According to Labor luminaries, there were “irregularities” in Balmain and other surrounding branches. See chapter 3 of this link.

 

Use this link to take you to the SMH story “Threats, violence in bitter ALP battleground” - here's a small sample:

 

 

 

 

 

 

Arthur Gietzelt was Ian Macdonald’s mentor. Ian Macdonald was invited by Arthur Gietzelt and Tom Uren to work in NSW Attorney-General Frank Walker’s office in 1978.  

Follow this link to Mark Aarons' story in The Monthly. 

This story in the Sydney Morning Herald from 2009 gives more detail.

 

Rod Madgwick won Labor preselection for the seat of Barton in 1979, playing second fiddle to the housewife superstar in this SMH story.

We've previously reported that while Madgwick was campaigning for the seat of Barton, the telephone number listed in his campaign literature was connected to Frank Walker’s office and there was the small matter of a run in with the constabulary that saw Madgwick charged with hindering police.

The 30 year friendship of Ian Macdonald and Greg Jones started while they were employed in Frank Walker’s office:

http://www.smh.com.au/national/rees-offers-faint-support-for-lunching-minister-20090715-dljh.html

 

http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/mates-race-45m-deal-snares-mp-20100528-wldb.html

 

http://www.smh.com.au/national/ministers-best-mate-was-in-on-coal-deal-20121026-28b62.html

 

http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/magnificent-sevens-moneymaking-machine-20121207-2b11c.html

 

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/mateship-forged-in-the-land-of-the-long-lavish-lunch/story-e6frg6n6-1226573017143

When Nick Greiner came to power in 1988 he slammed Frank Walker's office for ''consistent, persistent and widespread rorting of the public purse'' with Jones and Macdonald coming in for special mentions.

This story from the SMH in 2013 describes MacDonald's systematic corruption.   

Check out how it all started in 1988.

 

 

OUT TO LUNCH: HOW ALP STAFFERS SPENT $18,500

 

Author: By BERNARD LAGAN Date: 02/12/1988 Words: 741

Publication: Sydney Morning Herald Section: News and Features Page: 3

 

Staff employed by the former Labor Minister for Housing, Mr Frank Walker, ran up restaurant bills of $18,500 over an 18-month period using Government-issued credit cards, State Parliament was told yesterday.

The Minister for Housing, Mr Schipp, disclosed the records of lunches and dinners, some of which Mr Walker attended.

Mr Schipp said the food and drink cost NSW taxpayers an average of $108 each time the ministerial staff sat down to a Government-sponsored meal with their clients.

"Famous upmarket eateries such as Simpson's, Beppi's, Pulcinella, Lucio's, EJ's, Lee's Fortuna Court, Angus Steak Cave, Imperial Peking Harbourside and the Waterfront Restaurant were frequented by the Minister and his staff," Mr Schipp said.

He said that while the Government of the day was "out to lunch", housing waiting lists blew out to over 80,000 families.

"The Minister and his staff had adopted the attitude of 'let them eat cake'," said Mr Schipp.

He added that the affair was an exercise in gluttony.

"One would have thought that the former Minister for Housing, the champion of the Left, would have set an example and desisted from such displays of unabashed self-indulgence."

One of the former staff members named by Mr Schipp was Mr Brian Dale, press secretary to the former Premier Mr Neville Wran before joining Mr Walker's staff.

Mr Schipp said Mr Dale had spent $6,374.39 in 15 months on meals at"Sydney's most glamourous eating spots".

Mr Schipp's office claimed later that the figures showed that during a period of five days in December 1984, Mr Dale charged meals worth $800. The bills were incurred during a visit to Beppi's and another to La Rustico.

Another staff member named was Mr Ian McDonald, who was elected a Labor Member of the NSW Upper House in March.

He spent $4,062 "on an assortment of meals" during the 18-month period, said Mr Schipp.

Mr McDonald and Mr Dale appear to have had a similar taste in restaurants.

Mr McDonald incurred a bill of $250 at Beppi's in June 1985, when he discussed housing matters with Mr Walker and others.

He spent $200 at Simpson's, again with Mr Walker and another person.

The subject discussed at Simpson's, according to records, was staff matters.

Mr McDonald said last night his expenses were "incurred in the course of duty".

He rejected any suggestion that there was anything improper in the business-related expenses.

They related to meetings with Federal ministers, senior public servants, sections of the housing industry and interest groups.

But Mr Schipp said the bills were another example of the Labor Party's abuse of office.

"They will go down in history as the Gourmet Government," he said.

