Attorney General of New South Wales

Attorney General of New South Wales

Arms of Her Majesty's Government
Incumbent
Gabrielle Upton
since 2 April 2015
Department of Justice
Style The Honourable
Nominator Premier of New South Wales
Appointer Governor of New South Wales
Inaugural holder Saxe Bannister
Formation 14 April 1824
Deputy Solicitor General
Website www.lawlink.nsw.gov.au

The Attorney General of New South Wales, in formal contexts also Attorney-General or Attorney General for New South Wales[1] and usually known simply as the Attorney General, is one of the Law Officers of the Crown. Along with the subordinate Solicitor General, Crown Advocate, and Crown Solicitor, the Attorney General serves as the chief legal and constitutional adviser of the Crown and its government in the Australian state of New South Wales.

The current Attorney General, since 2 April 2015, is Gabrielle Upton, MP, a representative of the Liberal Party of Australia.

History and function

The position of Attorney General has existed since 1824, well before the full establishment of the New South Wales Parliament (in 1856) but coinciding with the establishment of the New South Wales Legislative Council. From the beginning, the Attorney General has been the Crown's advisor and representative in legal matters. Today prosecutions are carried out by the Public Prosecution Office and most legal advice to government departments is provided by the Government Legal Service, both under the supervision of the Attorney General. The Attorney General is responsible to Parliament for activities of the Department of Justice and has responsibility for the all state's courts and tribunals and the appointment of judges, magistrates and statutory officers in New South Wales.

List of Attorneys General

Ordinal Attorney General Party affiliation Period
1 Saxe Bannister None 1824–1826
2 William Moore 1826–1827
3 Alexander Baxter 1827–1831
– William Moore 1831
4 John Kinchela 1831–1836
5 John Plunkett 1836–1856
6 William Manning 1856
7 James Martin 1856
– William Manning 1856–1857
8 John Darvall 1857
– James Martin 1857–1858
9 Alfred Lutwyche 1858–1859
10 Lyttleton Bayley 1859
11 Edward Wise 1859–1860
– William Manning 1860
12 John Hargrave 1860–1863
– John Darvall 1863
– James Martin 1863–1865
– John Darvall 1865
– John Plunkett 1865–1866
– James Martin 1866–1868
– William Manning 1868–1870
– James Martin 1870–1872
13 Edward Butler 1872–1873
14 Joseph Innes 1873–1875
15 William Bede Dalley 1875–1877
16 William Charles Windeyer 1877
– William Bede Dalley 1877
17 William Foster 1877–1878
– William Charles Windeyer 1878–1879
18 Robert Wisdom 1879–1883
– William Bede Dalley 1883–1885
19 John Henry Want 1885
20 George Bowen Simpson 1885–1886
– John Henry Want Protectionist 1886–1887
– William Foster Free Trade 1887
20 Bernhard Wise 1887–1888
– George Bowen Simpson 1888–1889
21 Edmund Barton Protectionist 1889
– George Bowen Simpson Free Trade 1889–1891
– Edmund Barton Protectionist 1891–1893
22 Charles Heydon 1893–1894
– George Bowen Simpson Free Trade 1894
– John Henry Want 1894–1899
23 George Reid 1899
– Bernhard Wise Protectionist 1899–1904
24 James Gannon Progressive 1904
25 Charles Wade Liberal Reform 1904–1907
Liberal 1907–1910
26 William Holman Labor 1910–1914
27 David Hall 1914–1916
Nationalist 1916–1919
28 John Garland 1919–1920
29 Edward McTiernan Labor 1920–1921
30 Thomas Bavin Nationalist 1921
– Edward McTiernan Labor 1921–1922
– Thomas Bavin Nationalist 1922–1925
– Edward McTiernan Labor 1925–1927
31 Andrew Lysaght 1927
32 Francis Boyce Nationalist 1927–1930
– Andrew Lysaght Labor 1930–1931
33 Joseph Lamaro 1931–1932
34 Daniel Levy United Australia 1932
35 Henry Manning 1932–1941
36 Clarrie Martin Labor 1941–1953
37 Bill Sheahan 1953–1956
38 Reg Downing 1956–1965
39 Ken McCaw Liberal 1965–1975
40 John Maddison 1975–1976
41 Frank Walker Labor 1976–1983
42 Paul Landa 1983–1984
43 Neville Wran 1984
44 Terry Sheahan 1984–1987
45 Ron Mulock 1987–1988
46 John Dowd Liberal 1988–1991
47 Peter Collins 1991–1992
48 John Hannaford 1992–1995
49 Jeff Shaw Labor 1995–2000
50 Bob Debus 2000–2007
51 John Hatzistergos 2 April 2007 – 28 March 2011
52 Greg Smith Liberal 3 April 2011 – 23 April 2014
53 Brad Hazzard 23 April 2014 – 2 April 2015
54 Gabrielle Upton 2 April 2015 – present

Notes

  1. ↑ See, e.g. Leahy v Attorney-General for New South Wales and Makin v Attorney General for New South Wales

References

External links