Barry Stanley John O’Keefe , (20 May 1933 24 April 2014) was an Australian
judge
A judge is a person who wiktionary:preside, presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a judicial panel. In an adversarial system, the judge hears all the witnesses and any other Evidence (law), evidence presented by the barris ...
and
lawyer
A lawyer is a person who is qualified to offer advice about the law, draft legal documents, or represent individuals in legal matters.
The exact nature of a lawyer's work varies depending on the legal jurisdiction and the legal system, as w ...
who served as a justice of the
Supreme Court of New South Wales
The Supreme Court of New South Wales is the highest state court of the Australian States and territories of Australia, State of New South Wales. It has unlimited jurisdiction within the state in civil law (common law), civil matters, and hears ...
from 1993 to 2004 and the Commissioner of the
Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) from 1994 until 1999.
He also served as the mayor of
Mosman
Mosman is a suburb on the Lower North Shore region of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Mosman is located 8 kilometres north-east of the Sydney central business district and is the administrative centre for the local governm ...
. An influential member of
Australia's Roman Catholic community, O'Keefe was appointed to the Truth, Justice and Healing Council in 2012, where he organized the
Australian Catholic Bishops Conference
The Australian Catholic Bishops’ Conference (ACBC) is the national episcopal conference of the Catholic bishops of Australia and is the instrumentality used by the Australian Catholic bishops to act nationally and address issues of national ...
's response to the findings of the
. He remained the Chairman of the Truth, Justice and Healing Council until his death in 2014.
[
]
Biography
O'Keefe's father was Ray O'Keefe, a former Mayor of Waverley Municipal Council
Waverley Council is a Local government area in the eastern suburbs of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. First incorporated on 16 June 1859 as the Municipality of Waverley, it is one of the oldest-surviving local government area ...
, and a furniture salesperson. Barry O'Keefe was the brother of the late rock singer, Johnny O'Keefe
John Michael O'Keefe (19 January 1935 – 6 October 1978) was an Australian rock and roll singer whose career began in the early 1950s. A pioneer of Rock music in Australia, his hits include " Wild One" (1958), " Shout!" and "She's My Baby". O ...
, who died in 1978. Their parents sent both brothers to Waverley College
Waverley College is a dual-campus independent Catholic early learning, primary and secondary day school for boys, located on Birrell and Henrietta Street in Waverley, in the eastern suburbs of Sydney, Australia. The school was founded by the C ...
, a private Roman Catholic
The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...
school. Both Barry and John then earned Commonwealth scholarships to the University of Sydney
The University of Sydney (USYD) is a public university, public research university in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in both Australia and Oceania. One of Australia's six sandstone universities, it was one of the ...
, where Barry O'Keefe studied law. O'Keefe was admitted to the New South Wales Bar Association
The New South Wales Bar Association is a professional body of lawyers responsible for the regulation of the legal profession in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The body administers the bar examination in accordance with the Legal Profe ...
in 1958 and appointed to Queen's Counsel
A King's Counsel (Post-nominal letters, post-nominal initials KC) is a senior lawyer appointed by the monarch (or their Viceroy, viceregal representative) of some Commonwealth realms as a "Counsel learned in the law". When the reigning monarc ...
in 1974.[
In 1977, O'Keefe was elected to the Mosman Municipal Council, a position he held for thirteen years, including three terms as the Mayor of Mosman.][
He was appointed a judge of the Supreme Court of New South Wales in 1993, where he headed its ]Commercial law
Commercial law (or business law), which is also known by other names such as mercantile law or trade law depending on jurisdiction; is the body of law that applies to the rights, relations, and conduct of Legal person, persons and organizations ...
Division,[ and was an additional judge of the Court of Appeal, and as a judge of the Common Law Division and the ]NSW Court of Criminal Appeal
The New South Wales Court of Criminal Appeal, part of the Supreme Court of New South Wales, is the highest court for criminal matters and has appellate jurisdiction in the Australian State of New South Wales.
Jurisdiction
The Court hears appea ...
.
In 1989, O'Keefe received the Order of Australia
The Order of Australia is an Australian honours and awards system, Australian honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Monarch ...
. He was also inducted as a Freedom of the City of London
The Freedom of the City of London started around 1237 as the status of a 'free man' or 'citizen', protected by the charter of the City of London and not under the jurisdiction of a feudal lord. In the Middle Ages, this developed into a freedom or ...
in 1991 and was awarded the Centenary Medal
The Centenary Medal is an award which was created by the Australian Government in 2001. It was established to commemorate the centenary of the Federation of Australia and to recognise "people who made a contribution to Australian society or g ...
in 2003.[ A former president of the Local Government Association of NSW and President of the ]National Trust of Australia
The National Trust of Australia, officially the Australian Council of National Trusts (ACNT), is the Australian national peak body for community-based, non-government non-profit organisations committed to promoting and conserving Australia's Ind ...
in NSW from 1991 until 2006, O’Keefe was also an energetic member of the Sydney Harbour Federation Trust
The Sydney Harbour Federation Trust ("Harbour Trust") is an Australian Government agency established in 2001 to preserve and rehabilitate a number of defence and other Commonwealth lands in and around Sydney Harbour. The Trust has been focused o ...
. He was awarded an honorary doctorate by 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 amalgamation ...
. Two days before O’Keefe's death, Pope Francis
Pope Francis (born Jorge Mario Bergoglio; 17 December 1936 – 21 April 2025) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 13 March 2013 until Death and funeral of Pope Francis, his death in 2025. He was the fi ...
created him a Knight Grand Cross (First Class) of the Order of St Gregory the Great.[
O'Keefe died on 24 April 2014, at the age of 80. He was survived by his wife, and their five children including former television host ]Andrew O'Keefe
Andrew Patrick O'Keefe AM is an Australian former television presenter and lawyer. He co-hosted the weekend edition of breakfast program ''Weekend Sunrise'' from 2005 until 2017 as well as the Australian versions of game shows ''Deal or No De ...
.[
]
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:OKeefe, Barry
2014 deaths
Judges of the Supreme Court of New South Wales
Australian King's Counsel
Members of the Order of Australia
Mayors of Mosman
Australian Roman Catholics
1933 births
Knights Grand Cross of the Order of St Gregory the Great
People educated at Waverley College