Projects per year
Personal profile
Biography
Jeffrey Goldsworthy has worked at Monash University since 1984, and held a Personal Chair from 2000 until he retired at the end of 2016. In retirement he is still actively engaged in legal research.
His major interests are legal philosophy, and constitutional law, theory, and history. He has numerous publications in these fields, but is best known for his books "The Sovereignty of Parliament, History and Philosophy" (Clarendon Press, Oxford, 1999) and "Parliamentary Sovereignty, Contemporary Debates" (Cambridge UP, Cambridge, 2010), his edited collection "Interpreting Constitutions, A Comparative Study" (Oxford UP, 2006), and many journal articles on statutory and constitutional interpretation.
He holds degrees from the University of Adelaide, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and the University of California, Berkeley, including the degree of Doctor of Laws awarded by the University of Adelaide in 2002. He has also taught law at each of these Universities, as well as at the University of Nottingham and Monash.
He is a Member of the Order of Australia (AM), and an honorary life member of the Australasian Society of Legal Philosophy, having served as its President from 2007 - 2014. He is a former Fellow of both the Academy of Social Sciences in Australia, and the Australian Academy of Law.
"Law Under a Democratic Constitution; Essays in Honour of Jeffrey Goldsworthy” (Hart Publishing, Oxford, 2019), edited by L B Crawford, P Emerton and D Smith, was published to mark his retirement.
A selection of Professor Goldsworthy's publications is available on-line at:
http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/cf_dev/AbsByAuth.cfm?per_id=513424
Professional Qualification
Barrister and Solicitor, Supreme Court of South Australia (December 1977)
Professional Honours and Awards
Member of the Order of Australia (AM), "for significant service to education, particularly to legal history and philosophy", January 26, 2020.
LLD, The University of Adelaide, 2002, for “work which constitutes an original and substantial contribution of distinguished merit to legal knowledge or understanding.”
Fellow, Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia (ASSA) (elected September 2008; resigned September 2024).
Fellow, Australian Academy of Law (elected March 2014; resigned November 2017).
Honorary Life Member, the Australasian Society of Legal Philosophy, from 2014.
2010 Coxford Lecture, Faculty of Law, Western University, Canada, November 2010 (the Faculty's most prestigious annual named lecture).
2007 Vice-Chancellors Equity and Diversity award for significant contribution to equity and diversity principles at Monash University.
2007 Vice-Chancellors special commendation for significant and sustained achievements and distinguished contribution to postgraduate supervision.
Biography
Constitutional Law and Theory
Constitutional History
Legal Philosophy
Statutory and Constitutional Interpretation
Monash teaching commitment
None
Expertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals
In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person’s work contributes towards the following SDG(s):
Research area keywords
- Constitutional Law
- Legal theory
- Jurisprudence
- Administrative law
Collaborations and top research areas from the last five years
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Legislative, judicial and popular participation in the protection of human rights in Australia
Goldsworthy, J. (Primary Chief Investigator (PCI))
Australian Research Council (ARC)
1/01/01 → …
Project: Research
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Construing Statutes: The Interaction between a Statute's Linguistic Content and Principles of Statutory Interpretation
Goldsworthy, J. (Primary Chief Investigator (PCI)), Campbell, T. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Emerton, P. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Smith, D. (Chief Investigator (CI)) & Greenberg, M. (Partner Investigator (PI))
Australian Research Council (ARC)
2/01/14 → 30/12/18
Project: Research
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A Principled Theory of Legal Interpretation
Goldsworthy, J. (Primary Chief Investigator (PCI)), Emerton, P. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Smith, D. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Barker, S. (Partner Investigator (PI)) & Ekins, R. (Partner Investigator (PI))
Australian Research Council (ARC)
4/01/10 → 31/12/17
Project: Research
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Dicey on parliamentary sovereignty and the common law
Goldsworthy, J., 2025, The Promise of Legality: Critical Reflections on the Work of TRS Allan. Cartier, G. & Walters, M. D. (eds.). 1st ed. Oxford UK: Bloomsbury Academic, p. 47-65 19 p.Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Chapter (Book) › Research › peer-review
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Interpretation and determinacy: reply to Brunet and Poggi
Goldsworthy, J., 2024, Jurisprudence in the Mirror: The Common Law World Meets the Civil Law World. Burazin, L., Himma, K. E. & Pino, G. (eds.). 1st ed. Oxford UK: Oxford University Press, p. 399-416 17 p.Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Chapter (Book) › Research › peer-review
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The variety of constitutional implications, and how they are identified
Goldsworthy, J., 2024, In: The Australian Law Journal. 98, 11, p. 822-836 15 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer-review
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Constitutional theory and thought
Goldsworthy, J., 2023, The Cambridge Constitutional History of the United Kingdom. Cane, P. & Kumarasingham, H. (eds.). 1st ed. Cambridge UK: Cambridge University Press, p. 254-282 29 p.Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Chapter (Book) › Other › peer-review
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Is parliamentary sovereignty alive, dying or dead?
Goldsworthy, J., Jan 2023, In: Public Law: the Constitutional and Administrative Law of the Commonwealth. 2023, 1, p. 126-150 25 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer-review
3 Citations (Scopus)
Prizes
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Fellow, Acadamy of Social Sciences in Australia (elected September 2008)
Goldsworthy, Jeffrey (Recipient), 2014
Prize: National/international honour
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Fellow, Australian Academy of Law (AAL) (elected March 2014)
Goldsworthy, Jeffrey (Recipient), 2014
Prize: National/international honour
Activities
- 6 Membership of an advisory panel/policy group/ board
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Australian Society of Legal Philosophy (External organisation)
Jeffrey Goldsworthy (Member)
1 Sept 2014 → 3 Sept 2014Activity: Industry, Government and Philanthropy Engagement and Partnerships › Membership of an advisory panel/policy group/ board
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Australian Society of Legal Philosophy (External organisation)
Jeffrey Goldsworthy (Member)
1 Aug 2012 → 31 Aug 2012Activity: Industry, Government and Philanthropy Engagement and Partnerships › Membership of an advisory panel/policy group/ board
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Monash University (External organisation)
Jeffrey Goldsworthy (Member)
1 Sept 2012 → 30 Sept 2012Activity: Industry, Government and Philanthropy Engagement and Partnerships › Membership of an advisory panel/policy group/ board
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Monash University (External organisation)
Jeffrey Goldsworthy (Member)
1 Jan 2011 → 31 Dec 2012Activity: Industry, Government and Philanthropy Engagement and Partnerships › Membership of an advisory panel/policy group/ board
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Monash University (External organisation)
Jeffrey Goldsworthy (Member)
1 Jan 2011 → 31 Dec 2012Activity: Industry, Government and Philanthropy Engagement and Partnerships › Membership of an advisory panel/policy group/ board