Sir James William Blair KCMG (16 May 1870–18 November 1944) was an Australian politician, lawyer and judge. The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George Prince Regent (later George Events 1204 - Baldwin IX Count of Flanders is crowned as the first Emperor of the Latin Empire. Year 1870 ( MDCCCLXX) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Events 326 - The old St Peter's Basilica is consecrated 1302 - Pope Boniface VIII issues the Papal bull Year 1944 ( MCMXLIV) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. He was a successful politician, being elected to the Queensland Parliament on several occasions. The Queensland Legislative Assembly is the Unicameral chamber of the Parliament of Queensland. He held the office of Attorney General and was also the Minister for Mines and introduced many successful law reforms measures in Queensland. In latter life, he took up an appointment as a judge of the Supreme Court of Queensland and went on to become the chief justice of that court. The Supreme Court of Queensland, which is based at the Law Courts Complex, is the superior Court for the Australian State of Queensland Blair took on many civic roles including that of chancellor of the University of Queensland. The University of Queensland (UQ is one of Australia's premier learning and research institutions

His biographer states that Blair was thought of as a “dandy”^[1] because he wore a white gardenia in his coat buttonhole and a silk handkerchief protruding from his breast pocket. Gardenia is a Genus of about 250 species of Flowering plants in the family Rubiaceae, native to the Tropical and Subtropical Blair was said to be witty, possess a delightful personality, a gift of speech, and a love of humour, although author Frank Hardy is accused of referring to Blair as “venal”^[1] through veiled references in the book “Power Without Glory”. Frank Hardy ( 21 March, 1917 &ndash 28 January, 1994) was a Left-wing Novelist and Writer from Australia Power Without Glory is a 1950 Novel written by Australian writer and Communist Frank Hardy.

Contents 1 Early years 2 Political career 3 Judicial career 4 Vice-regal roles 5 References

Early years

Blair was born at Coalfalls, Ipswich, Queensland on 16 May 1870. Ipswich ( ˈɪpswɪtʃ is a Non-metropolitan district and the County town of Suffolk, England on the Estuary of the River Orwell Events 1204 - Baldwin IX Count of Flanders is crowned as the first Emperor of the Latin Empire. Year 1870 ( MDCCCLXX) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common He was the son of Gordon Blair and Julie Blair (nee Droughton). He was first educated by his mother but he later attended Ipswich West State School. He later attended Ipswich Grammar School between 1882 and 1888. He read for the preliminary Queensland Bar examinations in Brisbane. Blair lived in Swanwick at the time and was called to the Queensland Bar on 6 March 1894. The Call to the Bar is a legal Term of art in most Common law jurisdictions Events 1079 - Omar Khayyám completes the Iranian calendar. 1454 - Thirteen Years' War: Delegates of Year 1894 ( MDCCCXCIV) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common

Blair shared chambers with the Queensland Attorney General of the time, Thomas Joseph Byrnes. Thomas Joseph Byrnes ( 11 November 1860 &ndash 27 September 1898) was Premier of Queensland from April 1898 until his death Blair appeared as junior counsel in many significant cases. One of those was the appeal to the Full Court of the Supreme Court of Queensland by Patrick Kenniff and James Kenniff. Both had been convicted of murdering a property owner and a police constable after the homestead they were staying in was burnt to the ground. The appeal did not succeed and Patrick Kenniff was executed soon after and his brother went on to serve a gaol term. ^[2]

Political career

Blair’s association with Byrnes led to his interest in politics. Blair contested a general election in 1902 as an independent candidate for Ipswich in the Queensland State elections. The division of Ipswich is a Queensland Legislative Assembly electoral district on the Brisbane River, west of Brisbane in the Australian He was one of two elected to represented Ipswich in that election. Blair captured the hearts of the electorate by putting up heart shaped signs saying “Give Jimmy a vote” or “In the hearts of the people”. In parliament he opposed Sunday trading for pubs and hotels, restricted hours for bars, prohibition of the sale of tobacco to children and the stringent enforcement against gambling. He also sought the takeover of private schools by the Government and the provision of more scholarships after their takeover.