OUT TO LUNCH

TWENTY DOLLARS

18/8/84 Maestro Restaurant. Lunch with Frank Walker,

and six media representatives. $215.00 *

28/9/84 Glo Glo's Restaurant (Melbourne).

Lunch with Walker and Victorian Minister for Housing

and staff. Payable by Land Commission. $252.50 *

Glo Glo's Restaurant (Melbourne). Dinner with Walker,

Brian Dale and others. To be charged to YACS.

$252.00 *

17/12/84 Beppi's Restaurant. Dinner with Walker,

press secretary and media. $298.60 *

La Rustica Restaurant. Paid by NSW Land Commission. $501.95 *

21/6/85 Beppi's Restaurant. lunch with Walker,

press secretaries, special adviser and media $250.00 **

27/2/85 Imperial Peking Harbourside.

Dinner with Walker, and senior officers of Public

Service Board. $130.00 * *

* * Amount claimed by Ian MacDonald

* Amount claimed by Brian Dale

Rod Madgwick missed out on Barton in 1980 - instead of a parliamentary seat he went to the Judicial bench.   By 1994 he had done very well - well enough to afford a country property that would play host to a lavish wedding as his daughter Jane married the son of Tom Hughes QC, Michael.  Amongst other luminaries, Frank Walker was a guest at Jane Madgwick’s wedding.

 

VAUCLUSE THE PRIZE FOR LIBS' YOUNG WARRIORS

 

Author: By SALLY LOANE Date: 04/03/1994 Words: 663

Publication: Sydney Morning Herald Section: News and Features Page: 6

John Brogden has never let his age handicap his political ambitions. When the former Young Liberal president was just 22, he contested Liberal Party preselection for the Labor-held State seat of Drummoyne and just lost.

Two years later, armed with several years' experience working for senior Liberals Mr John Hannaford, Mr John Fahey and Mr Ted Pickering, Mr Brogden is pitching for the blue-ribbon seat of Vaucluse, soon to be vacated by Mr Michael Yabsley.

Among those he will be up against is Mr Michael Hughes, son of Mr Tom Hughes, QC, who was the Attorney-General in the third Gorton Liberal ministry

Mr Hughes, 29, says he has been heading towards a political career since he was eight.

His brother-in-law (and employer) is the republican Mr Malcolm Turnbull and last month he married Ms Jane Madgwick, the daughter of the lawyer Ms Gail Madgwick and District Court Judge Mr Rod Madgwick, who stood unsuccessfully as an ALP candidate for the Federal seat of Barton in 1980.

Their wedding, at the Madgwicks' Bilpin property, was attended by the most celebrated warriors from conservative and Labor politics - from Sir John Atwill and Mr John Howard to Mr Frank Walker and Mr Laurie Brereton.

Mr Brogden and Mr Hughes are quite different socially, politically and philosophically. Possibly the only characteristics they share are clean-cut good looks and a Bondi Beach address.

Mr Hughes grew up in the electorate's heartland, Bellevue Hill, the son of a wealthy and wellconnected Catholic family. The first of the nine preselection candidates to announce his intention to stand, he passionately wants to represent the area in which he grew up.

Mr Brogden, also a Catholic, grew up in Balmain, the son of a carpenter -his aunt still prays that her nephew will recant and join the Labor Party.

He married into Liberal political lineage. His wife, Lucy, who works for the Liberal minister Mr Bruce Baird, is the daughter of Mr Frank Hooke, a former State Liberal Treasurer.

Mr Brogden and Mr Hughes both studied arts at university. On campus, Mr Hughes was active in the right-wing Australian Liberal Students' Federation and was also a member of the Woollahra branch of the Young Liberals. A merchant banker, Mr Hughes describes himself as a small "c" conservative and a"reluctant" republican.

"I have great faith in the institution of Parliament and I don't believe that government should interfere in people's private lives," he said. "I think it's arrogant to assume a republic is inevitable. It may develop slowly, but I don't want the nation to be split in the process."

Under Mr Brogden's 1992 leadership, the NSW Young Liberals, traditionally more "wet" than the senior party on social issues, advocated support for a republic. Mr Brogden, an articulate public speaker, also attempted to dismantle the Young Liberals' "champagne Charlie" image.

The 130 preselectors make their decision tomorrow and the favourites are Mr Brogden, Mr Hughes, a Bellevue Hill businessman, Mr Peter Debnam, 39, and Dr Pat O'Brien, 49, of Randwick.

Jane Madgwick was Ian MacDonald's “research assistant of some years standing” and good old lunchie mentioned the Madgwick Hughes nuptials in the NSW Parliament.

