Marilyn Warren AC KC: A legacy that inspires and guides
50 Years / 50 Voices: Learning law and changing lives is a commemorative volume marking the 50th anniversary of the ongoing Monash Law Clinical Program, a pioneering initiative in clinical legal education undertaken by the Faculty of Law at Monash University. 50 alumni of the Monash Law Clinical Program shared their story with 50 current students of the same program. This is an excerpt from the book.
The Honourable Marilyn Warren AC KC has had an extraordinary impact on the Australian legal profession. Over the course of her distinguished career, she achieved a number of historic firsts – including becoming the first woman to work as an Articled Clerk in the Victorian Public Service, the first female Monash Law graduate to be appointed to the Supreme Court bench and ultimately the first woman to serve as a Chief Justice of a Supreme Court in Australia.
Through her visionary judicial leadership, she transformed the courts into a modern and efficient organisation – one that not only welcomed women as judges and lawyers, but also actively encouraged diversity and collegiality. Moreover, her unwavering commitment to access to justice drove her to pioneer initiatives that made the court more accessible, such as integrating technology and social media into the business of the court. Her role as a Vice-Chancellor’s Professorial Fellow at Monash University has meant that her enduring impact continues through not only the institutions she has transformed, but also the lawyers that she continues to inspire – particularly women in the law in Victoria. It is this combination of her incredible achievements and transformative leadership that defines Warren’s lasting legacy – one that continues to inspire and guide the legal profession.
Warren began studying a Bachelor of Jurisprudence and Bachelor of Laws (Honours) at Monash University in 1968, at a time when women were outnumbered about 10-to-one. Despite this imbalance, she thrived, immersing herself in experiences such as the Monash Moot Court – which she described as ‘totally exhilarating’ – and the teachings of some of Monash’s esteemed lecturers, including Emeritus Professor Louis Waller AO and Professor Enid Campbell AC OBE, as well as distinguished tutors including Marilyn Puglisi and Joan Dwyer OAM. It was through immersing herself in Monash that Warren found her first placement at the Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB). While at the CAB, Warren assisted members of the public – often by telephone, but occasionally in person – with ‘whatever inquiries came in’. One matter she recalls is assisting an elderly man who was worried about what would happen to his money when he died. ‘It was such a simple thing to make what was, in fact, a fairly simple will,’ she says. ‘How grateful these people were to have somebody listen to their problem and endeavour to help them.’
Read more about 50 years of Monash Law Clinics and buy 50 Years / 50 Voices here
Following her placement at the CAB, Warren embarked on her second placement at Monash’s Springvale Legal Service, where she was part of one of the clinic’s first groups. She recalled the modest setting – situated in a council office or community facility – where clients would wait in rows before seeing student volunteers. Here, students were ‘on their own’ when seeing clients, and provided assistance to a diverse range of people, many of whom were from migrant backgrounds. For Warren, it was ‘very, very humbling and exhilarating’ and she cherished the chance to ‘help people who needed help’. Through these two experiences, she learned two important lessons: the law’s powerful capacity to help people with real problems, and the humility that comes from realising – often in the face of complex client questions – just how much she still had to learn.
Warren’s experiences at her placements, and Monash more broadly, influenced her in a ‘subtle way’, quietly shaping her professional outlook and laying a strong foundation for her future work in the law. When she worked in the Office of the Solicitor to the Public Trustee, she reflected that she felt ‘confidence and selfassuredness’
because she was ‘able to engage with people and readily respond to their problems’. As her career progressed and she went to the Bar, she recalled times when she would be retained to provide advice for people from diverse backgrounds – including people who had experienced difficulty with the police, and migrants – who required assistance with ‘ordinary problems, but problems that threaten their livelihood’.
Admitted to practice in 1975, Warren began her career as an Articled Clerk in the Office of the Solicitor to the Public Trustee (now State Trustees). Warren attributes the skills she relied on at the Public Trustee to those she learned at the Monash Law placements. When she became a Judge of the Supreme Court and later Chief Justice, Warren carried forward the values of public duty, empathy and access to justice. In later years, while the court was increasingly focusing on access to justice, she could still see the threads of these values influencing the ‘programs, planning within the court, and the engagement with other judges and institutions’.
When asked what her advice would be to the next generation of lawyers, Warren reflects that it is ‘very simple’. ‘The law is about delivering justice, and therefore, you have an obligation with your law degree to help people. At the same time … the law will take you where it wants to take you, and I think just embrace the opportunity.’
Read more about 50 years of Monash Law Clinics and buy 50 Years / 50 Voices here
Get involved with Monash Law Clinics
Monash Law Clinics combine legal education with real-world impact, supporting access to justice while equipping students with practical, ethical and professional skills.
If you are a student interested in undertaking a clinical unit as part of your studies, explore the available clinical placements and elective options.
Whether you’re an alum, practitioner or organisation keen to support the clinics through hosting placements, partnerships, volunteering or funding, there’s a way to be involved. To learn more, contact Emily Collard, Industry & Alumni Engagement Manager, at emily.collard@monash.edu.