John Dixon (judge)
John Dixon is a former judge at the Supreme Court of Victoria, who had a legal career spanning 40 years.
Early life and education
[edit]John Dixon is a graduate of the law school at the University of Queensland and completed his Masters of Laws at University of Melbourne.[1]
Career
[edit]Lawyer
[edit]From 1977 Dixon practised as a lawyer,[1] spending 27 years of his practice in criminal and commercial law.[2] As a barrister, he worked in many jurisdictions in commercial law. He specialised in investment law and professional negligence. He also practised as a mediator and was a certified arbitrator.[3]
Judge
[edit]He was appointed to the Supreme Court of Victoria in the Trials Division[1] on 14 September 2014.[3]
During his tenure as judge, he presided over some complex class actions, including by victims of the Black Saturday bushfires in 2009,[2][4] another which challenged legal fees charged by lawyers, and the Rebel Wilson defamation case against Bauer Media in 2018.[2]
Other roles
[edit]Dixon was a Fellow of the Australian Institute for Commercial Arbitration. He also occupied positions on a number of bodies, including:[3]
- Treasurer and executive member of the Commercial Bar Association (Commbar)
- Chairman of the Corporations and Securities Law Section of CommBar
- Vice-President of the Australian Institute for Commercial Arbitration
- Member of the Pro Bono Committee of the Victorian Bar Council
Retirement
[edit]Dixon retired in September 2023. In his farewell ceremony, which was live-streamed on 27 September,[5] Dixon called for the recognition of Indigenous Australians in the Constitution, ahead of the 2023 Australian Indigenous Voice referendum.[2]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c "Welcome the Honourable Justice John Dixon" (PDF). Retrieved 4 October 2013.
- ^ a b c d Silva, Kristian (28 September 2023). "Victorian Supreme Court judge uses retirement speech to call for constitutional recognition". ABC News. Retrieved 28 September 2023.
- ^ a b c "The Honourable Justice John Dixon". MTECC. 16 September 2023. Retrieved 30 September 2023.
- ^ "Court approves distribution of almost $700M in 2009 Black Saturday bushfire class actions". The Supreme Court of Victoria. Retrieved 30 September 2023.
- ^ "Justice John Dixon's farewell ceremony to be live streamed". The Supreme Court of Victoria. 22 September 2023. Retrieved 30 September 2023.
Further reading
[edit]- "Welcome Justice John Dixon". Law Institute Journal. 84 (11): 43. 1 November 2010.