Garfield Barwick - Definition and Overview

Sir Garfield Barwick (1903–1997)was the Chief Justice of the High Court of Australia. He is famous for advising Sir John Kerr on the constitutional legality of the possible dismissal of a Prime minister who could not obtain supply. He is often seen as repsonsible for the dismissal of Gough Whitlam, as it was this advice that Kerr used as a basis for the dismissal of Whitlam's Government, in contravention of Whitlam's explicit instructions not to seek Barwick's advice.

See also

• Commonwealth of Australia Constitution Act
• Australian constitutional crisis of 1975