Frank stuart dethridge memorial address the far from halcyon isle

Conclusion

74. 
    This address has asked more questions than it answered. That is because the settlement of the proceedings which stimulated it, has left me like a dog deprived of a bone. But, I hope that this is a little like the position that confronted FE Smith, the first Lord Birkenhead, when a judge said to him, “I have listened to you for an hour and am none the wiser.” Smith retorted, “Possibly not, my Lord, but far better informed.”`
    
75. 
    Nonetheless, the subject matter I have explored is of significance to not only those with an interest in maritime law but more generally to all persons who are engaged in international trade or commerce with Australia. The High Court’s substantial recent initiatives in developing the rules of Australian private international law have opened up large unexplored fields for the application of, first, its new articulation of the difference between substance and procedure in Pfeiffer¹⁷³ and, secondly, the doctrine of renvoi beyond the law of tort.
    
76. 
    Moreover, one day a court here will have to make the intellectually challenging choice as to whether Australian law will accord recognition to a foreign maritime lien that is outside the nature of those liens referred to in s 15(2) of the Admiralty Act. That is an area between the majority and minority opinions in The Halcyon Isle¹⁷⁴ that the Australian Law Reform Commission deliberately left open. And this issue will no doubt arise again when a cross-border insolvency is recognised here under the Cross-Border Insolvency Act 2008 (Cth) and it affects the arrest of a ship on a maritime lien.
    
77. 
    The adjective “halcyon” means “calm, quiet, peaceful, undisturbed”. The halcyon was a mythical kingfisher that bred around the time of the winter solstice in a nest that floated on the sea. During its breeding season, the bird so charmed the wind and waves that the sea was especially calm. Oh that the Halcyon Isle had lived up to its name.