Sir Ninian Stephen | |
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| 20th Governor-General of Australia | |
| In office 29 July 1982 – 16 February 1989 | |
| Monarch | Elizabeth II |
| Prime Minister | Malcolm Fraser Bob Hawke |
| Preceded by | Sir Zelman Cowen |
| Succeeded by | Bill Hayden |
| Justice of the High Court of Australia | |
| In office 1 March 1972 – 11 May 1982 | |
| Nominated by | Billy McMahon |
| Appointed by | Sir Paul Hasluck |
| Preceded by | Sir Victor Windeyer |
| Succeeded by | Sir William Deane |
| Judge of the Supreme Court of Victoria | |
| In office 30 June 1970 – 29 February 1972 | |
| Nominated by | Sir Henry Bolte |
| Appointed by | Sir Rohan Delacombe |
| Preceded by | Robert Monahan |
| Succeeded by | William Kaye |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Ninian Martin Stephen (1923-06-15)15 June 1923 Nettlebed, Oxfordshire, England |
| Died | 29 October 2017(2017-10-29) (aged 94) Melbourne, Australia |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 5 |
| Profession | Barrister, judge |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | Australia |
| Branch/service | Second Australian Imperial Force |
| Years of service | 1941–1946 |
| Rank | Lieutenant |
| Unit | Royal Australian Artillery Royal Australian Engineers |
| Battles/wars | World War II |
Sir Ninian Martin Stephen (15 June 1923 – 29 October 2017) was an English-born Australian judge who served as the 20thgovernor-general of Australia, in office from 1982 to 1989. He was previously a justice of theHigh Court of Australia from 1972 to 1982.[1]
Stephen was born in England to Scottish parents. As a child he lived for periods in France, Germany, Scotland, and Switzerland, eventually arriving in Australia at the age of 16. Stephen served with theAustralian Army during World War II, and after the war entered the legal profession. He became one of Australia's leading constitutional lawyers. Stephen was appointed to theSupreme Court of Victoria in 1970, and then to the High Court in 1972, aged 48. He was considered a member of the court's "moderate centre". In 1982, Stephen was appointed governor-general on the recommendation ofMalcolm Fraser. He approved twodouble dissolutions during his time in office, the only governor-general to do so. After his term expired, Stephen remained active in public life as a conservationist and member of various international tribunals.
Stephen was born inNettlebed, Oxfordshire, England, to Scottish parents, Barbara (née Cruickshank) and Frederick Brown Stephen. His father, a chauffeur,[2] poultry farmer and motorcycle courier inWorld War I,[3] left the family shortly after his birth, emigrating to Canada and starting a new family; his son was told that he had died, and did not learn the truth until 2003. Stephen's mother, formerly a lady's maid[4] was apaid companion for Nina Mylne, the wealthy heiress of theQueensland pastoralistGraham Mylne; his given name was in her honour. During his early childhood, the three of them lived for periods in Switzerland (Geneva where he was christened andMontreaux), France (Paris,Cannes, andSaint-Cast-le-Guildo) and Germany (Wiesbaden), where Mylne took him to Nuremberg for the 1938Reichsparteitag Grossdeutschland (5-12 September) which he photographed.[5] They eventually moved toEdinburgh in 1929 so Stephen could begin his formal schooling.[6]
Mylne paid for Stephen's education, which took place in Scotland (George Watson's College andEdinburgh Academy), London (St Paul's School), and Switzerland (Chillon College,Montreux). He and Mylne generally traveled together, while his mother remained in Scotland and ran a boardinghouse. In 1940, the three of them moved toMelbourne to avoid the war, booking first into the Oriental Hotel then taking a flat in Linden Hall[5] oppositeScotch College which Stephen attended for two terms, and was then accepted into theUniversity of Melbourne to study law.[6][7]
In December 1941, following the end of his first year at university, Stephen enlisted in theCitizens Military Force to serve part-time in theMelbourne University Regiment. Following Japan's entry intoWorld War II, Stephen completed full-time military training from 8 December 1941 to 15 February 1942 and was then posted to the 10th Field Regiment,Royal Australian Artillery, serving in Western Australia. He subsequently transferred to theSecond Australian Imperial Force. In late 1943, Stephen transferred to theRoyal Australian Engineers, serving in New Guinea from April to August 1944 with the 43rd Australian Water Transport Company. He then attended courses, culminating in a commissioning course in April 1945. As a lieutenant, he served in the 41st Australian Landing Craft Company in New Guinea andNew Britain. In August 1945, he was posted toLabuan, Borneo, arriving after the war's end and serving there until January 1946. After returning to Australia, he was discharged on 5 February 1946.[8]
Stephen completed his studies after the war's end, and was admitted to theVictorian Bar in 1949. By the 1960s, he had become one of Australia's leading constitutional and commercial lawyers. He was made aQueen's Counsel in 1966.[1]
