Samuel Edward Keith Hulme

Samuel Edward Keith Hulme AM QC (b.1929-2008), commonly known as S. E. K. Hulme, or "SEK", was an Australian barrister, Rhodes Scholar and company director, noted for his role in major public inquiries and constitutional commentary, and for long service at the Victorian Bar. A senior figure of the Victorian Bar for more than five decades, he was recognised for his work in commercial and constitutional law, his participation in public inquiries, and his service on professional, corporate and charitable bodies.

Early life and education

Hulme was born in Melbourne and educated at Lloyd Street Central School in East Malvern and Wesley College. During the Second World War he attended the Royal Australian Naval College before returning to Wesley College to complete his secondary education.

He gained a university scholarship in 1948 to attend the University of Melbourne after finishing secondary school, demonstrating early academic promise. He studied law at the University of Melbourne, residing at Queen’s College, and graduated with a Bachelor of Laws (Honours). In 1952 he was awarded a Rhodes Scholarship and undertook postgraduate study at Magdalen College, Oxford, where he completed the Bachelor of Civil Law with first-class honours. During his time in England he was admitted to Gray’s Inn.

Legal career

Hulme was admitted to the Victorian Bar in 1953 and took silk in 1968.

He practised primarily in equity, revenue and commercial law, and became known for his work in public inquiries and royal commissions, including inquiries into major infrastructure failures in Victoria during the 1960s and 1970s.

Although he had limited involvement in witness-based litigation, Hulme developed a reputation for [...] rigour and written advocacy. After taking silk, his practice expanded significantly, and he later served in senior professional roles within the Bar, including on disciplinary and governance bodies.

Notable legal cases

Hulme acted as counsel for construction contractors in major public inquiries during his career. Notably, he appeared for the construction consortium involved in the Royal Commission into the collapse of the West Gate Bridge in Melbourne in 1970, one of the most significant industrial disasters in Australian history.

Constitutional commentary

Hulme wrote and spoke publicly on constitutional issues and legal process. In the early 1990s he delivered a detailed critique of the High Court’s handling of Mabo v Queensland (No 2), arguing that aspects of the Court’s reasoning had generated unnecessary controversy. His [...] attracted wide attention within legal circles, and he was subsequently invited to make submissions in connection with the development of native title legislation.

In 1993, Hulme published a paper titled “Constitutions and the Constitution” through the Samuel Griffith Society, examining the role of constitutional interpretation in Australian public law.

Corporate and public roles

Alongside his legal practice, Hulme held long-term directorships with major Australian companies, including Comalco Ltd (later Rio Tinto Alcan), and served as a director and chairman of Joe White Maltings Ltd.

He was the inaugural chairman of the Melbourne University Law School Foundation and served on ethics committees associated with major medical and professional institutions, including hospital and surgical ethics bodies. He was also active in charitable and community organisations, including long service with the Old Colonists’ Association of Victoria.

Writing and intellectual life

Hulme co-authored Wesley College: The First Hundred Years (1967) with historian Geoffrey Blainey and J. H. Morrissey.

The book received contemporary attention in the press. A review published in 1968 noted the scholarly approach taken by its authors and discussed Hulme’s contribution to the institutional history of Wesley College.

Beyond formal publication, he was known as a manuscript reader and adviser to writers and scholars. Journalist and author Caroline Overington later wrote that Hulme acted as a reader for her work and for Blainey, describing him as an exacting and perceptive critic whose influence extended beyond the legal profession.

Personal life and honours

Hulme married Natalia Ivanovna in 1970.

In 1992 he was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia for services to the law.

He retired from legal practice in June 2008 and died later that year at his home in Toorak. Obituaries published in The Age and the Herald Sun described him as a leading figure of the Victorian Bar and noted his influence across professional, corporate and cultural life.

In 2013, the Old Colonists’ Association of Victoria named the SEK Hulme Community Centre in his honour.