Recently my research assistant of some years standing, Jane Madgwick, who went to work as a tour manager for Nina Simone in 1991, returned to Australia and married Mr Michael Hughes, son of Tom Hughes, Q.C., who was the Federal Attorney- General at the time of the Vietnam conflict. Among the many guests at the wedding were the honourable member for Bennelong, Mr Atwill, a former president of the Liberal Party, and numerous other senior members of the Liberal Party were also present. In this delightful circumstance many Australian Labor Party notables were present, including former Premier Wran and a number of former Labor Ministers. It was a unity ticket that many people would dream of. It was a wedding that was really blessed in heaven. The father of the groom, the Hon. Tom Hughes, former Attorney-General at the height of the draft resistant movement in this country and the division that was being created by the then conservative Government's approach to conscription and the Vietnam war - 

The Hon. Dr B. P. V. Pezzutti: And you went to his house?

The Hon. I. M. MACDONALD: Give me a chance. During the speech of Mr Tom Hughes, Q.C., to the gathering, at which Mr Tony Pooley, one of our staff, was also present, he referred to the Vietnam war and certain incidents in the past. If my memory serves me correctly - I am pretty sure that my memory is adequate - the Hon. Tom Hughes, Q.C., member of the Liberal Party, former Minister, particularly in the McMahon Government and the Gorton Government, made it clear that the Liberal Party should apologise. He personally apologised to us in relation to the involvement of the Liberal Party in the Vietnam war. He regretted it. He said that Australia's involvement in the war and his participation in the Cabinet decisions on that war were wrong. He made that clear and he apologised for that involvement. It was a stunning moment at the wedding. As I looked around at little Johnny from Bennelong I saw that he was quite shocked. Tom Hughes, Q.C., former Attorney-General of Australia, has made it clear that the Liberal Party made a mistake in going into the Vietnam war and that it should apologise. Other senior Ministers such as Chipp, have made other statements apologising for Australia's involvement.

By the way, the wedding was in February. There was an incredible sense of solidarity at the wedding except for one table - the table where little Johnny from Bennelong and Sir John Atwill were sitting enjoying a delightful meal. I believe they did not appreciate the comments to the degree that the other 250 people did, including many members of the young Liberals who were invited to the function. They take a different view of the Vietnam war from that of the old stalwarts opposite, the Hon. D. F. Moppett and the Hon. Dr B. P. V. Pezzutti. Great Australians such as the Hon. Tom Hughes, Q.C., have a conscience. The Hon. Doug Moppett certainly does not. So he can blithely forget the millions who died and take the view that whatever we did, whatever perfidies we practised and perpetuated in Vietnam for 10 years, he can forget. However, a great Australian, Tom Hughes, Q.C., had come to the conclusion that Australia's involvement was a mistake, unjust and wrong. He made it clear in front of a very large group of people who had an active interest in justice and political life in this country. In response to the furore in the past three days about Australia's attitude to the Vietnam war, notable conservatives from the period who have consciences have made statements. Some people have consciences. The Hon. Doug Moppett - 

The Hon. Dr B. P. V. Pezzutti: On a point of order: I refuse to sit here and listen to the Hon. I. M. Macdonald mispronounce the name of the Hon. Doug Moppett. I also object to his use of derogatory terms such as "little Johnny" for the honourable Federal member for Bennelong. The honourable member should curtail his language and I appeal to you, Madam Deputy-President, to make him do so.

The DEPUTY-PRESIDENT (The Hon. Beryl Evans): Order! There is no point of order but I remind the Hon. I. M. Macdonald that there is a manner in which to address members in this House and I expect him to respect that and to refer to them properly.

The Hon. I. M. MACDONALD: Thank you, Madam Deputy President. I could never have called him big. Over the past few days a number of statements have been made by conservatives who have a conscience. They have come out clearly pointing out that the Vietnam war was a total disaster in which we should not have been involved. For instance, Mr Malcolm Fraser, former Prime Minister - 

The Hon. Dr B. P. V. Pezzutti: Lies you tell.

The Hon. Ann Symonds: Oh! He accused you of telling lies.

The Hon. I. M. MACDONALD: Madam Deputy-President, I have no difficulty with the Hon. Dr B. P. V. Pezzutti making those sorts of interjections whenever he so desires. I will ensure that on each and every occasion that he calls Malcolm Fraser a liar he will have the opportunity of having that placed upon the record of this Chamber.

The Hon. Dr B. P. V. Pezzutti: I said that you were a liar. I did not say that Malcolm Fraser told lies.

More on the Hansard records here.

 

Frank Walker was the NSW Attorney General in the late 1970s.   Good friends with Neville Wran, Ian MacDonald was a staffer and when Rod Madgwick stood as the Labor candidate in the Federal seat of Barton, the phone number on his campaign material was an extension in Walker's office.   It's heaps cheaper for your campaign that way, because you don't have to pay.   The taxpayer does.  What a great idea!