On 30 June 1970, Stephen was appointed as a judge of theSupreme Court of Victoria. He held this position until 29 February 1972, relinquishing it to take up his appointment as a justice of theHigh Court of Australia.[1] He was sworn of thePrivy Council of the United Kingdom in 1979 and sat as a member of its Judicial Committee.[9]
Although Stephen was appointed to the High Court by aLiberal government, he proved not to be a traditional conservative upholder of states' rights. He joined the "moderate centre" of the court, between the arch-conservatism of SirGarfield Barwick and the radicalism ofLionel Murphy. In 1982 he was part of the majority that decided on a broad interpretation of the "external affairs power" of theAustralian constitution in theKoowarta v Bjelke-Petersen case.[10]
In March 1982, Prime MinisterMalcolm Fraser announced that QueenElizabeth II had approved his recommendation of Sir Ninian Stephen to succeed SirZelman Cowen asGovernor-General of Australia.[1] His appointment was praised by both sides of politics.[11] He was sworn in on 29 July 1982, the first former High Court justice to become governor-general since SirIsaac Isaacs in 1931. When Fraser was defeated by theLabor Party underBob Hawke in1983, Stephen had no difficulty working with a Labor government. In 1987, his term was extended by 18 months as a mark of personal respect and also to allowBill Hayden (to whom Hawke had promised the position) to leave politics at a time of his choosing. Stephen is the only governor-general to have approved twodouble dissolutions – in1983 (for Fraser) and1987 (for Hawke).[12]
In 1989, Stephen became Australia's firstAmbassador for the Environment[1] and, in his three-year term, was particularly energetic in working for a ban of mining inAntarctica. In 1990 he became the chair of the Australian Antarctic Foundation, based in Hobart, and subsequently also became the chair of the Constitutional Centenary Foundation, based in Melbourne, which was established following the 1991 Constitutional Centenary Conference.[13][14] In 1991, he undertook a difficult task when he was appointed chairman of the second strand of theNorthern Ireland peace talks. From 1991 to 1995, he was a judgead hoc of theInternational Court of Justice in the caseEast Timor (Portugal v. Australia) 1991–1995.[15] From 1993 to 1997, he was a judge on the international tribunals investigating war crimes inYugoslavia andRwanda. He also served as chairman of the Australian Citizenship Council from 1998.[16] In 1994, he acted as a special envoy of the UN Secretary General to resolve political conflicts inBangladesh.[11]
Stephen later moved back into the legal field, becoming president of an arbitral tribunal constituted under Chapter 11 of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), charged with the adjudication of an investment dispute between Mondev, a Canadian investor, and the United States.[17]
A detailed scholarly biography of Stephen,Fortunate Voyager byPhilip Ayres, was released in September 2013.[18] Drawing upon it, Ayres also summarised Stephen's career for theVictorian Bar News.[19]
| Viceregal styles of Sir Ninian Stephen | |
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| Reference style | His Excellency The Right Honourable |
| Spoken style | Your Excellency |
Stephen was made aKnight Commander of the Order of the British Empire (KBE) on 20 April 1972 "for distinguished services to the Law",[20] and sworn of thePrivy Council in 1979. As governor-general he was made aKnight of the Order of Australia (AK),Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George (GCMG) andKnight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order (GCVO). In 1994Queen Elizabeth II appointed him aKnight Companion of the Order of the Garter (KG), being the most recent Australian to be granted a knighthood in the personal gift of themonarch of Australia. He therefore had the unusual distinction of holding five separateknighthoods and joinedLord Casey and SirPaul Hasluck as one of the few Australian Knights Companion of the Order of the Garter. In 1983 he was named a Commandeur of the FrenchLégion d'honneur.[21][22][23]
Stephen delivered the firstSir Ninian Stephen Lecture at theUniversity of Newcastle's law school in 1993, giving his name to this lecture series.[24]
In June 1949, Stephen married Valery Mary Sinclair (4 July 1925 – 3 November 2019)[32] and they had five daughters.[33] Stephen and his wife were patrons of theAustralian Inland Botanic Gardens.[34] He died inMelbourne on 29 October 2017, aged 94.[11][35][36] A state funeral for Stephen was held on 8 November atSt Paul's Cathedral, Melbourne.[37][38][39]
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| Preceded by | Governor-General of Australia 1982–1989 | Succeeded by |
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| New title | Australian Ambassador for the Environment 1989–1992 | Succeeded by |
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