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Media Statements

This page also includes letters to the editor and opinion pieces published in the media. Please note that the Australian Judicial Officers Association was formerly known as the Judicial Conference of Australia prior to March 2021.

Statements to the media are made by the President or Vice President of the Australian Judicial Officers Association.  To contact them please initially contact the CEO on 0401 048 322.

 

Support Needed for the Judiciary in Afghanistan: 18 August 2021

The AJOA joins with other international judicial associations in their calls for urgent, meaningful and sustained support for all of the judiciary in Afghanistan. To read the full statement, click here.

Atrocity in Afghanistan: 23 February 2021

Australian judges and magistrates condemn the atrocious murder in broad daylight of two women judges in Afghanistan. To read the full statement, click here.

Judiciary’s association elects new President and changes its name: 2 December 2020

Australian judges and magistrates have a new President of their professional association. To read the full statement, click here.

Sexual harassment in courts: 2 July 2020

The Executive Committee of the Judicial Conference of Australia has approved the issuing of a statement concerning sexual harassment in courts. To read the full statement, click here.

Alleged systemic racism in courts: 1 July 2020

The President of the Australian association of judges and magistrates, Justice Judith Kelly, has responded to calls to “eliminate institutional racism within the courts”. To read the full statement, click here.

Appointment of judges to the High Court: 1 July 2020

The President of the Australian association of judges and magistrates, Justice Judith Kelly, has responded to calls for the “independent vetting of candidates for judicial office”. To read the full statement, click here.

Inaccurate and unfair media commentary on the High Court decision in the Pell case

The President of the Australian association of judges and magistrates, Justice Judith Kelly, has responded to, what she called, “the flood of emotion and tsunami of articles following the High Court decision in the Pell case”. To read the full statement, click here.

No place on High Court bench for politics

The President of the Australian association of judges and magistrates, Justice Judith Kelly, has written an article published in The Australian further responding to debate concerning the decision of the High Court in Love v Commonwealth of Australia. To read the full article, click here.

No place for politics in anointing judges to the High Court

The President of the Australian association of judges and magistrates, Justice Judith Kelly, has written an article published in The Australian responding to, what she called, “a plethora of media commentary this week about the decision of the High Court in Love v Commonwealth of Australia”. To read the full article, click here.

Improper and unfair attack on judicial officer

The Vice President of the Judicial Conference of Australia (JCA), Justice Glenn Martin, has expressed deep concern at the tone and content of recent articles published in the NT News concerning the decision of the Northern Territory Civil and Administrative Appeals Tribunal (NTCAT) in the Dan Murphy’s appeal. To read the full statement, click here.

Unfounded criticism of judges’ decisions ignores essential facts

The President of the Judicial Conference of Australia, Justice Judith Kelly, has expressed deep concern at the tone and content of three recent articles published in The Courier-Mail – an article and editorial on 9 November and an article by Peter Gleeson on 15 November 2019. To read the full statement, click here.

Response to serious allegations against a judge

The Judicial Conference of Australia wishes to respond to an article in The Australian newspaper published on February 22, which contains serious allegations against a judge. To read the full statement, click here.

Comments on judge’s sentencing decision are wrong

The Vice-President of the Judicial Conference of Australia (JCA), Justice Glenn Martin, today said he thought it was important to correct some errors made by two people quoted in an online article entitled “Judge invited to tour Alice Springs Correctional Facility after sentencing comments”, posted on February 15, 2019 by Alex Barwick and Emily Smith. To read the full statement, click here.

Australian judicial association concerned at threats of violence after Asia Bibi decision in Pakistan

The Judicial Conference of Australia (JCA) has expressed concern at reports of serious threats of violence following the recent decision of the Supreme Court of Pakistan in the case of Asia Bibi. To read the full statement, click here.

Judicial association says analysis of Federal Court’s work is fundamentally flawed

“The Judicial Conference of Australia (JCA) endorses the response of the Chief Justice of the Federal Court to the article by Aaron Patrick in the Australian Financial Review on 26 October 2018, the President of the JCA, Justice Judith Kelly said today. To read the full statement, click here.

