Carolyn Simpson

Carolyn Chalmers Simpson (born 30 March 1946) is a former judge of the Supreme Court of New South Wales. Justice Simpson served on the Court for 24 years, including three years as a judge of its Court of Appeal. Justice Simpson made legal history in 1999 as one of three judges who formed the first all-female bench to sit in an Australian court.

Early life and education Simpson was born 30 March 1946, at Forbes in the Central West of New South Wales, to William George and Janet Bower Chalmers. and following matriculation attended Bathurst Teachers College (an antecedent to Charles Sturt University), graduating with a Diploma of Education in 1965.

Career Simpson served as an associate to a District Court judge. It was here that she realised her passion for law, stating: "I got hooked." dismissing two and allowing one appeal against a conviction for indecent assault. Simpson retired as a full judge on 29 March 2018, however she continued to work as an Acting Justice in the NSW Court of Appeal until 2024.

In the 2019 Queen's Birthday Honours, Simpson was appointed Officer of the Order of Australia for her "distinguished service to the law, and to the judiciary, particularly in the areas of criminal, defamation, administrative, and industrial law".

Notable decisions Justice Simpson has presided over a number of high-profile cases. In 2005, she presided over the much publicised case Network Ten v Jessica Rowe. Ten claimed that the 5pm Ten News reader had breached her "open-ended" contract by failing to give six months' notice in writing. Simpson dismissed the action and ordered Ten to pay Rowe's court costs, finding that the contract was for a closed period of two years and expired at the conclusion of the case.

In 2007, she awarded around $1 million in damages for negligence to a teenager who was bullied at primary school. She concluded that the school had "grossly failed" to meet its duty of care to Benjamin Cox, causing him to develop a severe psychiatric condition.