In 1903, at the age of 33, Blair was invited to become Attorney-General of Queensland after Sir Arthur Morgan became Premier of Queensland^[1] after the Liberal-Labour coalition victory. Arthur Ernest Morgan (1878&ndash1975 U S administrator educator and engineer Arthur Morgan (Queensland politician (1856&ndash1916 Premier ^[3] One of Blair’s first acts was to abolish the office of sheriff. SHERIFF is a telecom fraud detection and management system originally developed by BT and MCI. This led to the sacking of Arthur Hoey David (or better known as author Steele Rudd). This led to many vicious personal attacks on Blair in Steele Rudd’s Magazine. ^[4] The office of sheriff was quickly restored when it was realized how much the sheriff actually did. In 1904, Blair additionally became the Minister for Mines. In 1905, Blair introduced the Worker’s Compensation Act 1905 (Qld), a major change to workplace safety laws in Queensland. Previous efforts at reform in this area had stalled and this legislation changed the focus from the regulation of safety to instead requiring employers to compensate employees for workplace accidents. ^[5] He introduced the Children’s Court Act 1907 (Qld) providing for the first specialized children’s courts in Queensland. ^[1] These courts were a great success. ^[1] These specialized children's courts continue to exist in modern times (see Childrens Court of Queensland. The Children's Court of Queensland is a specialized court in Queensland, a state of Australia which deals with serious crimes committed by children under the age of However, he was unable to gather support for changes to mining laws or to education. As joint editor, he published an annotated version of the Workers Compensation legislation in 1906. He also jointed revised the “Queensland Police Code and Justices' Manual of the Criminal Law” written by Robert Archibald Ranking. ^[6] He continued in his executive offices after William Kidston became Premier in 1906. William Kidston ( 27 September 1849 &ndash 25 October 1919) was an Australian politician and Premier of Queensland ^[7] He lost those offices in 1907 when Sir Robert Philip became Premier, but was eventually re-appointed after Kidston regained the premiership in 1908. Enchanted is a 2007 Musical film, directed by Kevin Lima and produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released by Walt Disney

A constitutional impasse over the Queensland Legislative Council between the Queensland Governor, Lord Chelmsford, and Kidston as Premier led to a general election. Blair introduced two pieces of legislation that became crucial in the later abolition of the upper house. The first reduced the requirement for a two-thirds majority for a bill to become law in Queensland. After this was passed, a further law change was made that allowed for referendum of the people to be held to make laws had been refused in two consecutive sessions of Parliament.

Kidston offered Blair an appointment to the Supreme Court of Queensland in 1908. The Supreme Court of Queensland, which is based at the Law Courts Complex, is the superior Court for the Australian State of Queensland However, he declined it because it was to be a Northern Queensland appointment and he preferred a Brisbane placement. When Kidston formed a coalition with the Opposition, he Blair from his ministerial roles to allow for coalition members to be appointed. Blair went on to lead what became known as the “Independent Opposition”. In 1911 he became president of Tattersall’s Club. He held this role until 1922.

He married Christina Gibson on 29 February 1912 at St Andrew’s Church of England, South Brisbane. Leap years Although the modern calendar counts a year as 365 days a complete revolution around the sun takes approximately 365 days and 6 hours Year 1912 ( MCMXII) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Leap year starting They were to have no children. At the general election in that year, Blair stood as a Government candidate for Ipswich. He was elected and he returned to the ministry as Secretary for Public Instruction and held this office until 1915. In Parliament, he introduced law changes to raise the age of consent from 14 to 17 years of age. He also introduced changes to prevent wills excluding immediate family,^[1] as well as introducing rules that restricted corporate ownership of pharmacies to Family Societies. He also changed the criteria for the awarding of secondary school scholarships by making them available to all who qualified, rather than by way of competition.

In 1915 Blair lost his seat in parliament at the general election, and he returned to private practice as a barrister. He appeared as junior counsel in the “Legislative Council referendum” case in which he argued that legislation abolishing the Upper House in Queensland was valid. The Full Court of the Supreme Court of Queensland ruled against the validity of that legislation. However, the High Court of Australia overturned that decision and ruled that it was valid. The High Court of Australia is the final court of appeal in Australia the highest court in the Australian court hierarchy. Blair became a member of the senate of the University of Queensland in 1915 and 1916.