Judicial association welcomes additional support for District Court of New South Wales

“The Judicial Conference of Australia (JCA) welcomes the announcement by the New South Wales Attorney General that seven new judges are to be appointed to the District Court of New South Wales and significant additional funding made available to that Court as part of a $150 million package,” the President of the JCA, Justice Judith Kelly said today. To read the full statement, click here.

Australian elected as President of International Association of Judges

The Hon G Tony Pagone, QC, has been elected as the President of the International Association of Judges (IAJ).  This is the first time an Australian has held this high office. To read the full statement, click here.

Australia’s judicial association elects new President and Vice President

At its annual colloquium in Melbourne last weekend, the Judicial Conference of Australia elected a new President, Justice Judith Kelly of the Supreme Court of the Northern Territory and Vice President, Justice Glenn Martin of the Supreme Court of Queensland. To read the full statement, click here.

Australia’s judicial association states its position on restructure of the Family and Federal Circuit Courts

Today, the President of the Judicial Conference of Australia, Justice Robert Beech-Jones, reiterated the JCA’s position in relation to the Federal Government’s proposal to restructure the Family Court and the Federal Circuit Court. The legislation giving effect to that proposal was introduced into Federal Parliament on 23 August and referred to a Senate Committee on the same day. To read the full statement, click here.

Appointment of Magistrates should not be part of Political Crossfire

The President of the Judicial Conference of Australia, Justice Robert Beech-Jones, has expressed concern that doubts were being raised about the propriety of the recent appointment of magistrates in Victoria as part of an unrelated debate about the use of funds paid to electoral officers in the lead up the Victorian election. To read the full media statement, click here.

Disrespectful conduct legislation opposed by judges’ association

On 5 July Adelaide Now reported that the South Australian Attorney General wants to introduce legislation creating a specific new offence for anyone who intentionally engages in disrespectful conduct before the court.  She was reported as saying that the changes to the legislation would help preserve “the authority and dignity of the courts”. To read the full media statement, click here.

Letter from JCA Vice-President, Justice Judith Kelly, to the Editor of The Australian

A letter was sent on behalf of JCA Vice-President, Justice Judith Kelly, to the Editor of The Australian in response to reporting of comments made by a State Government Minister critical of Magistrate Stone who is still determining sentence proceedings against the Archbishop of Adelaide.  To read the full letter, click here.

Caution should be exercised before commenting on ongoing Court proceedings

The Vice President of the Judicial Conference of Australia, Justice Judith Kelly, has expressed concern about comments by a State Government Minister critical of Magistrate Stone who is still determining sentence proceedings against the Archbishop of Adelaide. To read the full statement, click here.

Judges should not be in the crossfire of debate over court restructure

The President of the JCA, Justice Robert Beech-Jones, has expressed concern that the current debate about the proposed restructure of the Family Court and the Federal Circuit Court has included unfounded criticism of the performance of individual judges and groups of judges. To read the full statement, click here.

Letter from JCA President, Justice Robert Beech-Jones, to the Editor of The Australian

A letter was sent on behalf of JCA President, Justice Robert Beech-Jones, to the Editor of The Australian in response to the article “Don’t quarantine judges from criticism” published on page 2 of that newspaper on 20 March 2018. Part of this letter was published in the newspaper on 22 March 2018. To read the full letter, click here.

Victorian Magistrate Misreported and Unfairly Criticised

The President of the Judicial Conference of Australia, Justice Robert Beech-Jones, has expressed concern over the recent reporting and criticism of a Victorian Magistrate’s reasons for granting bail. To read the full media release, click here.

Judges and Magistrates Should not be Collateral Damage in Political Dispute

The President of the JCA, Justice Robert Beech-Jones, has expressed concern over the repeated personal attacks on judges and magistrates in Victoria that are occurring as part of the political dispute between the Federal and Victorian governments over law and order in that State. To read the full media release, click here.

Inaccurate reporting of judge’s reasons for sentence

The JCA has written to the Editor of Melbourne’s Sunday Herald-Sun  pointing out three aspects of the newspaper’s misreporting of a County Court judge’s reasons for sentence which resulted in the paper’s readers being significantly misled.  To read the JCA’s letter and the judge’s reasons for sentence, click here.

