Background
Turner was born in Surry Hills, and was educated at the University of Sydney where he received a Bachelor of Law.
Turner was born in Surry Hills, and was educated at the University of Sydney where he received a Bachelor of Law.
He worked as a solicitor, establishing Turner, Freeman and Partners as his firm. In 1939 he joined the Australian Labor Party. The author of several books, he was also active in Aboriginal affairs, founding the Company-operative for Aboriginals in 1956 and the Aboriginal Legal Aid Service in 1971.
In 1976 he was elected to the New South Wales Legislative Council serving until 1984.
He died in 2004 at Strathfield. He visited the Soviet Union in 1978 and wrote a book based on his observations titled Law in the Union of the Soviet Socialist Republics.
He was a Labor member of the New South Wales Legislative Council from 1976 to 1984. In 1958 he was a member of the Sydney Mental Health Tribunal, and from 1963 was a member of the Council of the Law Society of New South Wales.