ABSTRACT
At the 1987 London conference on criminal law reform that led to the formation of the Society for the Reform of Criminal Law, Justice John Kelly of Australia delivered a remarkable address on the purpose of law. 1 Speaking to two hundred judges, legal scholars, and law reformers from common law countries, he laid aside his prepared comments and spoke with great feeling about the need for criminal law practitioners to see themselves as healers. A purpose of criminal law, he said, should be to heal the wounds caused by crime. Since “healing” is not a word frequently heard in legal gatherings, it was helpful that he illustrated what he meant.