Attack on Southport magistrate is unfair and ludicrous

A Queensland magistrate has been blamed for the current crimes of a violent offender because five years ago she allegedly handed down a soft sentence to that offender.

Justice Robert Beech-Jones, the President of the Judicial Conference of Australia, the judges’ and magistrates’ professional association, has condemned this attack in the Courier-Mail of November 15 as unfair and nonsensical. To read the full media release, click here.

Poland’s judges under serious threat to their independence

Australia’s association of judges and magistrates, the Judicial Conference of Australia (JCA), has today expressed deep concerns about developments in Poland affecting the independence of its judges. To read the full media release, click here.

Inaccurate Reporting of JCA statement

Yesterday the Judicial Conference of Australia, the professional association of judges and magistrates, released a statement pointing out errors in the Herald Sun’s reporting of the judgment of Justice Logan, sitting in the Administrative Appeal Tribunal, in relation to the Jagdeep Singh matter. Today, the Herald Sun has reported, erroneously, that the JCA had “backed” Justice Logan’s decision. To read the full media release, click here.

Inaccurate Reporting of Justice Logan’s decision concerning Mr Jagdeep Singh: 19 June 2017

The Judicial Conference of Australia, is concerned that the report in today’s Herald Sun of the decision of Justice Logan, sitting in the Administrative Appeal Tribunal, to grant Mr Jagdeep Singh a bridging visa inaccurately records the effect and reasoning of the decision. “The report was inaccurate and unfairly described Justice Logan’s reasons and decision” the President of the JCA, Justice Robert Beech-Jones stated. To read the full media release, click here.

Grossly Improper and Unfair Attack on Victorian Judiciary: 13 June 2017

Statements attributed to three federal Ministers concerning senior members of the Victorian Supreme Court are an apparent coordinated and direct attack on the character and independence of the Victorian judiciary, Justice Robert Beech-Jones stated today. To read the release, click here.

JCA condemns attack on Justice Kerr: 17 May 2017

The President of the Judicial Conference of Australia has condemned the attack on the performance of Justice Kerr of the Federal Court of Australia as President of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal. To read the release, click here.

JCA criticises misconceptions of the role of the courts: 4 May 2017

The President of the Judicial Conference of Australia issued a media release responding to the misconceptions about the role of the courts conveyed in comments of the Community Advocacy Alliance which were published in an Australian article on 17 April 2017. To read the release, click here.

Letter to the Editor regarding recent attacks on the Queensland judiciary by the Immigration Minister: 17 February, 2017

The President of the Judicial Conference of Australia, Justice Robert Beech-Jones, today had a letter to the editor published in the Courier Mail, regarding recent attacks on Queensland magistrates by the Immigration Minister Peter Dutton. To read the the letter, click here.

JCA criticises misreporting of Chief Justice: 8 February, 2017

The President of the Judicial Conference of Australia, Justice Robert Beech-Jones, today issued a media release criticising the recent misreporting of the address given by the Chief Justice of New South Wales, Tom Bathurst, at the opening of Law Term. To read the media release, click here.

Response to the Australian opinion piece ‘Courts Must Administer Justice, Not Therapy’: 7 February, 2017

The President of the Judicial Conference of Australia, Justice Robert Beech-Jones, today issued a media release regarding the inaccurate representation of the role of the judiciary in the criminal justice system conveyed by the Australian article published on 30 January, 2017. To read the media release, click here.

Australian Judges’ Association condemn Polish Government’s lack of respect for its judiciary: 18 October, 2016

The President of the Judicial Conference of Australia, Justice Robert Beech-Jones, today issued a media release expressing concern about the actions of the Polish Government that are calculated to undermine the independent of that country’s judiciary. To read the media release, click here.

Australian judges express grave concerns about Turkish judiciary: 17 July, 2016

The President of the Judicial Conference of Australia, Justice Steven Rares, today issued a media release expressing grave concerns about the reported removal from duty of about 2750 Turkish judges in the aftermath of the failed coup on July 16, 2016. To read the media release, click here.

