Alan Taylor

Who was Alan Taylor?

Sir Alan Russell Taylor KBE KC, 25 November 1901 – 3 August 1969) Australian judge, was a Justice of the High Court of Australia.

Taylor was born in 1901 in the city of Newcastle, New South Wales. Brought up in an Anglican family, Taylor initially wanted to join the church, but obtained a job as a public servant while waiting to study to be a priest, and was eventually employed in the office of the Solicitor-General of Australia, where he developed an interest in law.

Taylor studied at the University of Sydney, graduating with a Bachelor of Laws degree, with honours, in 1926. Later that year, Taylor was admitted to the New South Wales Bar. In 1933, he married Ceinwen Williams, with whom he would later have a son and a daughter.

From 1933 to 1938, was a Challis Lecturer in the law school at the University of Sydney, teaching equity and company law. He was made a King's Counsel in 1943, and began to have an increasing number of appearances before the High Court. From 1947 to 1948, Taylor represented the banks in the famous Bank Nationalisation case, as part of a team led by future Chief Justice of Australia Garfield Barwick, also including future High Court colleague Frank Kitto. From 1948 to 1949, Taylor was President of the New South Wales Bar Association.