John Madden

Who was John Madden?

Sir John Madden GCMG, Irish-Australian jurist and politician, was the fourth Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Victoria.

Madden was born in the village of Cloyne, near Cork, Ireland, in 1844, the second of seven sons of a Cork solicitor also named John Madden. The family moved to London, UK in 1852, where his father had taken a job managing an insurance company, and there Madden attended a private school. He also spent some time at a college in Beauchamp, France. In January 1857, the family emigrated to Melbourne, Australia, where John Madden senior was admitted as a barrister to the Victorian Bar. The family lived in the suburb of Flemington. Madden was enrolled in St Patrick's College in East Melbourne. He later studied at the University of Melbourne, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in 1864, a Bachelor of Laws in 1865.

Madden was admitted to the Victorian Bar on 14 September 1865, where he established a good reputation for himself, particularly in equity and criminal law matters. In 1869, he received a Doctorate of Laws degree from the University of Melbourne. He stood for election to the Victorian Legislative Assembly in 1871, for the seat of West Bourke, but was unsuccessful. In 1872, he married Gertrude Stephen, with whom Madden subsequently had one son and five daughters. Madden was elected for the seat of West Bourke at the subsequent election, and in October 1875 was made the Minister for Justice in the McCulloch government. He lost his seat at the following election, but was temporarily retained as Minister for Justice until 1876, when he was elected to the Assembly for the seat of Sandridge. After McCulloch's resignation in May 1877, Madden left the ministry, but returned in March 1880 when he was made Minister for Justice in the Service government. This government only lasted five months, however.