Sir Francis Gerard Brennan (22 May 1928 – 1 June 2022) was an Australian lawyer and jurist who served as the 10th

Chief Justice of Australia The Chief Justice of Australia is the presiding Justice of the High Court of Australia and the highest-ranking judicial officer in the Commonwealth of Australia. The incumbent is Susan Kiefel, who is the first woman to hold the position. Co ...

. As a judge in the High Court of Australia, he wrote the lead judgement on the

Mabo decision ''Mabo v Queensland (No 2)'' (commonly known as ''Mabo'') is a decision of the High Court of Australia, decided on 3 June 1992.. It is a landmark case, brought by Eddie Mabo against the State of Queensland. The case is notable for first reco ...

, which gave rise to the

Native Title Act The ''Native Title Act 1993'' (Cth) is a law passed by the Australian Parliament, the purpose of which is "to provide a national system for the recognition and protection of native title and for its co-existence with the national land managemen ...

Early life and education

Brennan was born on May 22, 1928 in

Rockhampton Rockhampton is a city in the Rockhampton Region of Central Queensland, Australia. The population of Rockhampton in June 2021 was 79,967, Estimated resident population, 30 June 2018. making it the fourth-largest city in the state outside of the ...

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

. He was the son of Frank Tenison Brennan, a Labor Party politician, lawyer and judge of the

Supreme Court of Queensland The Supreme Court of Queensland is the highest court in the Australian State of Queensland. It was formerly the Brisbane Supreme Court, in the colony of Queensland. The original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court allows its trial division to he ...

. He was raised as, and continued to be, a

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

and has said: "Egalitarianism, tolerance and the respect for conscience are the practical manifestations of faith, hope and charity."

Career

Prime Minister

Malcolm Fraser John Malcolm Fraser (; 21 May 1930 – 20 March 2015) was an Australian politician who served as the 22nd prime minister of Australia from 1975 to 1983, holding office as the leader of the Liberal Party of Australia. Fraser was raised on hi ...

appointed Brennan to the court in 1981. As a High Court judge, Brennan wrote the lead judgement on the

, which overturned the doctrine of ''

terra nullius ''Terra nullius'' (, plural ''terrae nullius'') is a Latin expression meaning " nobody's land". It was a principle sometimes used in international law to justify claims that territory may be acquired by a state's occupation of it. : : ...

'' used to justify the Crown's sovereignty over Australia, replacing it with the doctrine of

native title Aboriginal title is a common law doctrine that the land rights of indigenous peoples to customary tenure persist after the assumption of sovereignty under settler colonialism. The requirements of proof for the recognition of aboriginal title, ...

, and thus protecting Aboriginal people's claims to land. This decision eventually gave rise to the

. Brennan is also notable for his landmark judgement in '' Waltons v Maher'', which established

equitable estoppel Estoppel is a judicial device in common law legal systems whereby a court may prevent or "estop" a person from making assertions or from going back on his or her word; the person being sanctioned is "estopped". Estoppel may prevent someone from b ...

as a cause of action in itself. He was appointed by prime minister

Paul Keating Paul John Keating (born 18 January 1944) is an Australian former politician and unionist who served as the 24th prime minister of Australia from 1991 to 1996, holding office as the leader of the Australian Labor Party (ALP). He previously serv ...

to become the 10th

in 1995.

After retirement

Following his retirement from the High Court, Brennan was a non-permanent judge of the

Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal The Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal (HKCFA or CFA) is the final appellate court of Hong Kong. It was established on 1 July 1997, upon the establishment of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, replacing the Judicial Committee of t ...

(2000-2012) and an external judge of the Supreme Court of Fiji (1999–2000), chancellor of the

University of Technology Sydney The University of Technology Sydney (UTS) is a public research university located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Although its origins are said to trace back to the 1830s, the university was founded in its current form in 1988. As of 2021 ...

(1998–2004) and Foundation Scientia Professor of Law at the

University of New South Wales The University of New South Wales (UNSW), also known as UNSW Sydney, is a public research university based in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is one of the founding members of Group of Eight, a coalition of Australian research-intensive ...

(1998). He was an honorary visiting professor of law at the

. In June 2021, Brennan intervened in a public debate over a family of asylum seekers, supporting the family with a letter in major newspapers. It begins: :Are other Australians ashamed, as I am? How can Australia, proud of our freedoms, respectful of all our peoples, and insistent on human dignity, inflict cruelty on Australian children as a means of achieving a goal of government policy?

Personal life

In 1953, Brennan married Patricia O'Hara. Lady Brennan died on 3 September 2019. Their first child, Frank Brennan, born in 1954, became a

Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particu ...

