Person

Kearney, William, (Sir) (1935-)

• Kearney, William John Francis, Sir, 1935-
• Kearney, Justice, 1935-
• Justice Kearney, 1935-

1935-

William Kearney served as a Justice of the Supreme Court of the Northern Territory from 1982 to 1999. He was educated at the University of Sydney and University College of London before working as a solicitor in New South Wales from 1959 to 1963. From 1963 to 1972, he served as a solicitor and barrister with the Papua New Guinea Government Legal Services. He held numerous legal and governmental roles in Papua New Guinea, including Secretary of Law (1972 to 1975) and an official member of the House of Assembly and Executive Council (1972 to 1973). He also had a dormant commission as High Commissioner of Papua New Guinea from 1973 to 1975. In 1976, he was appointed to the Papua New Guinea Supreme Court, later serving as Deputy Chief Justice (1980 to 1982). Kearney joined the Supreme Court of the Northern Territory in 1982 and served as Aboriginal Land Commissioner (1982 to 1987) and chairman of the Northern Territory Law Reform Committee (1982 to 1990). He was honoured as a Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1976 and knighted in 1982 for services to law in Papua New Guinea.

Partial

Created, Kymberley Doyle, 21-Feb-2025.

'The Honourable Sir William John Francis Kearney CBE', Supreme Court of the Northern Territory website, accessed online 21-Feb-2025.