Chief Justice Sian “The Dissenter” Elias’ camp has confirmed her Honour is in top form for the bout against the executive branch scheduled for this Friday 10 August 2018.
The fight, hosted as part of the Maxim Institute’s Sir John Graham Lecture, will see the Chief Justice defend her Bantamweight World Mild-Critic-Of-Executive-Policy-Consistent-With-Her-Role-As-A-Serving-Member-Of-The-Judiciary Title.
Speaking to media at a pre-fight publicity event today, her trainer, Tony Ellis, was bullish about her chances.
“Her Honour is in top form. The Chief Justice has been practice-sparring against the government policy of other common law countries, and has been doing drills on various aspects of criminal justice policy. Quite frankly there isn’t a government cost-saving mechanism that she’s not afraid to respectfully question as potentially erosive of the rule of law,” he confirmed.
The bout is thought to be the last one before her Honour retires in March 2019. A victory on Friday would see the Chief Justice retire at the end of a nearly 19 year career as Chief Justice almost unbeaten.
“She will be sticking to familiar themes – playing to her strengths. Jabs about penal populism, her right uppercut about reducing the prison population. And the haymaker she’s developed over the last year about how the Christchurch Justice Precinct puts Police and judges in the same building. That’s always a joy to watch.”
Some expert commentators have expressed concern that the Chief Justice may be drawn on discussing legal issues outside of the core themes that have served her well in the past.
“We all remember in early 2016 when she was beaten on the issue of cows in streams and environmental breaches,” said one commentator.
The TAB has placed strong odds on another victory for The Dissenter. The payout for an Elias CJ victory will be $1.03.
Previous Chief Justice victories
Blameless Babes – 2 July 2009 – the Chief Justice, using classic moves developed by Dame Shirley Smith beat the government in TKO with a combination of “prisons are a bottom of the cliff solution” and politicians are too scared to argue for reduction in sentence length.
Managing Criminal Justice – 5 August 2017 – in a match going the full ten rounds her Honour took on District Court judges, the Ministry of Justice, Crown prosecutors, and defence counsel in a four-on-one smackdown.
@strictlyobiter will be live tweeting the Sir John Graham Lecture (subject to being discovered hiding under one of the tables and ejected from the venue).
Strictly obiter 