Judges’ Association has concerns about NSW Disrespectful Behaviour in Courts Bill: 6 July, 2016

The Judicial Conference of Australia expressed its concerns today about the potential impacts of the New South Wales Government’s Courts Legislation Amendment (Disrespectful Behaviour) Bill 2016. Justice Rares noted it is highly unlikely that the Bill, if enacted, would cause any person to moderate behaviour that was disrespectful to a Court, and Courts all have ample powers to deal with behaviour amounting to disrespect as a contempt of Court. To read the media release, click here.

Federal Circuit Court judges should receive a pension: 22 April, 2016.

The Vice-President of the Judicial Conference of Australia, Justice Robert Beech-Jones, today issued a media release calling for Federal Circuit Court judges to receive a pension. The Federal Circuit Court is the only federal court where judges do not receive pensions. To read the media release, click here.

Australian judges condemn suspension and prosecution of Turkey’s judges: 17 March, 2016

Justice Steven Rares, the President of the Judicial Conference of Australia, has again expressed strong support for the 680 judges and prosecutors in Turkey who are about to be suspended and put on trial for being members of a “Parallel Structure” and being “Gülenists”.  Justice Rares noted with deep concern recent reports that many judges and prosecutors are being investigated as a first step to disbarring and trying all of them. To read the media release, click here.

Personalised campaign against District Court judge should cease: 26 February, 2016

The President of the Judicial Conference of Australia, Justice Steven Rares, today expressed concern about the recent personal attacks on Judge Clive Jeffreys mounted in the media and the New South Wales Parliament. To read the media release, click here.

Judges in Turkey detained and on trial for decisions unfavourable to its government: 23 February, 2016

The President of the Judicial Conference of Australia, Justice Steven Rares, today issued a media release expressing strong condemnation of,  and serious concern about, the treatment of two Turkish judges whose continued detention appears to be contrary to the Turkish Constitution and the European Convention on Human Rights. To read the media release, click here.

Turkey’s judges should not be disciplined for making decisions against its government: 15 February, 2016

The President of the Judicial Conference of Australia, Justice Steven Rares, today expressed concern about the reported use of internal disciplinary proceedings in Turkey against judges for, what appear to be, political reasons. To read the media release, click here.

Daily Telegraph article unfairly attacks District Court Judge: 11 December, 2015

The President of the Judicial Conference of Australia, Justice Steven Rares, today expressed concern about an attack on Judge Andrew Haesler of the NSW District Court in an article entitled “Bench him” published on 11 December 2015. To read the media release, click here.

Politicians attacking judges: 20 November, 2015

The President of the Judicial Conference of Australia, Justice Steven Rares, today issued a media release calling for politicians to refrain from making personal attacks on judicial officers with whose decisions they disagree.  To read the media release, click here.

Justice Should Not Be For Sale: 25 June, 2015

The President of the Judicial Conference of Australia, Justice Steven Rares, today issued a media release condemning proposals in the Productivity Commission’s report on Access to Justice Arrangements.  To read the media release, click here.

A speech by Justice Rares on the same topic is available on the Reports & Publications page.

JCA’s Concern for Arrested Turkish Judges: June 2015

The Vice President of the Judicial Conference of Australia, the Hon Justice Robert Beech-Jones, has issued a statement to the media expressing the JCA’s concern in regard to two Turkish judges who have been arrested and held in custody.  To read the media release, click here.

JCA Supports Northern Territory Magistrates’ Change of Title to Judge: May 2015

The Judicial Conference of Australia supports the legislation in the Northern Territory which changes the title of Northern Territory magistrates to ‘judge’.  To read the JCA’s statement, click here.

Letter to the Editor of the Courier Mail, Brisbane: 11 March 2015

Justice Steven Rares, the President of the Judicial Conference of Australia, submitted a letter to the Editor of the Courier Mail in response to an Editorial on the accountability of the judiciary. It was published in the 11 March 2015 edition of the newspaper. To view the letter, click here.