, a

human rights Human rights are Morality, moral principles or Social norm, normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for ce ...

lawyer A lawyer is a person who practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney, barrister, canon lawyer, civil law notary, counsel, counselor, solic ...

and an advocate for the rights of

Aboriginal peoples Indigenous peoples are culturally distinct ethnic groups whose members are directly descended from the earliest known inhabitants of a particular geographic region and, to some extent, maintain the language and culture of those original people ...

. He is known for his involvement in the Wik debate when

referred to him as "the meddling priest". Their second child, Madeline Brennan QC, is a barrister in Brisbane and has served as a director of a number of Catholic health and education providers. Their third child Dr Anne Brennan is a psychiatrist who came to prominence in the Barrett Adolescent Centre Commission of Inquiry. Their fourth child Tom Brennan SC is a barrister in Sydney.A son Paul was CEO of Polynovo Ltd an ASX listed biotechnology manufacturer until his resignation in 2021. A daughter,

Bernadette Bernadette is a French name, a female form of the name Bernard, which means "brave bear". Notable persons with the name include: People * Bernadette (singer) (born 1959), Dutch singer * Bernadette Allen (born 1956), American foreign service of ...

, is the author of renowned literary biographies ''This Writing Life: Helen Garner and her Work''; and ''Leaping into Waterfalls: The Enigmatic Gillian Mears.'' Brennan died on 1 June 2022 in Sydney, aged 94, two days before Mabo Day and the 30th anniversary of the Mabo decision.

Honours

In 1981, Brennan was appointed a

Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

and, in 1988, appointed a

Companion of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Gove ...

in recognition of his service to the law. Brennan was awarded honorary degrees by 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 ...

(Hon.

LL.D. Legum Doctor (Latin: “teacher of the laws”) (LL.D.) or, in English, Doctor of Laws, is a doctorate-level academic degree in law or an honorary degree, depending on the jurisdiction. The double “L” in the abbreviation refers to the early ...

), the

University of Technology, Sydney The University of Technology Sydney (UTS) is a public research university located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Although its origins are said to trace back to the 1830s, the university was founded in its current form in 1988. As of 2021 ...

(Hon. LL.D.), the

University of Queensland , mottoeng = By means of knowledge and hard work , established = , endowment = A$224.3 million , budget = A$2.1 billion , type = Public research university , chancellor = Peter Varghese , vice_chancellor = Deborah Terry , city = B ...

(Hon. LL.D.),

Griffith University Griffith University is a public research university in South East Queensland on the east coast of Australia. Formally founded in 1971, Griffith opened its doors in 1975, introducing Australia's first degrees in environmental science and Asian s ...

(Hon. D.Univ.),

Central Queensland University Central Queensland University (alternatively known as CQUniversity) is an Australian public university based in central Queensland. CQUniversity is the only Australian university with a campus presence in every mainland state. Its main campus ...

(Hon. D.Litt.),

Trinity College Dublin , name_Latin = Collegium Sanctae et Individuae Trinitatis Reginae Elizabethae juxta Dublin , motto = ''Perpetuis futuris temporibus duraturam'' (Latin) , motto_lang = la , motto_English = It will last i ...

(Hon. LL.D.) and the

Australian Catholic University Australian Catholic University (ACU) is a public university in Australia. It has seven Australian campuses and also maintains a campus in Rome. History Australian Catholic University was opened on 1 January 1991 following the amalgamatio ...

(Hon LL.D). He was a life fellow of the

Australian Academy of Law The Australian Academy of Law (AAL) is a permanent, non-government organisation devoted to the advancement of the discipline of law. According to its Constitution, the Australian Academy of Law comprises individuals of exceptional distinction from a ...

. He served as chancellor of the University of Technology, Sydney, from 1998 to 2004. In 2013, Brennan was awarded the

Gold Bauhinia Star The Gold Bauhinia Star (, GBS) is the highest Bauhinia Star rank in the honours system of Hong Kong, created in 1997 to replace the British honours system of the Order of the British Empire after the transfer of sovereignty to People's Republic of ...

by the

Chief Executive of Hong Kong The Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region is the representative of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and head of the Government of Hong Kong. The position was created to replace the office of governor of ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brennan, Gerard 1928 births 2022 deaths Australian Knights Commander of the Order of the British Empire Companions of the Order of Australia Chief justices of Australia Justices of the High Court of Australia Judges of the Federal Court of Australia Judges of the Supreme Court of the Northern Territory Justices of the Court of Final Appeal (Hong Kong) Fellows of the Australian Academy of Law Australian judges on the courts of Hong Kong Australian judges on the courts of Fiji Supreme Court of Fiji justices Australian King's Counsel People from Rockhampton Australian Roman Catholics Australian people of Irish descent Australian people of German descent Judges of the Supreme Court of the Australian Capital Territory 20th-century Australian judges Judges of the Commonwealth Industrial Court