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A bar association has criticised a King’s Counsel for publicly blaming Victoria’s “out of control” crime rate on what he claimed was politically motivated judicial appointments.
Published in the Victorian newspaper The Age, veteran barrister and former chief crown prosecutor Gavin Silbert KC said there has been a “host of entirely inappropriate” magistrate and judge appointments for almost a decade-and-a-half.
He wrote that politicians have filled benches with friends “and those to whom they see themselves as indebted”.
The piece was a response to opposition leader Jess Wilson’s election promise to increase prison sentences and split the Court of Appeal into two – the Court of Criminal Appeal and the Court of Civil Appeal – with “tough” judges at the helm.
Silbert said Wilson’s plan “is ill-considered, ignorant and will achieve nothing to control crime in Victoria”.
His criticisms were shared by other legal bodies and leaders, including Victorian Bar’s president Fiona Ryan SC, who stressed the single Court of Appeal “already does vital work”.
“Victorians are fortunate to have a judiciary that is independent and apolitical, and which applies the law enacted by Parliament without fear or favour, and without any regard to their personal views,” Ryan said in a statement.
“That independence is essential to the rule of law.”
Law Institute of Victoria (LIV) president Tom Ballantyne AccS(PI) also said the independence of the judiciary and the court system “is a fundamental pillar of our democracy”.
In a recent statement, Criminal Bar Association’s chair Chris Carr SC said Victorians are “well served” by the quality of judges and magistrates appointed by “governments of all political persuasions over recent decades”.
Carr said these judicial officers have been “drawn from the best and brightest” of the profession and have dedicated themselves to “faithfully applying the laws” enacted by parliament.
Reflecting on Silbert’s op-ed, Carr said the operation of the criminal justice system is a matter of “immense and legitimate public interest”, and added media plays a “critical role” in informing the public and fostering discussion.
“However, unfounded attacks on the judiciary do not assist in that process,” Carr said.