Here's a link to the Sydney Morning Herald of 24 May, 1976.

 

In this article from the SMH, September 1977, Frank Walker tells us that he "promoted the formation" of the Society of Labor Lawyers in NSW.

 

This July 1980 article from the SMH tells us that Rod Madgwick was by then President of the NSW Society of Labor Lawyers.

 

Lionel Murphy and Frank Walker were friends.   Marcus Einfeld represented Lionel Murphy at the Parliamentary Commission of Enquiry.

POLITICIANS AND LEGAL PROFESSION PAY TRIBUTE Date: 21/10/1986 Words: 887           Publication: Sydney Morning Herald Section: News and Features Page: 5

Parliamentarians and members of the legal profession paid tribute last night to Justice Lionel Murphy. The Prime Minister, Mr Hawke, said: "Lionel Murphy was a great Australian and one of our finest-ever jurists. He made a significant and lasting contribution to the Parliament and the legal system of this country. "The people of Australia have lost a humanist and a jurist of rare talent and significance. "The last few months have been a particularly difficult time for both the judge and his family. Yet he faced this period with characteristic strength and courage. "Lionel Murphy's commitment to the law and his sense of public duty were epitomised by the fact that in recent days, when his health and physical strength were rapidly failing, he continued to work to complete outstanding judgments. "As Attorney-General of the Commonwealth between 1972 and 1975 he pioneered major reforms of the law in relation to family law, legal aid, consumer protection, and civil liberties. "As a judge of the High Court, Lionel Murphy brought to the court a vision of social justice and a commitment to the principle that all are equal under the law." Mr Marcus Einfeld, QC,who represented Justice Murphy at the Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry, said: "I think he was the victim of a great deal of ignorant criticism and a good deal of political fervour, which did not enable detached judgment to be made about him. "I think history will look more kindly upon him than we are at present," he said. The Minister for Resources and Energy, and former Attorney-General Senator Gareth Evans said: "His death, given the circumstances of the last 2 1/2 years of his life, is one of the great Australian tragedies. "Justice Murphy will be remembered as a great reforming Attorney-General and a great reforming judge. "All his achievements apart, the characteristics for which his friends and admirers will most remember him were his sheer creative intellectual energy, his fascination with ideas and his passion for justice and human rights," he said. The Premier of NSW, Mr Unsworth, said history would remember Justice Murphy as a man with an enormous zeal for reform. "He showed great courage during recent difficult times and will be sadly missed by many friends and admirers throughout the community," he said. The NSW Attorney-General, Mr Sheahan, said that for all those in his generation in the law and in politics, Justice Murphy had been an inspirational figure. "His reformist zeal permeated the Parliament, the Australian Labor movement and his distinguished career as a minister and as a judge," Mr Sheahan said. "He maintained his innocence throughout the difficult last years of his life when he was subjected to unprecedented calumny and he withstood his final struggles with great dignity and courage." Throughout those difficulties probably the only person who matched his dignity and courage was his wife Ingrid, Mr Sheahan said. The NSW Minister for Housing, Mr Walker, said he was proud to call Justice Murphy a friend. "Lionel Murphy goes down in history as Australia's finest humanitarian Attorney-General," Mr Walker said. He would also be remembered as a brilliant, compassionate jurist who played a leading role in undoing the black letter law approach of the High Court and replacing it with a more policy-oriented approach to legal interpretation. Senator Janine Haines, Leader of the Australian Democrats, said that Australia had lost one of its most distinguished law reformers and jurists. A former Whitlam Cabinet minister and close friend, Mr Clyde Cameron, said: "It will be a long time before we have anyone to match the great combination of qualities which distinguished Lionel Murphy from so many others. "His judgments will remain his memorial." The Victorian Premier, Mr Cain, said: "He wanted the law to work for people, protecting them and their individual rights. "It is for those achievements that Lionel Murphy will be remembered. The High Court office of the Chief Justice, Sir Harry Gibbs, had no comment on Justice Murphy's death last night. This was in line with precedent. If Sir Harry Gibbs does make a statement it is expected to be from the bench when the court resumes sitting in Canberra next Tuesday. The Leader of the National Party, Mr Sinclair, said Justice Murphy's death marked the end of an era in Australian politics. "That era, and Mr Justice Murphy's involvement in it, provoked continuing controversy. "As a Senator, Attorney-General, and finally as a Judge of the High Court, he played a prominent role in political life over the last three decades. "The contribution he made to the Senate, and particularly in the establishment of its committee system, was outstanding. "The importance of his role in government and the judiciary is part of the historical record. "History will make its own judgment on the impact of his complex personality both on the Whitlam Government and the High Court."

