Obituary & Service - Michael Scarfo

Michael Scarfo was born in the village of Monsoreto in the region of Calabria, Italy. His father came to Australia first; he and his mother followed in the mid- 1950s. He began school at Gumbower Primary School in the Murray Valley. The family moved to Sunshine and his secondary education was at Sunshine High School. He was a good athlete – a sprinter; and it is believed that his record in the long jump still stands. He played football at school and, after school, with the Braybrook Sporting Club.

He won a Commonwealth Scholarship and completed his Law degree at the University of Melbourne. He served Articles at Patrick J Cannon, Testro & Coburn and was admitted to practice in May 1975. He practised briefly as a solicitor then travelled overseas. Upon his return, he came to the Bar, signing the Roll on 1 March 1976. He read with the late Neil Forsyth (later QC).

He left the Bar in November 1976 and established his own law firm in Sunshine, M A Scarfo & Associates. He had a general suburban solicitors’ practice, specialising in personal injuries work, the Magistrates’ Court jurisdiction and in Family Law. He did his own appearance work in the Magistrates’ Courts, and occasionally in the Coroner’s Court, County Court Appeals and in the County Court. He had an employee solicitor and took an Articled Clerk.

He returned to the Bar in 1983 and, although he had fully completed his Reading in 1976, read again, this time with Michael Ruddle. He had a remarkably broad practice: Crime, including murder; Common Law, including personal injuries; Family Law, including substantial property and custody cases and appeals; and Commercial Law. He had six Readers. He served on the Equality Before the Law Committee, the Applications Review Committee and on the Joint Bar, LIV & ABA Medico-Legal Standing Committee for 12
years up to his retirement from practice in 2009.

Funeral Mass will be celebrated at the Immaculate Conception Church, 345 Burwood Road, Hawthorn on Tuesday 4 July 2017 at 11 am, preceded by recital of the Rosary at 10:30 am.