Monash Law Faculty’s
21st Lucinda Lecture
“Of lions and squeaking mice in anxious times”
Emeritus Professor H P Lee
From time to time most countries will encounter threats to the
security of the state polity, ranging from a wartime situation to
the contemporary terror threats. Extraordinary legislation is often
resorted to as a means of protecting public safety. Such legislation
inevitably draws the courts into the spotlight. Perilous times
present the courts with a dilemma. This lecture seeks to canvass
that dilemma and the lessons that can be learnt from past judicial
experience in Australia and some selected jurisdictions.
Emeritus Professor H P Lee
Professor Hoong Phun (HP) Lee held the Sir John Latham Chair
of Law at Monash University from 1995 – 2014. In his 42 years
of service in the Law Faculty, he served as Associate Dean
(International), Associate Dean (Staffing), Deputy Dean and
Acting Dean. He was formerly an Adjunct Professor of Law at
the now Charles Darwin University and Adjunct Professor at the
City University of Hong Kong. Professor Lee’s many publications
include The Australian Judiciary (2nd ed, CUP) and Judiciaries
in Comparative Perspective (CUP). He is currently working on
a second edition of Constitutional Conflicts in Contemporary
Malaysia (OUP). He was awarded the Australian Press Council
Medal in 2011. He was appointed Emeritus Professor by Monash
University in 2015.
Lucinda Lectures
The SS Lucinda was a steam paddle vessel which occupies a
sentimental place in Australian constitutional history. It was on
board the Lucinda, during a three-day cruise on the Hawkesbury
River from 27 to 29 March 1891, that the drafting committee of
the National Australasian Convention made important revisions to
the earliest drafts of the Constitution. Professor La Nauze in The
Making of the Australian Constitution stated:
‘[T]he evolving text of the Constitution was at its best after the
Lucinda revisions.’
This lecture series is named after the Lucinda and seeks to
canvass fundamental issues in Australian constitutional law.
Patron
The Honourable Chief Justice Marilyn Warren AC,
Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Victoria and LieutenantGovernor of Victoria
Conveners
Professor Marilyn Pittard, Associate Dean International
and Engagement, Monash Law Faculty
Emeritus Professor HP Lee, Monash Law Faculty
Date: Thursday 8 October, 2015
Time: 6:00pm – 7:00pm (followed by refreshments)
Venue:Monash University Law Chambers
555 Lonsdale St, Melbourne
Cost: Free
RSVP: Thursday 1 October, 2015
law-marketing@monash.edu or (03) 9905 2630
Lucinda Lectures and speakers
1993 The Australian Crown: Its creation and demise
Professor George Winterton
1994 Judicial reasoning’s and responsibilities in constitutional cases
Mr Dennis Rose AM QC, Chief General Counsel of the Attorney-General’s
Department (1989–1995)
1995 Towards 2001 — Minimalism, monarchism or metamorphism?
The Hon. Sir Anthony Mason AC KBE GBM QC, Chief Justice, High Court of
Australia, 1987–1995
1996 Social conflict and constitutional interpretation
Emeritus Professor Leslie Zines AO
1997 The Australian Constitution: A centenary assessment
The Hon. Michael Kirby AC CMG, High Court of Australia, 1996–2009
1998 Maintaining public confidence in the judiciary
The Hon. Justice Susan Kenny, Court of Appeal, Supreme Court of Victoria
1997–1998, Federal Court of Australia
1999 The Australian Constitution: Adaptability, change and conflict
Professor Geoffrey Lindell AM
2000 Australian citizenship: Past, present and future
The Rt Hon. Sir Ninian Stephen KG AK GCMG GCVO KBE PC QC,
Governor General of Australia, 1982–1989
2001 The shape of representative democracy
The Hon. Murray Gleeson AC QC, Chief Justice, High Court of Australia,
1998–2008
2002 Sir Isaac Isaacs and the workings of the Australian Constitution
The Rt Hon. Sir Zelman Cowen AK GCMG GCVO QC PC, Governor General
of Australia, 1977–1982
2003 ...such other federal courts as the Parliament creates: A hundred years of
evolution
The Hon. Michael Black AC QC, Chief Justice, Federal Court of Australia,
1991–2010
2004 What separation of powers?
The Hon. Chief Justice Marilyn Warren AC, Supreme Court of Victoria
2005 Judges under fire – How far can the critics go?
The Hon. Ronald Sackville AO, Federal Court of Australia, 1994–2008
2006 Concerning judicial method fifty years on
The Hon. Justice Kenneth Hayne AC, High Court of Australia, 1997–2015
2007 Protecting rights in a federation
The Hon. Justice Pamela Tate, Solicitor-General for Victoria, 2003–2010
2008 The parameters of constitutional change
The Hon. Sir Gerard Brennan AC KBE QC, Chief Justice, High Court
of Australia, 1995–1998
2009 Section 92: Markets, protectionism and proportionality — Australian and
European perspectives
The Hon. Justice Susan Kiefel AC, High Court of Australia
2011 Interpreting the constitution – Words, history and change
The Hon. Justice Robert French AC, Chief Justice, High Court of Australia
2013 Section 80 – The great constitutional tautology
The Hon. Justice Virginia Bell AC, High Court of Australia
2014 Legislative Intention
The Hon. Justice Stephen Gageler, High Court of Australia
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