 

Neville Wran was moved to write this piece published in the Sydney Morning Herald about his mate Lionel Murphy.

 

I AM PROUD HE WAS MY MATE, SAYS WRAN Date: 28/10/1986 Words: 1310           Publication: Sydney Morning Herald Section: News and Features Page: 2

To the very last, Lionel Murphy held, with all the tenacity and courage of a great spirit, to the true meaning and message of his own life. Last Thursday in Canberra, his brother Bill told us Lionel's last message. It was a warning against bitterness. In particular, Lionel said: "Bill, don't let the boys grow up in bitterness because of what's happened to me. Don't let them grow up with that millstone round their neck." May that stand as Lionel's last charge to all of us.

Continue reading at the Fairfax website here.    

 

 

In September 1999 a bit of Balmain biff revisited a Labor Party function with this stoush between Gareth Gareth Evans and Rod steeped-in-Labor-traditions-but-judicially-independent Madgwick.

 

Rod Madgwick blames Gareth Evans for the Lionel Murphy trial

Gareth's king hit

Dennis Atkins, Courier Mail, 30 September 1999, page 16

AUSTRALIA is knee-deep in political biographies at present, with new books about former Labor ministers John Button and Gareth Evans and serving Treasurer Peter Costello hitting the shelves in recent days.

The generously positive Evans book, by his former media man Keith Scott, contains an old story that warrants retelling.

Evans was one of the last standing when it came to defending the controversial late High Court judge Lionel Murphy, but had a statutory duty as attorney-general to allow the prosecution of the Labor icon to proceed.

Therefore, he was furious when fellow Labor lawyer and now Federal Court judge Rod Madgwick shirt-fronted him at a dinner in Sydney in 1985, saying: "I blame you for the Murphy trial".

Evans tells Scott he responded with "an absolutely explosive and almost uncontrollable burst of anger". The former attorney-general admits brushingMadgwick's face with an open hand, although others recall real punches thrown, the final one hitting the side of the Sydney QC's head.

 

 

In 1986 Madgwick was appointed a District Court Judge in NSW.   In 1995 he was appointed as a Judge of the Federal Court of Australia.

 

"I never lie in statutory declarations if I can conceivably have any hope of it being true".   Marcus Einfeld, 2009, Sydney.

 

In February 2009 Madgwick's brother judge the former Justice Marcus Einfeld was tried and convicted on charges of perjury and perverting the course of justice.

CITATION :	R v Einfeld [2009] NSWSC 119
	HEARING DATE(S) :	25-27 February 2009
	JUDGMENT DATE :	20 March 2009
	JUDGMENT OF :	James J
	DECISION :	For the offence of perjury — sentenced to a non-parole period of imprisonment of one year two months commencing on 20 March 2009 and expiring on 19 May 2010 and a balance of the term of seven months commencing on 20 May 2010 and expiring on 19 December 2010. For the offence of perverting the course of justice — sentenced to a non-parole period of imprisonment of one year three months commencing on 20 December 2009 and expiring on 19 March 2011 and a balance of the term of one year commencing on 20 March 2011 and expiring on 19 March 2012. Parole order for release on 19 March 2011.

	CATCHWORDS :	SENTENCE — perjury — perverting the course of justice
	LEGISLATION CITED :	Crimes Act  Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act
	CATEGORY :	Sentence
	PARTIES :	Regina EINFELD, Marcus Richard
	FILE NUMBER(S) :	SC 2008/240
	COUNSEL :	W G Roser SC (Crown) I M Barker QC / D R Campbell SC (Prisoner)
	SOLICITORS :	S Kavanagh (Solicitor for Public Prosecutions) Verekers Lawyers

 

Reliable Labor mate Rod Madgwick was there in Einfeld's corner.    Mr Madgwick provided a character reference for Einfeld, which was summarised by Justice James in his Judgement at Para 117 (14)

(14) Mr Madgwick a former judge of the Federal Court says that “for many years Marcus Einfeld has tenaciously, intelligently and practically battled in a number of ways for the betterment of humankind”.

Plus he never lies if he can conceivably have any hope of it being true.

The former Labor Lawyers President Rod Madgwick featured in The Australian newspaper in support of the humankind betterment battler.

The Betterment Battler spoke of Rod Madgwick on the ABC's Four Corners program of March, 2009, where he also spoke of never lying in statutory declarations if he could conceivably have any hope of it being true.   His quote is up there with "I witnessed thousands of documents as a solicitor, I always witnessed them correctly - I just can't recall that one with the Power of Attorney for when Bruce and I went to the auction to buy the love-shack, but....."

