Charles E. Chubb

The Honourable Charles Chubb QC
Honorable Justice Charles E. Chubb in 1889.
Member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly for Bowen
In office 18 January 1883 – 19 May 1888
Preceded by	Pope Alexander Cooper
Succeeded by	Robert Smith
Personal details
Born	Charles Edward Chubb (1845-05-17)17 May 1845 London, England
Died	27 February 1930(1930-02-27) (aged 84) Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
Resting place	South Brisbane Cemetery
Spouse	Christian Westgarth Macarthur (m. 1870; d. 1916)
Occupation	Barrister, prosecutor, judge

Charles Edward Chubb (17 May 1845 – 27 February 1930) was a judge in the Supreme Court of Queensland, Australia. He was also a Member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly and an Attorney-General of Queensland.

Early life

Chubb was born on 17 May 1845 in London, England. His father was Charles Frederick Chubb, a solicitor, and his mother was Sarah, née Bennett.^[1] He had four siblings. When he was 16 he moved to Ipswich, Queensland, and finished his schooling at Ipswich Collegiate School. He became a solicitor in 1867, after completing his articles with his father.^[2]

In 1870 Chubb married Christian Westgarth Macarthur, with whom he had six children. Three survived to adulthood.

Politics

On 5 January 1883, Pope Alexander Cooper, the Attorney-General of Queensland and member for Bowen in the Queensland Legislative Assembly, resigned. Chubb, who had been appointed Attorney-General on 6 January 1883, won the resulting by-election on 18 January 1883. He held the seat until the 1888 election.^[3]

Justice

He became a member of the Supreme Court of Queensland on 2 December 1889, serving first at Townsville until 1908, and then at Brisbane. There was animosity between the Labor government and the judges, playing out through a series of cases challenging government actions and legislation.^[4][5][6][7] The parliament undermined his security of tenure by passing the Judges Retirement Act 1921 (Qld),^[8] the effect of which was that immediately upon proclamation three out of six judges, Chief Justice Cooper and Justices Real and Chubb were compulsorily retired, which permitted the government to appoint new judges.^[7][9][10]

Later life

Chubb died in Brisbane on 27 February 1930 and his funeral proceeded from St. Malo, his former residence in South Brisbane to the South Brisbane Cemetery.^[11][12]

References

1. J.A. Douglas. "Charles Edward Chubb (1845–1930)". Chubb, Charles Edward. Australian Dictionary of Biography Online. Retrieved 18 February 2011.
2. Playne, Martin J. (2012). "The Forger, his wives and associates: their loss and recovery of respectability". Queensland History Journal. 21 (11): 759. ISSN 1836-5477.
3. "Part 2.15 – Alphabetical Register of Members of the Legislative Assembly 1860–2017 and the Legislative Council 1860–1922" (PDF). Queensland Parliamentary Record 2015–2017: The 55th Parliament. Queensland Parliament. Archived from the original on 26 April 2020. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
4. Theodore v Duncan [1919] UKPC 34, [1919] AC 696; (1919) 26 CLR 276, Privy Council (on appeal from Australia).
5. In re McCawley [1918] St R Qd 62, Supreme Court (Full Court) (Qld). overturned by McCawley v The King [1920] UKPC 22, [1920] AC 691; (1920) 28 CLR 106, Privy Council (on appeal from Australia).
6. Taylor v Attorney-General (Qld) [1918] St R Qd 194, Privy Council.
7. Aroney, N (24 May 2024). "Politics, Law and the Constitution in McCawley's Case". Melbourne University Law Review. (2006) 30(3) Melbourne University Law Review 605.
8. Judges Retirement Act 1921 (Qld).
9. McGarvie The Foundations of Judicial Independence in a Modern Democracy (1991) 1 Journal of Judicial Administration 3.
10. McPherson, BH (1989). The Supreme Court of Queensland 1859-1960. Butterworths. pp. 287–291 & 299–305. ISBN 0409494445.
11. "Family Notices". The Brisbane Courier. No. 22, 492. Queensland, Australia. 28 February 1930. p. 14. Retrieved 31 July 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
12. Chubb Charles E Archived 13 April 2014 at the Wayback Machine — Brisbane City Council Grave Location Search. Retrieved 13 April 2014.

Parliament of Queensland
Preceded by Pope Alexander Cooper	Member for Bowen 1883–1888	Succeeded by Robert Smith