Judicial career

In 1922, Blair was again offered an appointment as a judge on the Northern Queensland bench. This time he accepted and he and his family moved to Townsville. Townsville is a city on the north-eastern coast of Australia, in the state of Queensland. He subsequently moved to the Central Queensland bench in 1923 which was based at Rockhampton. Rockhampton can refer to Rockhampton Queensland is a city in Queensland Australia Rockhampton City Queensland, a suburb of Rockhampton He was appointed chief justice on 24 April 1925 on the death of McCawly. Events 1479 BC - Thutmose III ascends to the throne of Egypt, although power effectively shifts to Hatshepsut (according to Year 1925 ( MCMXXV) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. He was reappointed to the senate of the University of Queensland in 1926 and became chancellor in 1927. Blair was knighted in the 1930 New Year Honours. The rank of Knight Bachelor is a part of the British honours system. The British honours system is a means of rewarding individuals' personal bravery achievement or service to the United Kingdom. ^[8][9]

In 1931 Blair heard a civil claim for damages against two former premiers of Queensland, William McCormack and Edward Granville Theodore. William McCormack ( 27 April 1879 &ndash 21 November 1947) was Premier of Queensland, Australia, from 1925 to 1929 ^[10] They were both accused of conspiracy in respect of the purchase of two mines in Northern Queensland from the Munguna Mining Corporaton. The case achieved public noterity as Theodore was then the Treasurer of the Australian Government. The trial lasted twenty-days before a jury and had to be held in the Brisbane City Hall because of the number of defendants. It led to a verdict in favour of McCormack and Theodore.

In 1939, Blair and a jury held a trial in respect of a large of number of accused who had been part of the League for Social Justice. The accused had invaded the Legislative Council chambers armed with baton, barbed wire and hammers. Blair’s biography states that Blair made it clear to the jury that the accused were guilty, but the jury found that they were not.

Frank Hardy’s novel “Power Without Glory” uses thinly veiled references to Blair in the novel. Hardy uses the character in the novel to accuse Blair of venality. Blair’s biographer dismisses these references as simply gossip. Blair was also to be the president of Queensland Rugby Union.

Vice-regal roles

Blair acted as deputy governor for brief periods whilst chief justice. He also served as Administrator of Queensland pending the arrival of the new governor in April 1932. He was appointed lieutenant-governor of Queensland on 31 May 1933. Events 1279 BC - Rameses II (The Great (19th dynasty becomes pharaoh of Ancient Egypt. Year 1933 ( MCMXXXIII) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. ^[11] He was appointed Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George (KCMG) on 3 June 1935 in George V's Silver Jubilee King's Birthday Honours. The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George Prince Regent (later George Events 350 - Roman usurper Nepotianus, of the Constantinian dynasty, proclaims himself Roman Emperor, entering Year 1935 ( MCMXXXV) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Queen's Birthday Honours (or King's Birthday Honours when the monarch is male is a civic occasion on the celebration of the Queen's Official Birthday in which ^[12]

Blair retired as chief justice on 16 May 1940 but remained as lieutenant-governor. Events 1204 - Baldwin IX Count of Flanders is crowned as the first Emperor of the Latin Empire. Year 1940 ( MCMXL) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full 1940 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Blair was the subject of controversy when Justice Edward Douglas of the Supreme Court published a statement in the Brisbane based "Truth" newspaper in 1944 alleging that Blair had suppressed a pension plan for judges. Douglas further alleged that Blair had received a salary as lieutenant-governor and had been given large undisclosed sums of money by the government to suppress pensions for judges. The allegations caused the other judges of the Court to condemn Douglas and lend their support to Blair. It emerged later in the Queensland Parliament that Douglas was mistaken over the pensions issue, that Blair had not received an salary as lieutenant-governor, and that the undisclosed payments were in fact payment for untaken leave. ^[1]

He died on 18 November 1944 at the Mater Misericordiae Hospital in South Brisbane. Events 326 - The old St Peter's Basilica is consecrated 1302 - Pope Boniface VIII issues the Papal bull Year 1944 ( MCMXLIV) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. A service was held at St John's Cathedral, Brisbane, and a state funeral proceeded to Bulimba cemetery (now called Balmoral Cemetery, or sometimes called Morningside Cemetery). St John's Cathedral is the Anglican Cathedral of Brisbane, situated on the outskirts of the city centre and the metropolitan cathedral of the ecclesiastical ^[13]

References

Preceded by Thomas McCawley

Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Queensland 1925 - 1940

Succeeded by Hugh Denis Macrossan

Thomas William McCawley ( 24 July 1881 – 16 April 1925) was a Chief justice of Queensland. The Supreme Court of Queensland, which is based at the Law Courts Complex, is the superior Court for the Australian State of Queensland Year 1925 ( MCMXXV) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Year 1940 ( MCMXL) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full 1940 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Hugh Denis Macrossan ( 20 February 1881 &ndash 23 June 1940) was a politician and judge in Queensland, a State of Australia

---

© 2009 citizendia.org; parts available under the terms of GNU Free Documentation License, from http://en.wikipedia.org
Dapyx Software network: MP3 Explorer | Ebook Manager | Zenithic