwick was called to the bar in 1927 and became one of Australia's most prominent barristers, appearing in many high-profile cases and frequently before the High Court.

Garfield Barwick served terms as president of the NSW Bar Association and the Law Council of Australia.

Garfield Barwick entered politics only at the age of 54, winning election to the House of Representatives at the 1958 Parramatta by-election.

Garfield Barwick played a small but significant role in the 1975 constitutional crisis, advising Governor-General John Kerr that it was within his powers to dismiss Prime Minister Gough Whitlam from office.

Garfield Barwick retired from the court at the age of 77, but remained a public figure until his death at the age of 94.

Garfield Barwick was one of three brothers born to Methodist parents, of Cornish origin; he was later very insistent on his Cornish identity.

Garfield Barwick was raised in Stanmore, an inner-city suburb of Sydney, and attended Fort Street High School.

Garfield Barwick graduated from the University of Sydney with a University Medal in law.

Garfield Barwick was guarantor for a bank loan to his younger brother to operate a service station in Ashfield, but was unable to repay the bank when the loan was forfeited, and was made bankrupt after he sued the oil companies for defamation.

Garfield Barwick became publicly prominent in the 1943 case over the artistic merits of William Dobell's Archibald Prize-winning portrait of the painter Joshua Smith; a losing entrant claimed the picture was caricature, not portraiture.

Garfield Barwick represented the plaintiff, and although they lost, the judges commended him for the brilliance of his arguments and his name became well known from that point onwards.

Garfield Barwick was re-elected in the general elections of 1958,1961, and 1963.

Garfield Barwick gained public notice for his role in the case of an alleged Estonian war criminal, Ervin Viks, who had settled in Australia and was being pursued by the Soviet Union.

Garfield Barwick refused to accept the USSR's extradition request, as there was no extradition treaty between the two countries; Viks had passed immigration screening processes and it was argued any such extradition would undermine Australian sovereignty.

Garfield Barwick led the Australian delegation to the General Assembly of the United Nations for its 15th, 17th, and 18th sessions.

For some time, Garfield Barwick was seen as a likely successor to Robert Menzies as Liberal leader and prime minister.

All in all, to the Liberal Federal politicians, the entry of Sir Garfield Barwick means exactly what the acquisition of a Derby winner means to the other stallions in the stud.

However, Garfield Barwick struggled to adapt to the cut and thrust of political life.

Garfield Barwick had little support from other Liberal MPs, and speculation about his leadership prospects was largely media-driven.

On 27 April 1964, Garfield Barwick was appointed Chief Justice of the High Court of Australia, succeeding Sir Owen Dixon, being the first law graduate from the University of Sydney to hold the position.

Garfield Barwick was instrumental in the construction of the High Court building in Canberra, and became the first president of the Australian Conservation Foundation in 1966.

The Garfield Barwick court decided several infamous cases on tax avoidance and tax evasion, almost always deciding against the taxation office.

Garfield Barwick's request "went down like a lead balloon with the cabinet which had run into trouble with the High Court's burgeoning costs while urging economic restraint on other Australians", and was rejected.

Garfield Barwick retired from the bench in 1981, a few months after passing Sir John Latham's record as the longest-serving Chief Justice.

Garfield Barwick retained excellent health and continued to be active as a much-sought-after expert on legal issues until the end of his life.

Garfield Barwick's writings included Sir John Did Garfield Barwick's Duty and his 1995 memoir A Radical Tory.

Garfield Barwick was appointed a Privy Counsellor in 1964 and sat as a member of the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council on 22 occasions, between 1966, and 1980.

Garfield Barwick insisted on an amendment to Privy Council procedure to allow dissent, however he exercised that only once.

Garfield Barwick supported the passage of the Privy Council Act 1968, which closed off appeals from the High Court to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council.

Garfield Barwick said that "Australia needed to make its own legal mistakes".

In 1929, Garfield Barwick married Norma Symons, with whom he had one son and one daughter.

Garfield Barwick was the double cousin of Robert Ellicott, an Attorney-General, and later Justice of the Federal Court of Australia, and who like Barwick attended Fort Street and Sydney University.

Garfield Barwick was cremated and his ashes interred at Northern Suburbs Memorial Gardens.