Alfred Paxton Backhouse
His Honour Judge Alfred Paxton Backhouse | |
---|---|
Judge of the District Court of New South Wales | |
In office 1884 – 25 May 1921 | |
Personal details | |
Born | Ipswich, Suffolk | 25 May 1851
Died | 1 August 1939 Elizabeth Bay, New South Wales | (aged 88)
Nationality | Australian |
Spouse | Kate Marion |
Alma mater | University of Sydney |
Occupation | Judge |
Alfred Paxton Backhouse (25 May 1851 – 1 August 1939) was an Australian judge of the District Court of New South Wales, and occasional acting Supreme Court judge. He presided over the trials of the leaders of the 1892 Broken Hill miners' strike, and was an active faculty member of the University of Sydney for over fifty years.[1]
Early life
Backhouse was born in
Schooled at Ipswich Grammar School and then the University of Sydney, Backhouse graduated in 1872 with First Class Honours in Classics and First Class Honours in Mathematics and Natural Philosophy,[2] followed by a Master's degree in Arts in 1875.[1] After a brief period of teaching he passed the bar on 16 December 1876. He married on 4 February 1879, to Kate Marion.
Legal career
Backhouse became a crown prosecutor in 1878, and a district court judge in 1884. From 1892, the Executive Council appointed Backhouse as an acting Judge of the Supreme Court of New South Wales on several occasions.[3][4] He presided over the trials of the 7 leaders of the 1892 Broken Hill miners' strike.[1] He was criticised for suspending the sentence of Thomas Rofe,[5] who was convicted of conspiracy in 1895.[6]
He retired from the District Court in May 1921, aged 70 years,[7] as a result of the passage of the Judges Retirement Act 1918 which introduced the retirement age.[8]
Backhouse also served on the Senate of the University of Sydney from 1887 until his death, having been made a lifelong member despite retiring from professional life in 1921.[1] He served as acting chancellor in 1892–94, 1896–99 and 1911–14, and died in Elizabeth Bay in 1939. He had no children.[1] Upon his death, The Sydney Morning Herald proclaimed him one of the "most widely known and best-loved citizens, a distinguished figure in various spheres of life, and a rare personality".[9]
References
- Notes
- ^ ISSN 1833-7538.
- ^ "His Honour Judge Alfred Paxton Backhouse". University of Sydney. Retrieved 27 October 2013.
- ^ "An acting Judgeship". The Singleton Argus. NSW. 28 September 1895. p. 2. Retrieved 28 October 2013 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ "Acting Supreme Court Judgeship". Goulburn Evening Penny Post. NSW. 6 October 1898. p. 2. Retrieved 28 October 2013.
- ISSN 1833-7538.
- ^ "Before his Honour Mr Acting Justice Backhouse: Rofe sentenced". The Sydney Morning Herald. 29 October 1895. p. 3. Retrieved 12 March 2019 – via National Library of Australia.
"Judge Backhouse and Mr Heydon". The Sydney Morning Herald. 25 December 1895. p. 5. - ^ "Judge Backhouse retires from the bench". The Sydney Morning Herald. 28 May 1921. p. 12. Retrieved 12 March 2019 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ Judges Retirement Act 1918 (NSW).
- ^ "Judge Backhouse". The Sydney Morning Herald. 2 August 1939. p. 12. Retrieved 12 March 2019 – via National Library of Australia.
- Sources
- "Judge Backhouse". Barrier Miner. 9 January 1890 – via National Library of Australia.