John Warrington Rogers (1822 – 10 February 1906), MA , was a lawyer, member of parliament for the colony of

Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdi ...

and judge of the

County Court of Victoria The County Court of Victoria is the intermediate court in the Australian state of Victoria. It is equivalent to district courts in the other states. The County Court is the principal trial court in the state, having a broad criminal and civi ...

. Rogers was the eldest son of the John Warrington Rogers, of

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 ...

, entered as a student to the

Middle Temple The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known simply as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court exclusively entitled to call their members to the English Bar as barristers, the others being the Inner Temple, Gray's Inn an ...

in June 1848, and was called to the bar in November 1846. He emigrated to Tasmania, and was admitted to practise there in August 1865. Rogers was elected to the

Tasmanian House of Assembly The House of Assembly, or Lower House, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of Tasmania in Australia. The other is the Legislative Council or Upper House. It sits in Parliament House in the state capital, Hobart. The Assembly has 25 m ...

for Launceston on 8 September 1856 and was Solicitor-General in the first Ministry formed under responsible government, he resigned on 16 November 1857. In the latter year he removed to Victoria, where he was admitted to the bar in March. In 1858 Rogers was appointed a judge of the

at Ballaarat and

Creswick Creswick is a town in west-central Victoria, Australia, 18 kilometres north of Ballarat and 122 kilometres northwest of Melbourne, in the Shire of Hepburn. It is 430 metres above sea level. At the 2016 census, Creswick had a populatio ...

as well as Chairman of the Court of General Sessions and a judge of the Courts of Mines. In 1878 the

Berry A berry is a small, pulpy, and often edible fruit. Typically, berries are juicy, rounded, brightly colored, sweet, sour or tart, and do not have a stone or pit, although many pips or seeds may be present. Common examples are strawberries, raspb ...

government sacked Warrington, along will all other judges of County Courts, Courts of Mines, Chairmen of Courts of General Sessions, Police Magistrates and a large number of public servants, an event referred to as "Black Wednesday". Rogers was temporarily reappointed on 29 January 1878, but to different counties, those previously held by Charles Skinner. His reappointment was challenged in the

Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

on the basis that the judges had not validly been removed. The Supreme Court held that County Court judges held office at pleasure and the Governor in council could remove them without cause. The government refused to give County Court judges

security of tenure Security of tenure is a term used in political science to describe a constitutional or legal guarantee that a political office-holder cannot be removed from office except in exceptional and specified circumstances. Without security of tenure, an ...

and Rogers resigned from 29 June 1878, on a pension. Rogers returned to the bar and was appointed a

Queen's Counsel In the United Kingdom and in some Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth countries, a King's Counsel (Post-nominal letters, post-nominal initials KC) during the reign of a king, or Queen's Counsel (post-nominal initials QC) during the reign of ...

on 2 July 1878. Rogers, was awarded a

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...

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 ...

, was appointed a Law Lecturer at that University in 1878. He was President of the Royal Commission on Education appointed by the O'Loghlen Government. Rogers died on 10 February 1906 in

Brentford Brentford is a suburban town in West London, England and part of the London Borough of Hounslow. It lies at the confluence of the River Brent and the Thames, west of Charing Cross. Its economy has diverse company headquarters buildings whi ...

, Middlesex, and his will was proved on 29 March in London.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rogers, John Warrington 1822 births 1906 deaths Judges of the County Court of Victoria 19th-century Australian judges Colony of Victoria judges Solicitors-General of Tasmania Australian King's Counsel