LEGAL WORK WITH 2ND N.Z.E.F.

Press, Volume LXXXII, Issue 24911, 26 June 1946, Page 8

LEGAL WORK WITH 2ND N.Z.E.F.

REVISION OF MILITARY LAW SUGGESTED COMMENT BY FORMER OFFICER “I realised that in war the essential features of British justice were maintained, and I learned to appreciate the way in which the rights of the soldier on active service were preserved in the face of the urgent necessities of military discipline,” said LieutenantColonel C. B. Barrowclough, 0.8. E., in ap article in the “New Zealand Law Journal.” Colonel Barrowclough, who is a barrister in Dunedin, served as a legal staff officer at the headquarters of the Second New Zealand Division for about a year, and for three years he was Deputy Judge Advocate General of the 2nd N.Z.E.F.

“I also formed the opinion that military law and its administration are due for careful consideration and pos-. Bible revision,” he continued. “The administration of tne law is a matter for lawyers. ‘ The whole basis of the Army Act is that the prerogative of punishment, where it is necessary, goes with command, so that the executive officer is also the judiciary officer. • “The act was evolved for a standing army ’ in which officers likely to be concerned in the administration of military lav/ received considerable training and experience. In a civilian army gathered together on the outbreak of hostilities, training in the art of waging war is necessarily paramount. A modern army with all its ramifications imposes a far greater burden on a commanding officer, and his judicial duties, particularly during active operations, become increasingly burdensome. The appointment of experienced barristers as permanent officials to sit on courts-martial and courts of inquiry and to exercise summary 7 jurisdiction appears to be worthy of consideration.” Work of Unit Explained With a staff of barristers and solicitors from many parts of New Zealand, the legal department of the 2nd N.Z.E.F. had officers with the divisional headquarters, the base camp in Maadi. and the advanced base camps in Tripolitania and Italy, while Colonel Barrowclough was stationed at the headquarters of the force. At times during the war officers travelled thousands of miles to give advice to soldiers who were .stationed with nondivisional engineering units. The settlement of claims was an interesting and extensive part of the work, said the article. It was at times difficult .and exacting because it often involved application of foreign and required an appreciation of the psychology of the people living in the Mediterranean area. The greater part of the work of the department was devoted to an attempt to solve the many legal and domestic problems of members of the force, said Colonel Barrowclough. Hundreds of wills and powers of attorney were prepared. After years of absence from New Zealand minor domestic incidents assumed a significance out of proportion to their real importance, and business worries preyed on the minds of soldiers. The provision of adequate and sympathetic assistance was of great importance to the morale of the division. “The outstanding ability of Colonel Barrowclough won ungrudging praise outside as. well as within the 2nd N.Z.E.F.,” a tribute by Dr. A. L. Haslam, of Christchurch, who served as a legal staff officer with the rank of captain, and two other officers of the department.