Threats to the Rule of Law

Justice Steven Rares, the President of the Judicial Conference of Australia, has today issued a media statement in response to comments made on social media against a judicial officer who granted bail to Man Haron Monis. Justice Rares reaffirmed that the ‘judicial officer was doing his or her job honestly and in good faith, as we would all expect’. To read the media statement, click here.

JCA’s concerns in regard to some aspects of the Productivity Commission’s recent report, Access to Justice Arrangements: 4 December 2014

Justice Steven Rares, the President of the Judicial Conference of Australia, has today issued a media statement expressing concerns in regard to some aspects of the Productivity Commission’s recent report, Access to Justice Arrangements.  To read the media statement, click here.

JCA President writes to President & Prime Minister of Timor-Leste: 28 November 2014

Justice Steven Rares, the President of the Judicial Conference of Australia, today wrote to both the President and Prime Minister of Timor-Leste expressing concern in regard to the treatment of members of the judiciary in Timor-Leste, and emphasising the need to protect the independence of the judiciary in a democracy under the rule of law.  To read the letter to the President, click here.  The letter to the Prime Minister, Xanana Gusmao, is in similar terms.

The President also wrote to the President of the Court of Appeal in Timor-Leste.  To read that letter, click here.

The Judicial Conference issued, at the same time, a media release which is available here.

Processes of judicial appointments: 19 June 2014

The President and Vice President of the Judicial Conference of Australia have today issued a media statement in regard to the processes of judicial appointments.  To read the statement, click here.

Productivity Commission’s draft report on Access to Justice Arrangements: 21 May 2014

The JCA today made a submission to the Productivity Commission in response to its draft report on Access to Justice Arrangements.  To read the JCA’s four page submission, click here.

Confidentiality of discussions between heads of courts and governments on judicial appointments: 26 March 2014

The Vice President of the JCA, the Hon Justice Rares, today issued a statement on this topic.  To read the full statement, click here.

Comments by the Judicial Conference of Australia upon a reported speech by the Queensland Chief Magistrate Judge Carmody: 30 January 2014

The JCA has been asked to comment on a statement made by Judge Carmody today.  To read the full media statement, click here.

Recent developments in Nauru: 20 January 2014

“Recent actions by the Government of Nauru against its judiciary are unjustifiable and very concerning for the administration of justice to all who live in Nauru” Justice Philip McMurdo, President of the Judicial Conference of Australia, said today.  To read the full media statement, click here.

Kieran Loveridge sentence in NSW: 18 November 2013

The JCA today issued a media release on the informed and considered discussion of  sentencing on light of the Loveridge case.  To read the media release click here.

Opinion piece on the role of the judiciary: 15 November 2013

An opinion piece on the role of the judiciary, in response to recent media comment, by Justice Philip McMurdo, the President of the Judicial Conference of Australia, was published in The Australian on 15 November 2013.

 JCA Statement on Queensland Magistrates Court Practice Direction: 5 Nov 2013

The Judicial Conference of Australia has issued a statement in regard to the Practice Direction of the Chief Magistrate of the Magistrates Court of Queensland in regard to contested bail applications. To read the statement click here.

JCA Statement on Queensland bikies law: 24 October 2013

To read the JCA’s Statement on the Vicious Lawless Association Disestablishment Act 2013click here.

JCA Statement on Queensland sex offenders law: 24 October 2013

To read the JCA Statement on the Queensland Criminal Law Amendment (Public Interest Declarations) Amendment Act 2013click here.

JCA Statement on PM’s Criticisms of High Court: September 2011

A statement written by Justice Philip McMurdo and reported on by various media outlets.

JCA Views on Sentencing: May 2011

An opinion article written by Justice David Harper and published in The Melbourne Herald Sun.

JCA Views on Sentencing: May 2011

An opinion article written by Justice David Harper and published in The Age.

Acting Judges and Judicial Independence: 28 February 2005

An opinion article written by Justice Ronald Sackville and published in The Age.

Position of The Hon. J Shaw: 4 November 2004

Then Chair of the Judicial Conference, Justice Ronald Sackville, wrote a response to an editorial published by The Australian on 4 November, 2004 regarding the position of The Hon. Jeff Shaw. This letter was then published on Tuesday, 9 November, 2004.