Living Greatly in the Law
Hal Wootten’s selected writing and speeches
John Halden ‘Hal’ Wootten (1922–2021) made contributions to the law and public life that were extraordinary in their breadth, vision and lasting significance. This book brings together the best of his speeches and writing on the subjects he felt passionately about and knew so well – justice for Indigenous Australians, international development, environmental protection, legal education, the responsibilities of the legal profession and the tragedy of Palestine. His work is as fresh and relevant today as when it was written.
Hal Wootten’s commitments reflected the stages of a remarkable career, from a young lay anthropologist in Papua New Guinea to octogenarian observer of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict. These were bookends to his working life as barrister, dean of law, Supreme Court judge, Royal Commissioner into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody and President of the Australian Conservation Foundation. Throughout all these different roles, Hal retained a clarity of moral vision, memorably captured in his expressed commitment and concern for ‘those upon whom the law bears harshly’.
In this collection of essays, speeches and unpublished work, David Dixon and Andrew Lynch present Wootten’s contribution to shaping a more just society.
‘We all continue to benefit from Hal’s legacy of “living greatly in the law” through the generations of lawyers he has educated and inspired. This important book introduces his vision to the next generation.’ – Jennifer Robinson
Emeritus Professor David Dixon was Dean of Law at UNSW (2006–16). Hal Wootten was his friend and mentor. David’s books and papers focus on the relationship between legal regulation and policing practice, including edited collections A Culture of Corruption: Changing an Australian Police Service (Institute of Criminology) and The Integrity of Criminal. He has also served as editor of the Australian & New Zealand Journal of Criminology and as international editor of the British Society of Criminology’s journal, Criminology & Criminal Justice.
Professor Andrew Lynch is Dean of Law at UNSW and in his almost 20 years at UNSW has shared in the appreciation of all that Hal achieved in his founding of the law school, as well as the remarkable example he continues to set for the University’s students of a life lived with commitment to both professional excellence and justice. His experience as an editor of books includes Counter-Terrorism and Beyond: The Culture of Law and Justice After 9/11 (Routledge 2010), Tomorrow’s Federation: Reforming Australian Government (Federation Press 2012), Great Australian Dissents (CUP 2016) and The Judge, the Judiciary and the Court: Individual, Collegial and Institutional Judicial Dynamics in Australia (CUP 2021).
