Guide to the Papers of Geoffrey Sawer, 1937-1995

Summary

Collection number:

MS 2688

Creator:

Sawer, Geoffrey, 1910-1996

Extent:

1.96 metres and (14 boxes + 1 folio box)

Language:

English

Preferred citation:

Items from this collection should be cited as '[Title or description of manuscript item], Papers of Geoffrey Sawer, National Library of Australia, MS 2688, [series and file number]'.

Availability:

Available

Access conditions:

Restricted access to Series 1 (diaries) and Series 18 (unpublished autobiographical writings); all other series available for research. Not for loan.

Background

Content Summary:

Whilst Sawer considered his papers to be of 'marginal importance', the collection, which dates back to the late 1930s, contains some interesting original material, including diaries, draft legal opinions, autobiographical writings, and correspondence with prominent individuals. Sir John Latham, Sir Owen Dixon, Sir John Barry and Lord Denning, and other politicians and judges number amongst Sawer's many noted correspondents on constitutional matters. Also included are cuttings documenting his long running 'Between the lines' newspaper column, and radio transcripts from his involvement with the Short Wave Propaganda Division of Radio Australia during World War II.

In addition, the collection brings together a large number of articles, reprints, publications and other secondary source materials relating to aspects of constitutional law, including files on the 1975 dismissal of the Whitlam Government and the powers of the Governor-General. Regrettably there is little coverage of some aspects of Sawer's career, such as the Bank Nationalisation Case, with which he was associated in 1947-1949, or his role as a special magistrate in the Australian Capital Territory and president of the Academy of Social Sciences in Australia.

Biographical Note:

Date	Event
1910	Born Maymyo, Burma, 21 December
1913	Settled in Australia
1920-1928	Scotch College, Melbourne
1929-1933	L.L.B. (First Class Honours), Melbourne University
1934	Admitted as a solicitor
1934-1940	Resident Tutor, Ormond College, University of Melbourne
1937	Admitted to Victorian Bar
1940	Married Beatrice (Mamie) Pitcher; appointed Senior Lecturer in Law, University of Melbourne
1941-1945	War service as deputy and head of the Short Wave Propaganda Division of Radio Australia
1947	First published <em>Australian government today</em> (14th edition 1977)
1948	First published <em>Australian constitutional cases</em> (2nd edition 1957)
1950-1974	Foundation Professor of Law, Research School of Social Sciences
1951-1956	Dean, Research School of Social Sciences
1956	Published <em>Australian federal politics and law</em>, 1901-1929
1957-1996	Special Magistrate, Australian Capital Territory
1964	Published <em>Law in Society</em>
1968	Published <em>Australian federalism in the courts</em>
1969	Death of Mamie Sawer
1971	Married Nancy Bolton
1972-1975	President, Academy of Social Sciences in Australia
1975	Pro Vice-Chancellor, Australian National University
1982-1984	Chairman, Australian Press Council
1985	Awarded Officer of the Order of Australia
1996	Died, Guerilla Bay, New South Wales, 8 August

Provenance:

The papers were donated to the Library by Sawer and his wife Nancy in four instalments in 1971, 1995, 1996 and 1998.

Arrangement:

The papers were transferred to the Library according to the subject groupings in which they had been kept by Sawer. This order has been preserved in the arrangement of series, except for Series 16 (Other collected legal papers and articles) where a number of miscellaneous subject files have been brought together into the one sequence.

Container List:

Series	File/Item	Box
1	1-5	1
1	6-10	2
2	1-5	3
3	1	3
4	1-2	4
5	1-2	4
6	1-2	4
6	3-8	5
7	1	6
7	2-4	Folio
7	5-10	6
7	11	Folio
8	1	7
9	1	7
10	1	7
11	1-3	7
12	1	7
12	2	8
13	1	8
14	1	8
15	1-2	8
16	1-7	9
16	8-13	10
16	14	11
17	1	11
18	1-4	12
19	1-5	11
20	1-2	Folio
20	3-4	13
21	1-3	13
21	4-8	14

Indexed terms

Names:

Sawer, Geoffrey, 1910-1996

Conditions Governing Access:

o Access conditions may apply to this collection, please refer to the collection's catalogue record for further information (http://nla.gov.au/nla.cat-vn1082274).

Conditions Governing Use:

Copying and publishing of unpublished manuscript material is subject to copyright restrictions. For such material, written permission to publish must be obtained from the copyright holder(s). Copying of unpublished material for research purposes is permissible 50 years after the death of the creator of the material.

Preferred citation:

Items from this collection should be cited as '[Title or description of manuscript item], Papers of Geoffrey Sawer, National Library of Australia, MS 2688, [series and file number]'.

Location of this collection:

National Library of Australia

Parkes Place

Canberra ACT 2600, Australia

Contact:

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