Sir Keith Arthur Aickin KBE QC (1 February 1916 – 18 June 1982)[1] was an Australian judge who served on the High Court of Australia from 1976 until his death in 1982.
He was elected to the inaugural council of La Trobe University in 1966, and was also appointed to a number of company boards, including those of Mayne Nickless (1958), P&O Australia (1969), Comalco (1970), and BHP (1971).
[1] During his time on the court, Aickin developed a reputation as a judicial conservative on constitutional matters and a defender of states' rights, preferring to interpret Commonwealth powers more narrowly.
Aickin did not frequently dissent, but a few months before his death was in the minority in Koowarta v Bjelke-Petersen, which upheld the Racial Discrimination Act 1975 as a valid exercise of the government's external affairs power.
[7] Aickin's incapacity and subsequent death reduced the number of sitting High Court judges to five, as Ninian Stephen had recently resigned to become the Governor-General.