- Louis Waller
Professor Louis Peter Waller
AO (b. 1935) is an Australian jurist. He is particularly well known for his work in medical and criminal law. He was SirLeo Cussen Professor of Law atMonash University from1965 until2000 . He continues to serve as chairman of a number of medical and legal organisations, including the Infertility Treatment Authority. [ [http://www.law.monash.edu.au/staff/lwaller/cv.html Professor Louis Waller, Monash Law ] ]Early life
Waller was born in
Siedlce ,Poland , on10 February 1935 . The child of Polish Jews, Waller's parents realised that the family was in danger of persecution from the increasingly threateningNazi regime inGermany . They managed to flee toAustralia in 1938. The majority of his family which remained in Europe, however, died during theHolocaust .In Australia, Waller attended University High School in Melbourne. He then studied law at the
University of Melbourne . When he graduated in 1956, he went to England where he obtained aBachelor of Civil Law from theUniversity of Oxford . [ [http://www.law.monash.edu.au/staff/lwaller/cv.html Professor Louis Waller, Monash Law ] ]Professional career
Waller's career in academia began in the late 1950s, when he was appointed tutor and then senior lecturer at Melbourne University. In 1958,
Monash University was founded and, a few years later, it opened a new law school. Its Foundation Dean, Professor David Derham, was a friend of Waller's who knew of his teaching and intellectual abilities. He invited Waller to help him create the new Monash Law School. On1 June 1965 , he was appointed Professor. 3 years later, he was appointed Dean of Law, a position he held until 1970, after which he returned to focus on teaching and research. An apparently brilliant teacher, his students included future Justice of theHigh Court of Australia Kenneth Hayne ,Chief Justice of Victoria Marilyn Warren and human rights lawyerJulian Burnside QC. Hayne later described Waller as an "electric" law lecturer, [ [http://www.hcourt.gov.au/speeches/kirbyj/kirbyj_waller.htm Retirement Of Professor Louis Waller Ao Sir Leo Cussen Professor Of Law, Monash University ] ] while Burnside has described him as "the best teacher I have ever seen".At Monash, he developed his expertise in the criminal law, and authored the first Australian casebook in that field. Through his teaching and research, he is credited with elevating the status of criminal law in Australia, a field which had often been looked down upon. [ [http://www.hcourt.gov.au/speeches/kirbyj/kirbyj_waller.htm Retirement Of Professor Louis Waller Ao Sir Leo Cussen Professor Of Law, Monash University ] ] He continues to author the leading casebook on Australian criminal law, now in its 10th edition.
Waller developed particular interest in medical law and medical ethics. He wrote prolifically on
in-vitro fertilisation , a practice which was coincidentally pioneered in the Medicine Faculty at Monash. At the Law Reform Commission, Waller chaired a groundbreaking committee which looked at the possible legal framework surrounding IVF for the first time. [ [http://www.ajn.com.au/news/news.asp?pgID=4008 Friends and colleagues toast Professor Louis Waller (September 4, 2007) ] ] When the Victorian Government created the first IVF legislation, it largely adopted Waller's model.As his career progressed, he became recognised as one of Australia's leading scholars. In 1982, he became the first Law Reform Commissioner of Victoria and, two years later, became the inaugural Chair of the Victorian Law Reform Commission. His expertise in the field of medical law has led to appointments on a number of medical and judicial committees. He is Chairman of the Infertility Treatment Authority, the Appeals Committee of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons, and the Ethics Committee of the
Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research . [ [http://www.law.monash.edu.au/staff/lwaller/cv.html Professor Louis Waller, Monash Law ] ]Waller formally retired from Monash Law School in 2000 as its most senior academic. However, he has continued his teaching and research as Emeritus Professor of Law. Upon his retirement, the school established the Louis Waller Chair of Law in his honour.
References
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.