The Honourable Justice Gerald Edward Fitzgerald | UniSC | University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Australia

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The Honourable Justice Gerald Edward Fitzgerald

Honorary Doctorate (April 1999)

The Honourable Justice Gerald Edward (Tony) Fitzgerald was awarded an Honorary Doctorate in April 1999 in recognition of his contributions to his profession in a distinguished career, a more ethically aware democratic society in Queensland, and to the development of this University as part of the national higher education sector.

Tony Fitzgerald is known to everyone. He has been one of the most significant contributors to the development of the State of Queensland this century. He has, as a result of the inquiry he chaired into Illegal Activity and possible Police Misconduct in the late 1980s, raised public consciousness of the importance of ethics in public administration to a new level, and reminded everyone how vigilant they need to be to ensure that accountability is safeguarded to protect democracy itself. USC was privileged to have Justice Fitzgerald as the inaugural Chancellor of the University from 1994 to 1998, during which period he was the President of the Court of Appeal of the Supreme Court of Queensland. His reputation contributed importantly to the initial recognition USC received as a new university in the planning and commencement stages. His reputation, his legal expertise, and his tenacity were inspirational in pursuing a name that reflected the university status accorded us under our previous 1994 Act, but an Act which caused so much confusion because of the inherent contradictions within it and its title.