This insightful, rewarding and highly readable volume is a generous selection of the best of Dyson Heydon's speeches and papers. Most have a legal theme, although the book is of broader interest.
As Ian Callinan observes in his preface, in these papers the author "combines the arts of the essayist, historian, orator, obituarist, reviewer, critic, teacher and advocate".
The Honourable J D Heydon AC QC was a Rhodes Scholar for New South Wales, elected Dean of the University of Sydney Law School (aged 34), practised as a barrister (including as Queen's Counsel after practising as a junior for a mere 8 years), before being appointed a Judge of Appeal and Justice of the High Court.
He was the Commissioner of the Royal Commission into Trade Union Governance and Corruption in 2014-2015.