Chapters | HELLENIC AUSTRALIAN LAWYERS

TAS: Sir John Demetrius Morris Oration by Professor Josiah Ober – 26 Nov 2019

Professor Josiah Ober, Mitsotakis Professor of Political Science and Classics at Stanford University, delivered this year’s Tasmanian Chapter of Hellenic Australian Lawyers Association’s Sir John Demetrius Morris Oration.

Professor Ober spoke on the topic “Lessons from the ancient Greeks on relations between States – the limits of rational behaviour”.

The Oration was held on Tuesday 26 November 2019, at the Allport Library and Museum of Fine Arts in Hobart, and was followed by a reception.

Guests included the Honourable Alan Blow, Chief Justice of Tasmania and Patron of the Tasmanian Chapter of HAL, members of the Morris family, guests from the Tasmanian legal fraternity, as well as representatives of HAL from the national body and other states.

The Professor works on the history of institutions and on legal and political theory, with an emphasis on democracy and on the political thought and practice of the ancient Greek world.

Synopsis of Professor Ober’s Oration

Thucydides’ great history of the Peloponnesian War is much more than a brilliant year-by-year narrative of a terrible and lengthy conflict.

It is also a profound meditation on international relations. Thucydides has often been read as a simple sort of “Realist” – a theorist of power relations under conditions of inter-state anarchy. But that characterization misses his deep exploration of the non-zero-sum bargains struck between great and small states, and the tragic consequences of bargaining failures.

Thucydides probes the motivations that lead small states to acquiesce to the hegemonic authority of a great power, and the motives that lead the residents of a small state to resist incorporation into an empire.

Thucydides wrote his work “as a possession for all time” – and indeed, his analysis of rationality and irrationality in relations between states offers timeless insights into how multi-state systems flourish and fail.

Professor Ober has provided source material relating to this Oration:

Photographs of the Event

26 November, 2019 in TAS

HAL Oration rekindles Hellenic links

A calling to the law echoes throughout the Morris family of Tasmania, with links to their Hellenic origins rekindled through this year’s inaugural HAL Tasmanian Chapter Oration.

The Oration in February recounted the contribution of Sir John Demetrius Morris to the state as citizen, barrister, administrator and Chief Justice.

Much of the material about Sir John’s life came from documents and accounts from his family, including son John Paul Morris AM, chief magistrate of Tasmania from 1987 to 1994, and grandson David Morris, partner in Hobart law firm Simmons Wolfhagen.

Recollections from John Paul Morris AM included Sir John’s busy and varied life as a family man and the state’s chief justice, balancing travel around the state on judicial duty with hosting visiting dignitaries.

“After the war in particular,” John recalls, “he (Sir John) would sit in Hobart one day, travel to Launceston, sit the next day there, and then come back to Hobart.”

This busy life of his father proved no deterrent for Mr Morris AM, and he too embarked on a career in the law, studying Arts and Law at the University of Tasmania.

He was appointed a magistrate in 1968 at age 37, taking on the role of Senior Magistrate in southern Tasmania in 1977.

He was then appointed the state’s Chief Magistrate in 1987, also contributing to the civic wealth of his state, as had his father Sir John, chairing boards of the Princess Alexandra Hospital, Parole Board of Tasmania, Tasmanian Opera Company and the Tasmanian Council of Social Service.

He was recognized in 1996 as a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) for his service to the law.

It was fitting that part of his memory of Sir John was his father’s visit to Athens for a legal conference in 1955 at the invitation of the International Commission of Jurists.

“This was not long before he died and it was fitting that he went back to the place of his ancestors, having regard to his Greek ancestry,” he recalled.

His son (and Sir John’s grandson), David Morris, attended this year’s Rhodes International Legal Conference as a delegate.

Fittingly, a central conference topic was the exceptional degree of citizen participation in judicial decision-making and democratic government in ancient Athens.

That description aptly illuminates the contribution of the Morris family to the legal and civic life of Tasmania.

9 December, 2018 in Dec 2018, TAS

TAS: The Sir John Demetrius Morris Oration delivered by The Hon Chief Justice Chris Kourakis, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of South Australia – 16 March 2018

The inaugural HAL Tasmanian Chapter Oration highlighted the Hellenic contribution to Tasmania’s judicial and educational foundations from Tasmanian Sir John Demetrius Morris KCMG, the first Chief Justice in Australia of Hellenic origin.

The Hon Chief Justice Chris Kourakis, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of South Australia, delivered the Oration entitled “Greek Independence and its Significance to the Development of International Law” in March 2018.

HAL was delighted to have members of Sir John’s family (pictured) among the many guests and HAL members attending the Oration, which was held at the University of Tasmania as part of the Estia Greek Festival of Hobart.

The Oration highlighted the Hellenic contribution to Tasmania’s judicial and educational foundations from Tasmanian Sir John Demetrius Morris KCMG, the first Chief Justice in Australia of Hellenic origin.

The event was proudly sponsored by Simmons Wolfhagen and held in conjunction with the Faculty of Law, University of Tasmania.

Pictures from the Event

20 March, 2018 in Dec 2018, Newsletters, TAS

TAS: Plans underway for Morris Oration

The Tasmanian Chapter of HAL is arranging an Oration in honour of Sir John Dimitrios Morris KCMG, the first Chief Justice in Australia of Hellenic origin.

Former Chief Justice of Tasmania, Sir John (Dimitrios) Morris KCMG, the first Chief Justice in Australia of Hellenic origin. Picture courtesy of University of Tasmania

Patron of the Tasmanian Chapter of HAL, the current Chief Justice of Tasmania, the Hon Justice Alan Blow OAM, paid tribute to the work and intellect of Sir John at the launch of Tasmanian Chapter of HAL.

The decision of the Chapter to dedicate its Oration to Sir John is testament to his contribution to Tasmania, where his work stretched far outside administration of justice. He took on vice regal duties as Administrator from time to time, was instrumental in the establishment of educational management facilities, as well as being Chancellor of the University of Tasmania.

The national patron of HAL, Chief Justice of South Australia the Hon. Chris Kourakis, has generously accepted an invitation to deliver the inaugural HAL Sir John Morris Oration, which promises to be an entertaining and enlightening occasion on 16 March 2018.

The Oration will coincide with Hobart’s famous Greek Estia Festival, held on 18 March.

5 November, 2017 in TAS Comments (0)