David John Davies Bevan (11 January 1873 – 2 October 1954) was an English-born Australian judge. He was born in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

in 1873 but moved to

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

in 1886, attending

Melbourne Church of England Grammar School Melbourne Grammar School is an Australian Independent school, independent Anglican Church of Australia, Anglican Day school, day and boarding school. It comprises a co-educational preparatory school from Prep to Year 6 and a middle school and seni ...

and the

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne is a public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in Victoria. Its main campus is located in Parkville, an inner suburb nor ...

, where he was a resident at

Trinity College Trinity College may refer to: Australia * Trinity Anglican College, an Anglican coeducational primary and secondary school in , New South Wales * Trinity Catholic College, Auburn, a coeducational school in the inner-western suburbs of Sydney, New ...

. He enlisted in the University Corps of Officers on 25 September 1896 and was subsequently allotted to the Victorian Garrison Artillery where he was promoted to major in November 1910. In 1914 he was placed on the Unattached List. He practised as a solicitor from 1901 to 1912, when he moved to Darwin to take up a position as the first judge of the

Supreme Court of the Northern Territory The Supreme Court of the Northern Territory is the superior court for the Australian Territory of the Northern Territory. It has unlimited jurisdiction within the territory in civil matters, and hears the most serious criminal matters. It is aro ...

. His close association with the

Administrator of the Northern Territory The Administrator of the Northern Territory is an official appointed by the Governor-General of Australia to represent the government of the Commonwealth in the Northern Territory, Australia. They perform functions similar to those of a state gov ...

John A. Gilruth John Anderson Gilruth (17 February 1871 – 4 March 1937) was a Scottish-Australian veterinary scientist and administrator. He is particularly noted for being Administrator of the Northern Territory from 1912 to 1918, when he was recalled afte ...

, led to a perception of a lack of judicial independence; following the Darwin Rebellion, which led to Gilruth being recalled, a public meeting resolved that Bevan and other judges should leave the territory forthwith. He left on 18 October 1919 and was officially removed from office on 22 September 1920 after a Royal Commission conducted by Tasmanian Justice

Norman Ewing Norman Kirkwood Ewing (26 December 1870 – 19 July 1928), Australian politician, was a member of three parliaments: the Western Australian Legislative Assembly, the Australian Senate, and the Tasmanian House of Assembly. He became a Judge of ...

. Bevan sued the government but settled out of court. In later life he retired back to Victoria, settling in Upper Beaconsfield, where he died in 1954."Death of First Darwin Judge"
''The Advertiser'' delaide 4 October 1954, p. 2.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bevan, David 1873 births 1954 deaths People educated at Trinity College (University of Melbourne) Judges of the Supreme Court of the Northern Territory British emigrants to Australia