John Spicer (Australian politician)
Victoria | |
|---|---|
| In office 29 September 1940 – 30 June 1944 | |
| Preceded by | Jim Sheehan |
| In office 22 February 1950 – 13 August 1956 | |
| Succeeded by | George Hannan |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 5 March 1899 Prahran, Victoria, Australia |
| Died | 3 January 1978 (aged 78) Armadale, Victoria, Australia |
| Political party | UAP (to 1945) Liberal (from 1945) |
| Spouse |
Lavinia Webster (m. 1924) |
| Alma mater | University of Melbourne |
| Occupation | Lawyer |
Sir John Armstrong Spicer (5 March 1899 – 3 January 1978) was an Australian lawyer, politician, and judge. He served two terms as a
Menzies Government from 1949 to 1956. He left politics to become chief judge of the newly created Commonwealth Industrial Court
, a position which he held until 1976.
Early life
Spicer was born in the Melbourne suburb of
South Yarra. In 1913, he started working as an office boy in a legal practice. He studied law at the University of Melbourne from 1916 to 1918, and was admitted as a barrister and solicitor in March 1921, later establishing a successful legal practice. He married Lavinia May Webster in June 1924.[1]
Political career
Spicer won a seat in the
took silk in 1948.[1]
Spicer returned to the Senate as a
Minister for Transport for two weeks after George McLeay's death.[1]
Judicial career
In August 1956, Spicer resigned from parliament so that he could be appointed to the Commonwealth Industrial Court. He was made a Knight Bachelor in 1963.[3]
Spicer presided over inquiries into aviation accidents:
- Trans Australia Airlines Flight 538, a Fokker F27 Friendship aircraft that crashed into the sea in 1960 while attempting to land in Mackay, Queensland, killing all 29 people on board.
- Ansett-ANA Flight 325, a Vickers Viscount aircraft that crashed into Botany Bay in 1961, killing all 15 people on board.
- Ansett-ANA Flight 149, a Vickers Viscount aircraft that crashed near Winton, Queensland in 1966, killing all 24 people on board.
Spicer also chaired a
royal commission in 1964 into the sinking of HMAS Voyager. He found that officers in both Voyager and HMAS Melbourne had been at fault. A second royal commission in 1967-68 attributed blame to Voyager's officers only.[1]
Spicer retired in 1976, and died in the Melbourne suburb of Armadale two years later, survived by his wife and son.[1]
Notes
- ^ ISSN 1833-7538. Retrieved 23 October 2007.
- ^ "SPICER, Sir John Armstrong (1899–1978)". The Biographical Dictionary of the Australian Senate. 2004. Retrieved 17 January 2023.
- ^ "Knight Bachelor entry for Judge John Armstrong Spicer". Australian Honours Database. Canberra, Australia: Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. 8 June 1963. Retrieved 18 January 2023.
Chief Judge - Commonwealth Industrial Court
