The former Queenland attorney general Kerry Shine was caught red-handed appointing close friends as judges and magistrates. Nothing new here as most judges and magistrates have close political connections and that’s how they are appointed in the first place, not because of their ability, ethics or integrity.
The Kerry Shine story did not get much national attention although it should have. The Brisbane paper The Courier Mail seems to be the only print news company that picked up on it.
On the 15th September 2009 Patrick Lion from The Courier Mail wrote:
“The Courier-Mail has learnt Mr Shine quietly handed former lawyer Damian Carroll the $262,000-a-year role, despite Mr Carroll being a “long-time friend” whom Mr Shine lauded alongside his brothers and sisters in parliamentary speeches.”
“Mr Carroll is the latest judicial figure to emerge with intimate links to Labor, including Premier Anna Bligh’s friend and campaign helper, Caloundra magistrate Di Fingleton, and Mr Shine’s friend and appointee, Cairns judge William Everson.” (click here to read the full story)
Then on the 25th September Patrick Lion wrote in the Courier Mail:
“FORMER attorney-general Kerry Shine is facing more questions over his judicial appointments after handing a $300,000-a-year post to the sister of a close friend who helped him get elected.”
“Mr Shine has already admitted appointing two other friends and campaign workers to lucrative jobs for life within the judiciary.”
“It was the same speech in which Mr Shine also praised two other close friends and campaign workers, Damian Carroll and Bill Everson, both of whom he later appointed as a Toowoomba magistrate and Cairns district court judge respectively.” (Click here to read the full story)
Patrick Lion followed-up the above two articles with a story titled “Push to stop politicians favouring mates” on the 9th of October 2009. (Click here to read the full story)
In the first paragraph he wrote “QUEENSLAND is falling behind the rest of the country in making judicial appointments more transparent as a former judge calls for an overhaul of selection processes to stamp out cronyism claims.”
Well this is not actually true. What should have been written is that Queensland is falling behind the other states in setting up a bullshit smoke and mirrors situation to fool the public into believing that the judicial appointments are unbiased and uncorrupt.
Patrick Lion goes on to say in his story:
“Federal Attorney-General Robert McClelland last year introduced an advisory panel to develop a short-list for Federal Court, Federal Magistrates court and Family Court positions.” Well Robert McClellands appointments are corrupt as hell and that was the first posting on this site which is titled “Robert McClelland’s Dodgy Judicial Appointments”. (Click here to read the post)
Patrick Lion then says:
“NSW has a short-list for district and local court appointments while Victoria has an independent panel to provide recommendations for magistrates.”
Well below is what is said in an article on the Lawyers Weekly website in an article titled “Judicial appointments slammed as political”:
“Among those appointed to the bench last week were high-profile Melbourne barrister and human rights advocate Lex Lasry who will sit on the Victorian Supreme Court and former ACTU assistant secretary and Labor Party member Iain Ross to the County Court.”
“However, Clark was less than impressed with the appointment of Ross.”
“Mr Ross has very little practical experience. He appears to have practised barely 20 months as a solicitor; prior to that his career was as an assistant secretary of the ACTU and then as a member and vice-president of the Industrial Relations Commission. The Victorian County Court has negligible industrial relations practice and Mr Ross appears to have negligible experience of general court practice in Victoria,” Clark said.”
“Judicial appointments in all Australian jurisdictions are often subject to allegations of political favouritism. Eyebrows were raised last year when NSW Attorney-General Bob Debus appointed his adviser Jacqueline Trad to the Federal Magistrates Court, two months after being admitted as a solicitor. Similarly, when federal Attorney-General Philip Ruddock appointed John O’Sullivan a federal magistrate, there were claims of bias. O’Sullivan was the former adviser to Kevin Andrews when he was Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations, and had just three years’ practical legal experience.” (Click here to read the full story)
(As slight correction to the above Jacqueline Trad was actually appointed a NSW Magistrate, not Federal).
As I do more and more posts it will become quite clear how disgusting the judicial appointment process is in Australia.
Categories: Attorney General Robert McClelland, Judicial Appointments, Justice Iain Ross, Justice Lex Lasry, Justice William Everson, Kerry Shine, Kevin Andrews, Magistrate Damian Carroll, Magistrate Di Fingleton, Magistrate Jacqueline Trad, Magistrate John O’Sullivan, Philip Ruddock, State Judges, State Magistrates, State Politicians
Check out Chief Magistrate of Queensland, Marshall Irwin, I’m an indigenous solicitor who I had to go before defending my young nephew in 2006 after a two year batte over my nephew’s severe bashing in a police cell in a remote aboriginal called Doomadgee he was then framed by five Queensland police officers. Chief Magistrate Irwin would not allow any evidence to be put forward in defence and ruled that all the blood within the police cell belonged to a police officer called Mark Ronald Malthouse. I’m not sure if Irwin is still on the bench but this one extremely dangerous and very corrupt individual. He is known in the aboriginal community as the hanging judge.
Ah, Robin McNamee. I suppose you were there in the watch-house cell when this alleged ‘framing’ took place? Fact, your’e defending your nephew which no doubt is a conflict of interest and a biased view and all evidence produced at the time was in alignment with legislation. Get over it. Your nephew was a grub and this was backed by good standing members of the Doomadgee Community. Don’t make excuses for your poor skills in the field of criminal litigation and maybe try some other form of employment. Best you be careful of what you are posting Mr Mcnamee…before you know it you’ll have to engage a solicitor yourself to defend allegations of slander.
There are lot of good judges that delivers jugemennts according to the balance of evidence, and I am sure 99.9% of the judges of Australia are fair minded and highly knowledgeble and colifide to do the job. Also Justice Lex Lasry ( I think he was not a judge then but Q.C) is an extraordinary kind man, I’ve never heard of him or knew him ,until 2005, he was traveling to Singapore so many times to save a man’s life I am sure with his own expense. After his atempt was unsucsesed he was very sad man it was written all over his face. I am sure I will vote for him to be P.M. Also he will deliver his judgement kindly and humanly. And I am sure most of the other judges would be the same, But I don’t know the names.
But I cant say same thing about FWA tribunal member Peter Sam the same thing . In my unfair dimissel against my employer, he may have taken bribes, Othervice how he could ignor so many wrong doing by my employer. and belive everything what they say and dismiss everything me and my lawyer said, and he speculate (judges don’t speculate) and he was filling in for my former employer, and he is a racist, Any way he is not a LLB or LLM person he was political apointee. And my privious employer “donates” lot of money to political parties.
But Justice Lex Lasry is an educated person that is why he is where he is today. When I read today he is a judge, I was very happy. and May God bless him.
This accounts for Shine’s refusal to help a prisoner who was framed. The Judges, and lawyers in the system helped frame the person. Shine is obviously corrupt as them. Why are they unaccountable??