The Muir Scholarship – Justice John Daniel Murray Muir (1968)
Justice John Muir was a leading barrister (1976-97), Judge of the Supreme Court of Queensland (1997-2007), and Judge of Appeal (2007-14). He made a significant contribution to the education of the Queensland Bar through the work of the Bar Practice Centre. He was known for his wit, warmth, and decency.
John Daniel Murray Muir was born on 27 December 1944, in Innisfail, in North Queensland. His father was a State school teacher who taught in one teacher schools in country towns across the State. As a result, John boarded during his secondary education at St Joseph’s College, Nudgee (1959-62). He then studied Arts and Law at the University of Queensland, majoring in English Literature. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts (1965) and Bachelor of Laws (1968).
John completed the final years of his law degree while working as an articled clerk with the Brisbane firm of Feez Ruthning (now Allens) Throughout his time at university, he supported himself by working at the XXXX brewery in Milton, and with his earnings as a member of the Queensland University Regiment. He was admitted as a solicitor on 18 February 1969. He married Sandra Rose Beck on 23 May 1970, with the couple living and working in London for about three years, before returning to Brisbane. They had two daughters, Jane and Emma. Jane is a graduate of the Law School. Emma is also a graduate of UQ.
On 3 February 1976, John Muir was admitted as a barrister of the Supreme Court of Queensland. He took silk on 13 November 1986. He became of Queensland’s leading commercial counsel, known for his industry and acumen. He was in constant demand for the most challenging cases
On 3 April 1997, John Muir QC was appointed a Judge of the Supreme Court of Queensland. In 2002, when the commercial list of the Court was established, Justice Muir joined Justice Richard Chesterman as one of its inaugural judges. In Justice Patrick Keane’s assessment, “As a judge, and as the commercial list judge, in particular, [John] was a model of efficiency, fairness, forensic skill and clarity of judgment. The fame of his court spread beyond Queensland and Australia to jurisdictions overseas. And rightly so.”
While on the Court, John also served as the Chairman of the Queensland Law Reform Commission (1998-2001); as a member of the Bar Practice Committee (1995-2014, serving as Chair 2006-14); and as a member of the Rules Committee of the Supreme Court (1998-2014, serving as Chair 2008-14). In 2001, he was a recipient of a Commonwealth Centenary Medal. On 13 July 2007, he was appointed a Judge of Appeal. He retired from the Court at the statutory retirement age in 2014.
After John's death in 2018, his family endowed a scholarship fund in his memory, to assist law students in financial need, and in particular, those who come to the University from regional Queensland. This generosity of the Muir family prompted the establishment of the wider UQLA Scholarship Fund.
At his funeral, eulogies were delivered by his daughters Jane and Emma, friends and former judicial colleagues Justice Patrick Keane AC and the Hon Geoff Davies AO QC and by one of his oldest friends, Peter Burton.
Muir Scholarship Recipients
2021 Gabriel Brown
2020 James Aldrige