Vale – John H Greenwell

John began his career in the law in 1949 when he became an articled law clerk, at age 16, to a solicitor based on Bourke St.

John was admitted to the Bar on 24 September 1954 and developed a practice working mainly in commercial law. In the early 1960s, much of the Bar moved to Owen Dixon Chambers at 205 William St and it was there, in March 1962, that John hosted a small gathering at which they agreed to establish the Victorian Branch of Amnesty International, the first in Australia. 

In 1970, John left the Bar and moved to Canberra to work in the Department of External Territories on the decolonisation of PNG. Later he worked in the Commonwealth Attorney General's Department and finally in the Australian Law Reform Commission, as Deputy President. 

John is survived by his three children, Harry, Tom and Olivia, and one grandchild.