1986 was the year our firm came into its own. Firmly entrenched along Redcliffe’s beautiful waterfront on Redcliffe Parade at number 23, John and Gary took full control as the firm’s equal partners. They also decided to re-name the firm Cooke & Hutchinson Lawyers. The decision was also made to keep Barry Cooke’s name on the wall, who unfortunately passed away a week after Cooke Lyons Hutchinson and Company had been formed. Mr Cooke is remembered as a pioneer of law practice on the Peninsula and both John and Gary were firm in their commitment to honour the memory of this outstanding local practitioner. It’s a commitment that stands to this day and is one example of Cooke & Hutchinson’s proud tradition of embracing and supporting the local community and one that we are very proud to continue.

1986 also saw:

– Morgan’s Seafood opens in Bird O’Passage Parade, Scarborough

– Gateway Bridge completed

– The Tennyson and Bulimba coal-fired power station closes down

– The Queensland Museum moves to the newly developed Queensland Cultural Centre at South Brisbane

– Joh Bjelke-Petersen wins his 7th and final state election

– Phil Dickie writes the first of many articles in The Courier Mail about criminal activities in Brisbane. His work helps to bring about the formation of the Fitzgerald Inquiry into corruption in the Qld Police Force and Government

– Australian citizens Kevin Barlow and Brian Chambers become the first Westerners to be executed under Malaysia’s tough new drug laws, described by Prime Minister Bob Hawke as “barbaric”.

– 12 people are killed in an explosion at the No 4 mine at Moura, Queensland

– A record 328 millimetres of rain is dumped on Sydney in one day on 6 August

– Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos flees the country after mass demonstrations protesting against his recent election victory

– The world is rocked by the catastrophic nuclear accident at Chernobyl Power station where 8 tonnes of radioactive material escapes into the atmosphere. Conservative estimates indicate over 4,000 people have since lost their lives due to the accident while countless other thousands have been impacted by cancers and genetic mutations

– The Iran Contra scandal engulfs the Reagan administration

– Diego Maradona scores his infamous “Hand of God” goal on the way to leading his Argentine team to the football World Cup

– Nintendo begins to release video games in the United States, with Super Mario Bros becoming an instant hit

– Barry Diller creates Fox, the fourth major free to air US television network which would go on to launch major cultural landmarks The Simpsons and The X Files

– Platoon, Hannah and Her Sisters, The Mission, Top Gun, Aliens, Ferris Buller’s Day Off and Australian classic Crocodile Dundee are released

Births: Jessicah Schipper (19 November), Torah Bright (27 December)

Deaths: The Duchess of Windsor (24 April), Lionel Murphy (21 October)