# Alan Neaves

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**Alan Reginald Neaves** (8 January 1925 – 25 November 2022)[1] was an Australian public servant, lawyer and judge, best known for his role as head of the [Attorney-General's Department](/source/Attorney-General's_Department_(Australia)) between 1979 and 1983, and as a Federal Court judge between 1983 and 1995.

## Life and career

Neaves was born in January 1925 in the Sydney suburb of [Glebe](/source/Glebe,_New_South_Wales),[2][3][4][5] the son of Ida Florence and Henry Neaves.[6]

Neaves joined the Attorney-General's Department in 1942. After war service with the [Royal Australian Air Force](/source/Royal_Australian_Air_Force), he graduated in law with first class honours from the University of Sydney in 1948,[5][6] and was admitted to the New South Wales Bar in 1949.[3]

In December 1974, Neaves was appointed the next Crown Solicitor, to commence in February 1975.[5] The post came after five years in Sydney as head of the Deputy Crown Solicitor's Office.[4]

He was appointed [Secretary](/source/Departmental_secretary) of the Attorney-General's Department in July 1979.[4]

In 1980 then Prime Minister [Malcolm Fraser](/source/Malcolm_Fraser) set up a Royal Commission into the activities of the Painters and Dockers Union, appointing [Frank Costigan](/source/Frank_Costigan) as Royal Commissioner.[7] The [Costigan Commission](/source/Costigan_Commission) inquiry period lasted until 1984, and in the process the Attorney-General's Department came under fire from the Labor Party after criticism by the commission.[8] When the Labor Party was elected and [Bob Hawke](/source/Bob_Hawke) became Prime Minister, among the new Government's first order of business was to remove Neaves from his position as Secretary of the Attorney-General's Department. He was appointed a judge of the Federal Court on 11 March 1983.[3]

Neaves remained a Judge of the Federal Court until 8 January 1995, when he reached the mandatory retirement age of 70.[9]

## References

1. ["Death Notice: Alan NEAVES"](https://tributes.canberratimes.com.au/obituaries/465271/alan-neaves/?r=https://tributes.canberratimes.com.au/obituaries/canberratimes-au/search/?Query=Alan%20NEAVES). The Canberra Times. Retrieved 28 January 2023.

1. ["NEAVES, ALAN REGINALD"](https://nominal-rolls.dva.gov.au/veteran?id=970139&c=WW2). *World War II Nominal Roll*. Department of Veterans' Affairs. Retrieved 28 January 2023.

1. Waterford, Jack (12 March 1983). ["Head of A-G's made judge"](http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article116373259). *The Canberra Times*. p. 1.

1. Juddery, Bruce (4 July 1979). ["New A-G head named: Foreign Affairs job for Harders likely"](http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article110564979). *The Canberra Times*. p. 3.

1. ["Legal post"](http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article110793346). *The Canberra Times*. 20 December 1974. p. 9.

1. ["Lieutenant Henry Herbert Neaves"](https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/P11028600). Australian War Memorial. Retrieved 28 January 2023.

1. MacCallum, Mungo (3 February 2014). ["Another Royal Commission?"](http://www.themonthly.com.au/blog/mungo-maccallum/2014/03/2014/1391395876/another-royal-commission). *The Monthly*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20150308011147/http://www.themonthly.com.au/blog/mungo-maccallum/2014/03/2014/1391395876/another-royal-commission) 8 March 2015 at the Wayback Machine.

1. ["Mr Justice Neaves Sworn in"](http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article116375275). *The Canberra Times*. 24 March 1983. p. 7.

1. Federal Court of Australia, ["Former Judges of the Court: Appointments and retirements"](http://www.fedcourt.gov.au/about/judges/former-judges), Australian Government, [archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20140302114549/http://www.fedcourt.gov.au/about/judges/former-judges) 2 March 2014 at the Wayback Machine

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Alan Neaves](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alan_Neaves) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alan_Neaves?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.