Richard O'Connor (politician)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Richard O'Connor
Richard O'Connor (politician)

Official portrait of O'Connor, c. 1910
In office
5 October 1903 – 18 November 1912
Appointed by Alfred Deakin
Preceded by none
Succeeded by Sir Frank Gavan Duffy
Born 1851
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Died 18 November 1912

Richard Edward O'Connor, QC (4 August 1851 – 18 November 1912), Australian politician, was a member of the first federal ministry.

O'Connor was born in the Sydney suburb of Glebe and was educated at Lyndhurst College, Sydney Grammar School, and at the St John's College, University of Sydney, graduating as a lawyer in 1871. He became a clerk to the legislative council, studied law, and was called to the bar in 1876. Almost from the beginning he was known as a sound lawyer and he subsequently built up a successful practice, he was also a well-known journalist writing for Irish-Australian and Catholic magazines.[1][2]

A Protectionist, O'Connor was a member of the New South Wales Legislative Council 1887–98. He was Minister for Justice 1891–93 and Solicitor-General 1893.[3] He was made a Q.C. in 1896, and in the same year was a member of the people's federal convention held at Bathurst. He was an earnest advocate for federation and was elected one of the New South Wales representatives for the convention of 1897–98. At this convention he was a member with Sir Edmund Barton and Sir John Downer of the drafting committee which prepared the federation bill. This, with some amendments, eventually became the federal constitution.[1]

O'Connor was elected to the Australian Senate in 1901 as a Senator for New South Wales. He was Vice-President of the Executive Council 1901-03 in the ministry of Edmund Barton. In 1903 he was appointed as a foundation Justice of the High Court of Australia, where he served until his death in 1912 of pernicious anaemia in St Vincent's Hospital, Sydney. He was survived by his wife Sarah Hensleigh, who he married in 1879, and four sons and two daughters.[1][2] One daughter married Alexander Maclay, the son of Nicholai Miklukho-Maklai; the other married the composer Roy Agnew.

[edit] See also

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ a b c Searle, Percival. O'Connor, Richard Edward (1851 - 1912). Dictionary of Australian Biography.
  2. ^ a b Rutledge, Martha (1988). O'Connor, Richard Edward (1851 - 1912). Australian Dictionary of Biography. Australian National University. Retrieved on 2007-08-31.
  3. ^ The Hon. Richard Edward O'Connor (1851 - 1912). Members of Parliament. Parliament of New South Wales. Retrieved on 2007-08-31.
Political offices
New title Vice-President of the Executive Council
1901 – 1903		 Succeeded by
Thomas Playford


Justices of the High Court of Australia
Chief Justices of Australia
Griffith · Knox · Isaacs · Gavan Duffy · Latham · Dixon · Barwick · Gibbs · Mason · Brennan · Gleeson
Puisne Justices
Barton · O'Connor · Higgins · Powers · Piddington · Rich · Starke · Evatt · McTiernan · Williams · Webb · Fullagar · Kitto · Taylor · Menzies · Windeyer · Owen · Walsh · Stephen · Jacobs · Murphy · Aickin · Wilson · Deane · Dawson · Toohey · Gaudron · McHugh · Gummow · Kirby · Hayne · Callinan · Heydon · Crennan · Kiefel
current Justices are in italics



Persondata
NAME O'Connor, Richard Edward
ALTERNATIVE NAMES
SHORT DESCRIPTION Australian politician and judge
DATE OF BIRTH 4 August 1851
PLACE OF BIRTH Glebe, New South Wales
DATE OF DEATH 18 November 1912
PLACE OF DEATH Darlinghurst, New South Wales
Languages