 

MARCUS EINFELD, FEDERAL COURT JUDGE 1986-2001: I've got a large number of character witnesses but the people giving oral evidence will include Auntie Madge from Toomelah, former Justice Madgwick from the Federal Court.

I think Trevor Garland, the consul of the Solomon Islands. I'm not sure who the lawyers have decided to call and not call. But we're going past it now.

 

SARAH FERGUSON: It was also one of the last public humiliations in the long pursuit of Marcus Einfeld. In the full glare of the media the police had raided his home.

They'd also questioned his family and his friends, and produced possibly the most damaging allegation of all, that the events of 2006 were part of a pattern, that he had used the excuse of overseas drivers before.

TONY STENBERG, DETECTIVE SERGEANT, NSW FRAUD SQUAD: Our inquiries sort of went back a number of years, in fact into the 90s when we started to reconstruct, certainly and detect a pattern of behaviour relating to the submission of statutory declarations by Mr Einfeld.

SARAH FERGUSON: Is it a habit of yours to lie in statutory declarations to get out of minor traffic infringements?

MARCUS EINFELD, FEDERAL COURT JUDGE 1986-2001: I never lie in statutory declarations if I can conceivably have any hope of it being true. I never tell untruths. There may be occasions when I've made mistakes in memory and things of this kind. And in details. I may have. I don't know.

SARAH FERGUSON: The police discovered at least three traffic infringements received by Einfeld going back to 1999.

For running a red light in northern Sydney, and speeding twice near his home in the eastern suburbs of Sydney.

On each occasion in sworn statements he named friends of his from the US and the UK as the drivers, when records showed that none of them were in Australia at the time.

SARAH FERGUSON (to Marcus Einfeld): The pattern put forward by the prosecution was that it is something that you do, that when faced with a traffic infringement you nominate an overseas driver and in the past you were successful. You did it again because you'd done it before?

MARCUS EINFELD, FEDERAL COURT JUDGE 1986-2001: Yes but that's nonsense. Why would you name people who you, who actually existed? You can name people who don't exist. I could've named somebody from Kazakhstan. I could've named Borat as the driver or, or somebody else as the driver.

SARAH FERGUSON: One of the incidents is particularly striking. Three years before he was finally caught out for naming Teresa Brennan as the driver of his car, Einfeld signed a sworn statement to evade a speeding fine in May 2003.

The driver he named then was Teresa Brennan.

DAVID BRENNAN, TERESA BRENNAN'S COUSIN: Early 2003 was when she died. He knew from mid-January 2003 that she was comatose in a hospital in Florida. I was asked to get in touch with some of Teresa's friends including Marcus Einfeld and let them know that this had happened.

He sent me emails saying you know I'm very distressed, this is terrible news, can I do anything to help?

SARAH FERGUSON: You used Teresa Brennan's name soon after her death in the hit and run accident?

MARCUS EINFELD, FEDERAL COURT JUDGE 1986-2001: If I did that, then, and I don't remember, but if I did it, then it was wrong. It was terribly wrong. I can assure you that at that time, at the time of her death I was mourning Teresa Brennan.

I was a frontline mourner, I was in my chambers crying about her death and I still do. And I am still saying that that was clearly a mistake, there could be no question about it. But it was not a deliberate mistake.

 

This is Rod Madgwick in the Sydney Morning Herald, 5 October 1980 when he was the Labor Party candidate for the Federal seat of Barton.

Rod Madgwick was mentioned quite a few times in the Federal and NSW Parliaments.

 

SENATE

18 September 1980

 Senator PUPLICK (New South Wales):

… I raise a matter in terms of the principle that justice delayed is justice denied. In November 1979 a constituent of mine was involved in an incident which led to his being charged by the police with interfering with them in the performance of their duties when he attempted physically to interfere with policemen attempting to give a breath test to a motorist and his associates after stopping a car in a street at a very early hour in the morning. He was taken to the police station and charged. Representations were then made at the highest level—to the Police Commissioner—to have those charges dropped. The Police Commissioner rightly declined to have those charges dropped.

