Attorney-General of Western Australia
The Attorney-General of Western Australia is the member of the Government of Western Australia responsible for maintenance and improvement of Western Australia's system of law and justice. Before the advent of representative government in 1870, the title was Advocate-General of Western Australia. The Attorney-General must be a qualified legal practitioner. When there are none in the cabinet, a lay person is sometimes appointed to the office of Minister for Justice.[1]
The current Attorney-General of Western Australia, since 17 March 2017, is John Quigley.
List of Advocates-General of Western Australia
This is a list of Advocates-General of Western Australia from 1831 to 1870.[2]
| Advocate-General | Time in Office |
|---|---|
| William Mackie | 1831–34 |
| Hon. George Fletcher Moore | 1834–46 |
| Hon. Richard West Nash | 1841–46 (acting); 1846–52 |
| Hon. B. W. Vigors | 1852–54 (acting) |
| Hon. George Frederick Stone | 1854–57 |
| Hon. Richard Burnie | 1857–59 |
| Hon. George Frederick Stone | 1860–70 |
List of Attorneys-General of Western Australia
This is a list of Attorneys-General of Western Australia. The office was not always filled: the Australian Parliamentary Library notes that where there was no lawyer among the ministers elected, there would be a Minister for Justice instead of an Attorney-General.[3][4]
| Attorney-General | Time in Office |
|---|---|
| Robert John Walcott[5][6] | 4 November 1870–December 1872 |
| Henry Hicks Hocking[7] | December 1872–30 June 1874 |
| George Walpole Leake | 30 June 1874–16 January 1875 |
| Henry Hicks Hocking | 16 January 1875–25 February 1879 |
| George Walpole Leake | 1 March 1879–24 November 1879 |
| Edward Albert Stone | 24 November 1879–21 March 1880 |
| George Walpole Leake | 21 March 1880–21 March 1881 |
| Alexander Onslow | 21 March 1881–9 April 1883 |
| George Walpole Leake | 9 April 1883–10 July 1883 |
| Alfred Hensman | 10 July 1883–18 June 1886 |
| Septimus Burt | 19 June 1886–3 December 1886 |
| Charles Warton | 9 December 1886– December 1890 |
| Septimus Burt | 29 December 1890–27 October 1897 |
| Richard Pennefather | 27 October 1897–20 March 1901 |
| William Sayer | 25 March 1901–27 May 1901 |
| George Leake | 27 May 1901–21 November 1901 |
| Frederick Moorhead | 21 November 1901–23 December 1901 |
| George Leake | 23 December 1901–24 June 1902 |
| Walter James | 1 July 1902–10 August 1904 |
| Norbert Keenan | 14 May 1906–14 May 1909 |
| John Nanson | 16 September 1910–7 October 1911 |
| Thomas Walker | 7 October 1911–27 July 1916 |
| Robert Robinson | 27 July 1916–17 May 1919 |
| Thomas Draper | 17 May 1919–12 March 1921 |
| Thomas Davy | 24 April 1930–18 February 1933 |
| Hubert Parker | 22 February 1933–8 April 1933 |
| Robert Ross McDonald | 1 April 1947–5 January 1948 |
| Arthur Abbott | 5 January 1948–23 February 1953 |
| Arthur Watts | 2 April 1959–31 January 1962 |
| Ron Bertram | 3 March–30 September 1971 |
| Tom Evans | 21 October 1971–8 April 1974 |
| Ian Medcalf | 22 December 1975–25 February 1983 |
| Joe Berinson | 25 February 1983–16 February 1993 |
| Cheryl Edwardes | 16 February 1993–21 December 1995 |
| Peter Foss | 21 December 1995–16 February 2001 |
| Jim McGinty | 16 February 2001–23 September 2008 |
| Christian Porter | 23 September 2008–12 June 2012 |
| Michael Mischin | 29 June 2012–11 March 2017 |
| John Quigley | 15 March 2017–ongoing |
References
- ↑ "Justice Ministers of Western Australia" (pdf). Parliamentary Library. Perth, WA: Parliament of Western Australia. 28 March 2013. Retrieved 27 April 2016.
- ↑ "Membership of the Legislative Council, 1832-70" (PDF). Parliament of Western Australia. Retrieved 26 October 2014.
- ↑ "List of Australian Attorneys-General". Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 26 October 2014.
- ↑ E. M. Russell, ‘Early Lawyers of Western Australia’, Journal and Proceedings (Western Australian Historical Society), vol 4, part 3, 1951, pp 32-53
- ↑ "Events of the Month". The Herald. Fremantle, WA. 8 December 1870. Retrieved 16 September 2014.
- ↑ "Summary for the Mails". The Herald. Fremantle, WA. 12 October 1872. p. 3. Retrieved 16 September 2014.
- ↑ "Arrival of the English and Colonial Mails". The Herald. Fremantle, WA. 15 February 1873. p. 3. Retrieved 16 September 2014.
