2004 was a big one, for many reasons.

After a very quick, fruitful, fulfilling and hugely enjoyable 30  years, John decided that it was time to step back from the day to day partnership duties at the firm he had established, and move on to new challenges. Confident in the knowledge that Gary would continue to carry the baton and the fact that Dan was making great strides in both his university work and article clerkship, John knew that the firm he had helped to build with his brother was set for the long term.

While the C&H team bid a fond farewell to one of its founding partners, some other big events from 2004 also included:

– Crocodile Hunter Steve Irwin makes world headlines after feeding one of the crocodiles in his park while holding his one month old son Bob in the other hand

– Qantas launches its new discount domestic airline, Jetstar

– Malcolm Turnbull wins Liberal party pre-selection in the in the Federal seat of Wentworth

– Campbell Newman ends 13 years of Labor rule in Brisbane by being elected Lord Mayor of Brisbane

– John Howard wins an historic 4th election by defeating the erratic Mark Latham, securing majorities in both the Senate and House of Representatives

– After 18 years at SBS, The Movie Show film critics Margaret Pomeranz and David Stratton resign from the network to anchor a new film review show on the ABC, At The Movies. The Movie Show continues briefly with 4 new presenters, but finishes soon after

– Steve Waugh plays his last Test match ever, scoring an 80 against India at the SCG

– The Spanish capital of Madrid is rocked by terrorist attacks that kill more than 200 people. Al-Qaeda later take responsibility for the attacks

– George W. Bush defies horrible exit polling to secure a healthy election victory over Democratic Senator John Kerry

– A catastrophically massive earthquake off the coast of Indonesia triggers a series of tsunamis throughout Asia, killing over 230,000 people

– The Aviator, Collateral, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Million Dollar Baby, Sideways, The Passion of the Christ and Kill Bill Vol.2 are released

Deaths: David Hookes (19 January), Peter Ustinov (28 March), Ronald Raegan (5 June), Ray Charles (10 June), Marlon Brando (1 July), Christopher Reeve (10 October), Johnny Warren (6 November), Yasir Arafat (11 November), Jerry Orbach (28 December)