Jeff Sher interview 18 November 2009

So you came to the Bar, as you mentioned, quite early then in life, after your couple of years working as a solicitor and you signed the Bar Roll in 1961 and read with Sydney Frost who was later to become Chief Justice of Papua New Guinea. What was reading with Sydney Frost like?

Well, it was strange because I'd chosen to read with Syd because he was a common lawyer, one of the leading juniors at the time at the Victorian Bar, him and Peter Coldham (who) would have been regarded as the two best junior barristers in personal injury work and I started with Syd. Almost immediately he was briefed by the Commonwealth in a basic wage case which was totally out of left-field. They'd apparently decided that they wanted to be represented by a common lawyer rather than a traditional form of industrial lawyer and the most entertaining part of all that was that the advocate for the workers was Bob Hawke whose behaviour was just unbelievable.

Do you mean inebriated?

No, he was always sober, but he was unbelievably rude, and in fact Syd once commented to me that if his behaviour in the tribunal before (which) he was appearing had been a barrister, (he) would have been dealt with by the ethics committee. It was just mind-blowing the way he addressed the bench.

Why do you think he behaved that way?

Well, I think he thought that was the technique: to get their attention and intimidate them. I can't recall now whether it worked or not, but as a consequence I spent most of my reading with Syd, which was only for six months of the time, watching him and others in action. The leading counsel for the employers was Dr (Bill) Coppel and the friction between him and Bob Hawke was palpable and amazing to watch.

Who do you think was the ultimate victor in that sense?

Oh, I think it was a pretty even battle actually. Their techniques were dramatically different, but they both fought for their causes.

I believe Dr. Coppel had a habit of rubbing his fingernails on his lapel and people said it was him sharpening his talons. Did you see much of that while he was engaged in battle with Bob Hawke?

I was fascinated by the interchange between Hawke and Coppel, but I can't recall watching him sharpening his fingernails.

What was Sydney Frost like as an advocate?

Oh, he was very good. He was sensible, he used to cut to the chase pretty quickly and (was a) good jury advocate and a very nice man. I think that's one of the things about jury advocacy; if you're a nice person, it comes over.

Did you feel in any way that you wanted to emulate his style or did you have a good sense right from the beginning of your own style and your own approach?

Well, there are things that are common of all competent and good barristers, but I think the better ones are individuals. They have their own style and you can't help it really in the final analysis.

In Kate McMillan SC's speech which was given at your 70th birthday party, she describes you as from day one at the Bar doing both criminal and civil work and moving, as she said, between these two jurisdictions with ease. Was it a bit unusual in those days to be doing a bit of both?

There was a very small criminal bar in those days. When I came to the Bar, there wouldn't have been more than 240, 250 barristers all up including silks, and the common lawyers did all the common law work and the criminal work and personal injury work which is common law work 'par excellence'. So, it was not uncommon. For example, the great Rob Monahan - who was renowned as a criminal advocate - was also a very busy civil advocate. I don't think the course I followed was in any way exceptional. Essentially, it's jury work.

Yes, did you watch much of Rob Monahan in action? Did you get to see some of these other well-known advocates at that time?

Well…

Or were you briefing any of them?

When I could, I did, but in those days the Bar was very busy and if you could string two sentences together, it wasn't hard to be successful. So we were all pretty busy at the junior Bar and you would go out to the Magistrates' Court with two, three, four briefs. That has all changed. So you didn't get a lot of opportunity to watch the top people in action, but when you could, you did.

Conducted for the Victorian Bar oral history project by Juliette Brodsky, and filmed by Stewart Carter on 18 November 2009