{{Short description|Australian judge}} {{Use dmy dates|date=May 2020}} {{Use Australian English|date=August 2014}} {{Infobox officeholder | honorific_prefix = Judge | name = Meryl Sexton | honorific_suffix = | nickname = | image = | caption = | order = | office = Judge of the County Court of Victoria | term_start = 27 August 2001 | term_end = | office2 = | term_start2 = | term_end2 = | occupation = Judge, lawyer | education = Presbyterian Ladies' College, Melbourne<br>Monash University | birth_name = | birth_date = | birth_place = | spouse = | children = }}
'''Meryl Sexton''' is a judge of the County Court in Victoria, Australia, appointed in August 2001.
==Early life and education== Meryl Sexton attended Presbyterian Ladies' College, Melbourne.{{citation needed|date=November 2024}} She graduated from Monash University with a Bachelor of Laws and Bachelor of Economics.<ref name=autogenerated1>{{cite web |url=http://www.vicbar.com.au/pdf/118%20Welcome.pdf |title=Welcomes: Judge Sexton |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050718150840/https://www.vicbar.com.au/pdf/118%20Welcome.pdf |archive-date=18 July 2005 |url-status=dead |pages=20–22 |website=vicbar.com.au}}.</ref> She completed her articles at law firm Cody Dwyer & Associates and was admitted to practice law in 1984. Upon going to the Bar, her master was future County Court Judge Fred Davey.<ref name=autogenerated1/>
==Career== Sexton specialised in criminal matters from 1985.<ref name=autogenerated2>[https://access.justice.vic.gov.au/webapps/CA25708A0081FF9F/Lookup/JOIN_manuals_2/$file/NSOR%20Program%20Materials.pdf Profile], justice.vic.gov.au; accessed 18 June 2015.</ref> She appeared for both prosecution and defence before being appointed Crown Prosecutor in 1995, and prosecuted several high-profile and complex cases, including notorious paedophile Michael Glennon.{{citation needed|date=November 2024}}
She was appointed as a Judge of the County Court in 2001, and in October 2005 was appointed Judge in Charge of the Sex Offences List, a position she still holds.{{citation needed|date=June 2015}}
Among her most noted cases are those of a priest who sexually assaulted children, an attack on West Indian cricketer Marlon Black,<ref>{{cite news|url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/cricket/1604194.stm|work=BBC News|title=Trio jailed for Black attack|date=17 October 2001}}</ref> a trial following the largest ever hashish seizure in Victoria,<ref>[http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2004/09/24/1095961861296.html?from=storylhs Moran 'associates' guilty], theage.com.au; accessed 25 April 2008.</ref> the former manager of rock band Mi-Sex who had sex with an underage girl<ref>[http://www.theage.com.au/national/pop-music-millionaire-jailed-over-teen-sex-20080818-3xnq.html Pop music millionaire jailed over teen sex], theage.com.au, 19 August 2008.</ref> and a man who committed a rape on his buck's night.{{citation needed|date=June 2015}}
Her highest-profile case has been the rape trial of Australian rules footballer Andrew Lovett, which began on 11 July 2011.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Hunt|first=Elissa|title=Jurors in Andrew Lovett rape trial told to put aside feelings about footy|url=http://www.news.com.au/breaking-news/jurors-in-andrew-lovett-rape-trial-told-to-put-aside-feelings-about-footy/story-e6frfku0-1226092422604|accessdate=16 July 2011|date=11 July 2011|publisher=Herald Sun}}</ref>
Sexton is heavily involved in legislative reform, particularly relating to sexual offences. She is a member of the Victorian Government's Sexual Assault Advisory Committee and was a member of the Victorian Law Reform Commission's Sexual Offences Reference Advisory committee.<ref name=autogenerated2/> She is on the Council of the Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine and part of the Advisory Committee for the Child Witness Service.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20080719215525/http://www.famsacaustralia.org.au/speaker%20c.htm Advisory Committee for the Child Witness Service].</ref>
Sexton is also involved in legal education and has produced many articles and papers relating to sexual offences, particularly on those relating to changes to relevant legislation. In particular, "Changes to the Mental Element of Rape Twilight",<ref>[https://access.justice.vic.gov.au/webapps/CA25708A0081FF9F/Lookup/JOIN_CollegePublications_2007/$file/CHANGES%20TO%20THE%20MENTAL%20ELEMENT%20OF%20RAPE%20101207.doc "Changes to the Mental Element of Rape Twilight"], justice.vic.gov.au; accessed 18 June 2015.</ref> "Propensity in Sexual Assault Cases"<ref>[https://access.justice.vic.gov.au/webapps/CA256EBE0003A664/page/College+Activities-College+Publications?OpenDocument&1=97-College+Activities~&2=30-College+Publications~&3=~ "Propensity in Sexual Assault Cases"], justice.vic.gov.au; accessed 18 June 2015.</ref> and an overview of ''The Crimes (Sexual Offences) Act 2006''<ref>[https://access.justice.vic.gov.au/webapps/CA25708A0081FF9F/Lookup/JOIN_manuals_2/$file/Judge%20Sexton%20paper%20-%20%20revised.pdf ''The Crimes (Sexual Offences) Act 2006''], justice.vic.gov.au; accessed 18 June 2015.</ref> are essential reading for practitioners.
==Other activities== Sexton was the first female to be made a life member of the Monash University hockey club.<ref name=autogenerated1/> She is also involved in women's issues, as a member of the Equality Before the Law Committee and the Women Barristers Association, trustee of the Queen Victoria Women's Centre Trust, and President of the Victorian Division of the Australian Federation of Business and Professional Women.<ref name=autogenerated1/>
==References== {{Reflist}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Sexton, Meryl}} Category:21st-century Australian judges Category:Australian women judges Category:Year of birth missing (living people) Category:Living people Category:People from Victoria (state) Category:Place of birth missing (living people) Category:Judges of the County Court of Victoria Category:21st-century Australian women judges