Law and Judiciary

Sir James Martin (Premier & Chief Justice) (1833)


Sir James Martin (Premier & Chief Justice) (1833)

Began his education at the Catholic School in Parramatta (the beginning of Parramatta Marist). A brilliant student he moved onto a dames school then onto WT Capes School. He was articled to GR Nichols, editor of the “Australian”. He was elected to the New South Wales Parliament in 1856 and became Attorney General. He led the government as premier and attorney general from 1866 – 1868. Henry Parkes was part of his ministry.

He was knighted in 1869 and in 1872 became Chief Justice of New South Wales. He became an Anglican when he married. He and Lady Martin had 15 children, 8 sons and 7 daughters. Martin Place is named after him. He died 14 November 1886. (See Australian Dictionary of Biography.)


Justice Brian Tamberlin (1955)

Brian one of the gifted class of 1955. He came 10th in the State in Modern History. He went on to study law at Sydney University (1st Class Honours) and Harvard law School. After leaving Harvard he became a legal counsel with IBM in New York City.

On returning to Australia he worked as a solicitor with Allen Allen & Hemsley. In 1967 he became a barrister and was appointed a Queens Counsel in 1981. In 1994 he was appointed a judge of the Federal Court of Australia. He retired from the Bench in 2009. In 2011 he headed the royal commission-style inquiry that was investigating the former Labor government’s $5.3 billion sale of NSW electricity assets.

You can review and download the farewell speeches from the special special sitting of the Federal Court HERE

The Honourable Justice Brian Tamberlin  visited Year 11 in 2015 and spoke about his time at Parramatta Marist; working hard to achieve good results in his Leaving Certificate; studying at Sydney Uni and Harvard Law School; the importance of trial and error in finding your way in this life; and about his illustrious and interesting career in the law which culminated in his appointment as a Federal Court judge in 1994.

Justice Tamberlin served in the Federal Court for 15 years and now, in his mid 70’s, still works for the Administrative Appeals Tribunal.

Also see his Wikipedia page HERE