William Webb (judge)
Justice of the High Court of Australia | |
|---|---|
| In office 16 May 1946 – 16 May 1958 | |
| Nominated by | Ben Chifley |
| Preceded by | None* |
| Succeeded by | Sir Douglas Menzies |
| 8th Chief Justice of Queensland | |
| In office 27 June 1940 – 15 May 1946 | |
| Preceded by | Hugh Denis Macrossan |
| Succeeded by | Neal Macrossan |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 21 January 1887 Nudgee Cemetery |
| Spouse |
Beatrice Agnew (m. 1917) |
| Children | 6 |
| Alma mater | University of Queensland (LLB) |
| *The High Court bench had remained at six since the retirement of Sir Isaac Isaacs in 1931. Webb's appointment re-established a seven-member bench. | |
Sir William Flood Webb
Early life and education
William Flood Webb was born in Brisbane, Queensland on 21 January 1887. He was educated at St Mary's School in Warwick, Queensland before graduating from the University of Queensland with a Bachelor of Laws degree. Webb was called to the bar in Queensland on 4 June 1913, after scoring a very high 71.5% on the bar examination on 20 May 1913.
Solicitor
In 1915, Webb was the State Public Defender for Queensland and, from 1917 to 1922, was the Crown Solicitor. He was promoted to be Solicitor-General of Queensland in 1922, a position he held until 1925.
Arbitration Court
Webb was also a Judge of the Commonwealth Court of Conciliation and Arbitration from 1922 to 1927 and, from 1925 to 1945, was President of the Queensland Court of Arbitration.
Supreme Court
Webb was appointed as a puisne judge on 24 April 1925 to the Supreme Court of Queensland. He held this position until, on 17 May 1940, he became senior puisne judge of the same court. On 27 June 1940 he was promoted to Chief Justice of Queensland, an office he held until 15 May 1946, when he left to take a seat on the High Court of Australia.
In 1943, during his tenure on the court, Webb was appointed by the
High Court
Webb began his tenure on the
Personal life
On 17 March 1917, Webb married Beatrice Agnew at the Sacred Heart Church in Sandgate. They had four daughters and two sons.[1]
He died in
Honours
In 1942, Webb was made a Knight Bachelor for his services as Chief Justice of Queensland.[2] In 1954, Webb was made a Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire.[3] In 1967, he was awarded an honorary Doctorate of Laws by the University of Queensland.
The road William Webb Drive in the district of Belconnen, Canberra is named after him.
See also
- Judiciary of Australia
- List of Judges of the Supreme Court of Queensland
- International Military Tribunal for the Far East
References
- ^ a b Webb, Sir William Flood (1887–1972) — Australian Dictionary of Biography. Retrieved 20 December 2014.
- ^ It's an Honour – Knight Bachelor (Imperial) – 1 January 1942
Citation: Chief Justice of Queensland. - ^ It's an Honour – The Order of the British Empire - Knights Commander (Civil) (Imperial) – 10 June 1954
Citation: Judge of the High Court.
Sources
- ^ "Fact Sheet 61 - World War II war crimes". National Archives of Australia. Archived from the original on 30 November 2005. Retrieved 1 December 2005.
- ^ "John Latham in Owen Dixon's Eyes" (PDF). The Samuel Griffith Society. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
- ^ "Guide to the papers of Sir William Webb". Australian War Memorial. Archived from the original on 31 May 2006. Retrieved 1 December 2005.
