biography
| name: |
Murphy, Lionel (Keith)
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| sex:
| male
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| lived:
| (1922–86)
|
| biography:
| Lawyer and politician, born in Sydney, New South Wales, SE Australia. He studied chemistry at the University of Sydney, but turned to law. Unusually, he was admitted to the New South Wales bar in 1947 before graduating as a lawyer from the University of Sydney in 1949. He was elected as Labor senator for New South Wales in the 1962 Federal Parliament, became Opposition leader in 1967, and was appointed attorney-general in 1972. He oversaw several items of landmark legislation, including the Family Law Act, the Law Reform Commission, the Trade Practices Act, and the Human Rights Commission. In 1975 he was appointed to the High Court of Australia, where he made many progressive decisions. Accused in 1984 of having attempted to pervert the course of justice, he was exonerated in 1986, but died soon after. A controversial figure who challenged political and legal boundaries, the impact of his reforms on Australian society is widely acknowledged. |
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