John Henry Pascoe, AO, CVO is Chief Federal Magistrate of Australia and Deputy Chancellor of the University of New South Wales. Previous positions he has held have included Chairman and CEO of George Weston Foods, Chairman of Centrelink, Deputy Chairman of Aristocrat Leisure Limited and Managing Director of the Insurance and Risk Management Division of Phillips Fox. He has also held positions on several other corporate boards, such as Qantas.
Presently, he is a member of the board of directors of the International Award Association (which operates the Duke of Edinburgh Award scheme). Previously he has held positions on the boards of the New South Wales Cancer Council, The Sydney Opera House Trust, and The Royal Alexandria Hospital for Children.
John Pascoe's appointment as Chief Federal Magistrate has been widely applauded as a result of the significant management skills that he has brought to the Federal Magistrates' Court, which continues to be the most rapidly expanding court in Australia. The Federal Magistrates Court is the largest federal court in Australia.
He is a graduate of ANU.
Pascoe was appointed Commander of the Royal Victorian Order (CVO) in the 2010 New Year Honours for his services to the Duke of Edinburgh's Award.[1]