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Vale: The Hon. Trevor Olsson AO
Leslie Trevor Olsson (known as
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Trevor) was born on 31 st July 1931, in Adelaide. He was the second of four children of Athol and Emily Olsson. His father was a partner in the law firm which is now Mellor Olsson. Whilst Trevor was destined to have a career in law, he also had a career in the Army Reserve, joining at the age of 17 years and serving for 43 years.
Trevor first met his future wife, Marilyn, at Rose Park Primary School, but then he went on to Prince Alfred College. He reconnected with her in 1963, and they were married on 24 th July 1964. They were to have two children, Elizabeth and Geoff. Trevor, Marilyn and the children had a campervan holiday in Europe during the 1970s and this led to many campervan holidays around Australia. Trevor had many interests including BBQ connoisseur, gardening, fishing, handyman and flying. He learnt to fly, and, with his friend Langdon Bader purchased a Mooney Mark 21 light aircraft, participating in the Brisbane to Adelaide Air Race in 1964 and taking Marilyn on a flying honeymoon to the outback Northern Territory and the Kimberley.
Trevor graduated in Law from the University of Adelaide in 1953 and thus began his distinguished career in Law. He practiced as a barrister and solicitor with the Johnston and Olsson law firm until 1963, then was made Deputy and then Senior Deputy Master and Registrar of Divorce Supreme Court of SA. Throughout his career he chaired and held several senior positions from the President of the Industrial Court and Commission of SA to Chairman of the Teachers’ Salaries Board and the Childhood Services Council of SA, as well as many other professional appointments in Industrial Relations, Judicial Administration and the Courts Administrative Authority. He became Puisne Judge of the Supreme Court, SA, in 1984 and after retirement went on to auxiliary judicial positions at the Supreme Courts in Perth and the Northern Territory until 2015. This was a judicial career of some 51 years, more than any other Australian judicial officer.
Involved in many high-profile cases during his career, his daughter is proud of his decision to injunct Port Adelaide Football Club from entering the AFL, leading to the formation of the Adelaide Crows.
Trevor pioneered the use of technology throughout his legal career and was responsible for introducing up-todate word processing, stenotype reporting to court proceedings and the current file management systems and JURIS. This was not always successful. When the new court reporting system started in the Industrial Court, the reporters went on strike!
Trevor was renowned internationally for his work as the Australian representative on, and, Chief Rapporteur of Joint ILO/UNESCO Committee of Experts on the Status of Teachers. His 2006 report became a reference for teacher organisations around the world and had an enormously positive impact on the status of teachers around the world.
Whilst maintaining his full-time professional life in law, Trevor also managed to find time for his other passion, the Army Reserve. Starting as a gunner in 13 th Field Regiment, Royal Australian Artillery, in 1948, he took a commission as a lieutenant in 1951.He rose in the ranks to a full colonel and became Colonel Commandant, 4 th Military District, from 1983 to 1986 and then Senior Reserve Officer, South Australia until 1989. He returned to the military as Honorary Colonel of the Adelaide
University Regiment from 1999 until 2003. During his military service he undertook an exchange visit to the US Army and was Aide-de-Camp to the Governor of SA, and the Governor-General of Australia.
On his retirement from the Bench, the then Chief Justice, John Doyle, referred to Trevor as using unique turns of phrase such as “patently obvious” and “the narrative facts”. He nicknamed him “Justice Chauffeur” because Trevor would regularly state in his decisions that “he was driven to the conclusion.”
Trevor continued to fill his life with many interests after retirement from the judiciary, and the army. A Knight Grand Cross in the Order of St John of Jerusalem, Knights Hospitaller, for his efforts Trevor was awarded the Order of Merit in 2018, the only Knight in Australia to hold such an award.
He also co-authored the Report of the Board of Inquiry into the Handling of Claims of Sexual Abuse and Misconduct Within the Anglican Diocese of Adelaide in 2004 with Professor Donna Chung.
Trevor Olsson conducting a telephone hearing in the UK in 1989
Trevor Olsson with his wife Marilyn, daughter Elizabeth (top right), son Geoff and daugher-in-law Pauline
He and Marilyn loved travelling around Australia, especially in the Northern Territory and Western Australia.Marilyn sadly died on 18 th December 2011 and Trevor nursed and supported her during her lengthy illness.
Throwing himself into new challenges Trevor became involved in the Burnside City Church Mission Trust, the Kensington Park RSL and Rostrum and Probus.
One of Trevor’s passions was boating
and fishing, so much so that he was known as the “Fishing Judge”. For many years his boat, known as Sea Mist, was stationed at the Royal Yacht Squadron. Sadly, this came to an end after he managed to sink the campervan that he used to pull the boat out of the water as it travelled backward down the boat ramp. Like a true Captain, Trevor went down with the ship, er, van!
Known for his intellect, fairness, common-sense approach, lack of pretension and wry sense of humour, Trevor adhered to two maxims “Just get on with it” and “Near enough is not good enough.” His work ethic was tremendous. John Doyle described how, when sitting on the Full Court, the other judges would still be pondering the submissions only to hear a distinctive thud as Olsson J’s draft reasons hit their desks for comment.
A devoted family man, Trevor loved spending time at the various family beachhouses, most recently at Carrickalinga, and on family holidays around the world. He maintained a sense of adventure all his life, even ziplining and caving in New Zealand at age 83!
A friend described him as a down to earth, funny but incredibly intelligent man who just made everyone feel at home.
On his passing, it was said “Trevor Olsson has no peer for the breadth and depth of his contribution to the Courts of this State as a judge and judicial administrator” and “A shining example of a life well-lived and bountiful.”
Chevalier, Colonel, the Honourable Leslie Trevor Olsson AO MBE RFD ED GCSJ CMSJ, died on 8 January 2020, survived by his daughter Elizabeth, a Master of the District Court, his son Geoff, daughter-in-law Pauline and grandson, Simon. B
