The virtues of ordinariness.

(From The Dominion Post)

Byline: DEKKER Diana

The Palmers are an ordinary Kiwi family, hopes Margaret, Sir Geoffrey's wife and mother of Rebekah and Matthew. Diana Dekker reports in the third in our series on prominent Wellington families.

It's just as well academic freedom is rampant, as Sir Geoffrey Palmer puts it, or he might be taking orders from son, Matthew. He is dean of Victoria University's law school. Dr Matthew Palmer, that is.

Dr Palmer, former deputy justice secretary, is four years into a five-year term at the law school.

Sir Geoffrey, former prime minister, is a partner in Wellington law firm Chen and Palmer, but he also -- among other things -- teaches at the law school, where he has already been professor of law in an earlier career incarnation, "He doesn't tell me how to teach," says Sir Geoffrey. "Academic freedom is rampant."

Sir Geoffrey and wife Margaret were in their early 20s when Matthew, now 40, was born. It was a time when many couples had children when they were barely adults themselves.

Sir Geoffrey grew to middle age when the idea of retiring as quickly as possible had disappeared.

He's only 62, he points out, and has no intention of retiring. People reinvent themselves over a lifetime these days, he observes, "and I just think people who've had a life of the mind don't retire".

So Sir Geoffrey was young enough and still involved enough, and Matthew old enough and experienced enough, for them to write a book together, Bridled Power, a sequel to Sir …