Then, by a set of mysterious circumstances unbeknown to the police, when the matter was supposed to have come on in court on 8 September 1980 and the police turned up at the court at Balmain they found to their surprise that somehow the matter had been stood over to 24 March 1981 and had been moved from Balmain to Central. The police and the prosecuting authorities had not been told that the case had been stood over, any more than most people knew that representations had been made to the Police Commissioner to have the charges dropped. I suspect that the reason all that occurred is that the person in question, who has been singularly protected in his business, is a gentleman by the name of Rodney Neville Madgwick, who is the Labor Party's endorsed candidate in the seat of Barton for the Federal election…

 

NSW LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY

Wednesday, 24 September, 1980

QUESTIONS WITHOUT NOTICE

Mr R. MADGWICK

Mr ARBLASTER: I address a question without notice to the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice. Is the Minister aware that a federal Labor Party candidate and a trade union official were both charged by the police on 3rd November of last year?

Also, is the Minister aware that the hearing of this case concerning Mr Rod Madgwick has been postponed until March of next year? Will the Minister explain the reasons for the sixteen months' delay in bringing the case before the court?

Mr WALKER: I am not aware of the details. I shall certainly get them and give them to the honourable member for Mosman and the House.

 

NSW LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY

Tuesday, 14 October, 1980

QUESTIONS WITHOUT NOTICE

MR R. MADGWICK

Mr WALKER: On 24th September the honourable member for Mosman asked me a question without notice concerning charges laid by the Balmain police on 3rd November, 1979. I have obtained the information requested and wish to advise the House that the answers to the questions are as follows:

(1) So far as I am aware, yes.

(2) Yes.

(3) As Attorney-General and Minister of Justice I have no involvement in the prosecution of summary charges. Such matters rest solely within the discretion and the province of the Commissioner of Police. However, I have ascertained from the court records that the reason given for the adjournment was that the police wished first to proceed with another matter. I understand that the delay in finalizing that matter had been occasioned by the illness of the defendant.

 

NSW LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY

Thursday, 25 September, 1980

QUESTIONS WITHOUT NOTICE

ALLEGED INTERFERENCE WITH POLICE

Mr SMITH: My question without notice is directed to the Minister for Police and Minister for Services. Were representations made to the Minister or to the Commissioner of Police on behalf of the Labor Party candidate for Barton, Mr Rodney Madgwick in respect of acharge of hindering the police in the course of their duties?

What was the result of those representations, and by whom were those representations made?

Mr CRABTREE: I am not aware of any representations that were made. If the honourable member for Pittwater has any information, he should give it to me.

 

DEPARTMENTAL TELEPHONES

Mr ARBLASTER: I ask the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice a question without notice. As part of the Minister's administration does he have a departmental telephone connection to his electoral ofice? Is the number 570-8236?

Is that number also the telephone number printed on the campaign literature of the Labor candidate for the federal seat of Barton, Mr Rodney Madgwick, of whom the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice denied all knowledge?

Mr WALKER: It is clear that members of the Opposition have just received the results of the latest public opinion polls on likely voting trends in the federal seat of Barton. Those polls show that the Labor Party candidate would receive 61 per cent of the vote. The Liberal Party is running scared because the Labor Party's candidate for the federal seat of Barton is one of the most brilliant barristers in Australia, an outstanding member of the bar, and a man who will make a vibrant electoral impact.

Obviously, members of the Liberal Party are willing to use all of their resources and a good deal of question time in trying to defeat one of the most outstanding candidates ever to stand for election since Dr H. V. Evatt left the High Court. I am pleased that finally they want to fight about something, even if it is the federal election campaign. I have a number of telephone lines to my electoral office at Mortdale. I am not sure whether the telephone number mentioned by the honourable member is one of them. It may well be; I shall check it. One line is paid for by my department but I do not think it is that one. Another line is paid for by the Legislature. I make a contribution in respect of extensions and other lines. If I wished to comment on telephone numbers that are being used in the federal election campaign and whether they are the numbers of members of the Liberal Party, Icould do so. Nothing improper has happened in my electorate. If constituents wish to telephone my office and arrange for a postal vote, they are entitled to do so. If they seek assistance of that kind, no doubt it will be given to them in the normal fashion.

I am so pleased with the result of the poll in the St George electorate that I shall inform honourable members that the Labor vote there was even higher than in Barton. There is no doubt that in the near future the former Minister for Defence will be back in federal Parliament. The poll in the seat of Phillip indicates that Liberal's Mr R. J. Birney will be about 2000 votes behind the Labor candidate-Jeanette McHugh-the wife of the outstanding barrister Michael McHugh-a capable sincere woman and probably one of the most outstanding candidates the Labor Party has nominated. It is time that some capable candidates were nominated by the Opposition. I am pleased that I have had the opportunity of mentioning the results of Labor Party candidates in the polls.

Later,

Mr Speaker, perhaps I might add that it has just come to my attention that the Country Party candidate for Northern Tablelands in the State election is using the office of the federal Minister for Special Trade Representations, the Rt Hon. I. M. Sinclair, full-time for his campaigning.

