Marty Gerrard Murphy was a well-known Peterborough criminal lawyer renowned for his “dedication, wit and sense of humour.”
Except for his years studying law in Ottawa, Marty Murphy’s career was in Peterborough. He was a partner in Galvin and Murphy with his uncle, Doug Galvin. He was the brother of Sharon Murphy who was a lawyer with her husband at Gariepy Murphy. Marty founded the Thames Embankment Society, an organization to support lawyers and their work. As one of the city’s leading criminal lawyers, he was Federal Crown Attorney for Peterborough.
There were several stories of how Marty Murphy had helped clients, whom he said should always be treated as royalty. On one occasion he approached someone who was in trouble and was trying to defend himself and was distraught at the enormity of the task. Marty Murphy asked how he could help, and stayed with him the remainder of the day. He told the vindicated man to “do something for someone else in need when the opportunity arose.” Lawyers valued him as a colleague, and “our community was enriched by his contributions.”