 

DEPARTMENTAL TELEPHONES

Mr WALKER: I wish to make a supplementary reply to the question asked of me about the telephone number in my electorate ofice-570-8236. That telephone was arranged and paid for by Mr Rodney Madgwick, barrister at law, and the Australian Labor Party candidate: for the electorate of Barton. It is not paid for by the State Government.

Mr Punch: Tell us about New England too.

Mr SPEAKER: Order!

Mr WALKER: There is a private line to my electorate office and it is paid for by my department. It is used exclusively by senior officers of my department.

Mr Mason: Has the Minister got the Government's permission to put that special line in?

Mr SPEAKER: Order!

Mr WALKER: Further, I confirm that the Country Party candidate for the Northern Tablelands does use the office of the Rt Hon. I. M. Sinclair.

 

NSW LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY

Wednesday, 12 November, 1980

QUESTIONS UPON NOTICE

 COURT DELAYS

Mr ARBLASTER asked the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice-

(1) What is the normal delay in the hearing of criminal cases in the Central Court of Petty Sessions?

(2) Were charges, which were laid before the Balmain Petty Sessions Court against Mr Rodney Neville Madgwick, transferred from that Court to the Central Court of Petty Sessions in August, 1979?

(3) If so, why was the case transferred?

 Answer-

(1) The delay in listing defended cases for hearing at Central Court of Petty Sessions varies from time to time, however, it presently stands at 26 weeks.

The delay periods earlier this year were-

January-22 weeks

February-19 weeks

March-18 weeks

April-20 weeks

May-22 weeks

June-24 weeks

July-24 weeks

August-25 weeks.

(2) In August 1979, so far as I am aware, charges against Mr Rodney Neville Madgwick were not transferred from Balmain Court of Petty Sessions to the Central Court of Petty Sessions nor were any charges pending. However, I am aware that Mr Madgwick appeared before Balmain Court of Petty Sessions on 3 November, 1979. The relevant Court papers disclose that on 26th March, 1980, the case was subsequently adjourned by consent to the Court of Petty Sessions, 302 Castlereagh Street, Sydney.

(3) As Attorney-General and Minister of Justice I have no involvement in the prosecution of summary charges. Such matters rest solely within the discretion of the Commissioner of Police.

Furthermore, the final decision as to whether proceedings will be adjourned or transferred rests with the Magistrate after considering the submissions of both the prosecution and the defence. I have no power to intervene in or influence a Magistrate's decision on such matters but I have ascertained from the Court records that the reasons for the most recent adjournment were that police wished first to proceed with another related matter and that Senior Counsel briefed to appear for the defendant was ill.

 

NSW LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY

Tuesday, 24 February, 1981

QUESTIONS UPON NOTICE

POLICE VISIT TO EAST BALMAIN PREMISES

Mr ARBLASTER asked the Minister for Police and Minister for Services-

(1) Were members of the Balmain Police called to premises in East Balmain on the night of 3 November, 1979, to answer a complaint about noise coming from those premises?

(2) If so, did one of the persons present, Rodney Neville Madgwick, behave offensively towards the Police and hinder them in the carrying out of their duties?

(3) What were the facts and circumstances on that occasion? Has action been taken, or are any Court proceedings current, against any person as a result of such actions?

Answer-

(1) Yes.

(2) and (3) These matters are currently before the Court.

After Craig Thomson and Michael Williamson showed a new generation of Chinese Restaurant meeting attendees how it's done, Rod Madgwick produced this  "external and independent" review of union governance for the ACTU.

Judge Madgwick and his team found that, while the cases of Michael Williamson and Craig Thomson were regrettable, they were also isolated and very rare.

The only other case of union fraud the review had heard about was an allegation of defalcation involving a senior branch official and another officer of the AWU in the mid-1990s.   It must have been so minor that Judge Madgwick forgot to declare that it was he who cleaned up all the loose ends in his courtroom, or that there was a lawyer, a lady lawyer I think, and a law firm from Melbourne somewhere that was involved somehow.  

Judge Madgwick was crystal clear on one thing in the ACTU report - "We subscribe to the view that greatest disinfectant is sunlight.  Appropriate disclosure of practice and policies is likely to do more than shiploads of punitive sanctions".

Bruce Morton Wilson, you are sentenced to read this volume of appropriately disclosed practice and policies.   Don't tell the police nothin'. 

Anyway, we're all getting on a bit now.  

What was it Bondy said again?   CRAFT, that's right - Can't Remember a Flamin' Thing.

That just about brings us up to his appointment as a Judge.   More soon.