Famous Australian Lawyers & Judges

Julie Bishop is an Australian former politician who once served as the Minister for Foreign Affairs. For several years, she was the deputy leader of the Liberal Party. She studied law at the University of Adelaide and worked as a commercial lawyer before venturing into politics. In 2020, she became the first woman chancellor of the Australian National University.  

The first prime minister of Australia, Edmund Barton had also been a senior judge at the High Court of Australia. The federation movement leader was also a major force behind the drafting of the constitution of his country. After rejecting the knighthood thrice, he finally accepted the honor in 1902.

Bill Shorten is an Australian politician who served as the leader of the Labor Party from 2013 to 2019. He was also the Leader of the Opposition during this period. He is considered a senior figure in the right faction of the Labor Party. He studied law at Monash University and pursued a legal career before joining politics. 

Waleed Aly is an Australian writer, lawyer, and TV personality. He completed his International Baccalaureate from Wesley College and furthered his education at the University of Melbourne. Besides pursuing a legal career, he also hosts several popular programs on TV and radio. He is married to  feminist author and academic Susan Carland.

Quentin Bryce is an Australian academic and politician. She served as the 25th Governor-General of Australia from 2008 to 2014 and is the first woman to have held the position. She attended the University of Queensland, where she studied law and became one of the first women accepted to the Queensland Bar. Following a legal career, she entered politics. 

Andrew Peacock was an Australian politician and diplomat who became the leader of the Liberal Party on two occasions. He studied law at the University of Melbourne and ventured into politics while simultaneously practicing law. He was appointed to cabinet in 1969 and held a variety of portfolios, including that of the Minister for Foreign Affairs from 1975 to 1980. 

The Great Acquirer, Robert Holmes à Court was Australia’s first billionaire. The South African-born later studied forestry in New Zealand, before moving to Australia to study law. He proved his business acumen by using a loss-making AWM as a tool to acquire Bell Brothers, and turning it into Bell Group Ltd.

Peter Costello is an Australian former politician and lawyer. From 1996 to 2007, Costello served as the Treasurer of Australia, becoming the longest-serving Australian Treasurer in history. Costello had an illustrious political career; from 1990 to 2009 he was an important member of the House of Representatives and from 1994 to 2007, he served as the Liberal Party's Deputy Leader.

Eric Abetz is an Australian politician. He has been serving as a senator for Tasmania since February 1994. He represents the Liberal Party and has been the Minister for Employment and the Leader of the Government in the past. He was a barrister and solicitor before entering politics. He has been accused of sexist behavior by politician Sue Hickey. 

Michael Kirby is an Australian jurist and academic. He was the Justice of the High Court of Australia from 1996 to 2009. He has also served on the Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC) and the CSIRO. After retirement, he was appointed by the United Nations Human Rights Council to lead an inquiry into human rights abuses in North Korea.  

Ninian Stephen was a prominent Australian judge. He served as the 20th Governor-General of Australia from 1982 to 1989. Prior to this, he had been a Justice of the High Court of Australia from 1972 to 1982. He was one of Australia's leading constitutional lawyers. He was also  Australia's first Ambassador for the Environment. 

H. V. Evatt was an Australian politician and judge who served as a judge of the High Court of Australia from 1930 to 1940. He was appointed the attorney-general in 1941. He was also active in politics and was the leader of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) and Leader of the Opposition from 1951 to 1960. 

Robert French is a prominent Australian lawyer and judge. He served as the twelfth Chief Justice of Australia from 2008 to 2017. He was appointed to the Federal Court in 1986 and was soon elevated to the High Court. After stepping down as the Chief Justice, he was appointed as the chancellor of the University of Western Australia. 

Apart from being a successful barrister, Melbourne-based Julian Burnside, now a Living National Treasure, is also a famed human rights activist. A lover of the arts, he is a passionate collector of paintings and sculptures and has also chaired Chamber Music Australia. An author too, he has penned a children’s book.

Wayne Goss was an Australian politician cum lawyer who served as the  Premier of Queensland from 1989 to 1996. He was a member of the Labour Party. He worked as a solicitor before entering politics and was a key figure in the civil liberties fight against the Bjelke-Petersen Government. He was awarded a Centenary Medal in 2001. 

Mick Dodson is an Aboriginal Australian barrister and academic. He is a member of the Yawuru people of the southern Kimberley region of Western Australia. In 1974, he became the first Indigenous person to graduate with a law degree in Australia. He has worked as a criminal solicitor and is a legal adviser in native title and human rights. 

Garfield Barwick was an Australian judge remembered as the longest-serving Chief Justice of Australia. As the head of the high court, Barwick made important decisions on several constitutional cases, including cases pertaining to the constitutional basis of taxation. Barwick, who held the office from 1964 to 1981, also served as a minister from 1958 to 1964 in the Menzies Government. 

Sir Guy Green was an English film producer, director, cinematographer, and screenwriter. He is best remembered for his work as a cinematographer in the 1946 British drama film Great Expectations for which he won an Academy Award. In 2002, Guy Green was honored at the British Academy of Film and Television Arts with a Lifetime Achievement Award.

Stephen Gageler is a lawyer currently serving as a Justice of the High Court of Australia. He was previously the Solicitor-General of Australia, the Commonwealth's second-ranking law officer. He has a master's degree from Harvard Law School and worked as a barrister for several years before being appointed as the Solicitor-General of Australia. He has a black belt in taekwondo.  

Roma Mitchell was an Australian lawyer and judge. She became the first woman to hold a number of positions in Australia, including the country’s first female judge. She was also the first woman to be a Queen's Counsel and the governor of an Australian state. She was a pioneer of the Australian women's rights movement as well.

Jon Stanhope is an Australian former politician who served as the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) Chief Minister from 2001 to 2011. During his time in office as ACT chief minister, Stanhope came up with the Human Rights Act 2004, which established newly held human rights.

Harry Gibbs was an Australian judge who served as the Chief Justice of the Australian High Court from 1981 to 1987. Regarded as one of the most influential federalist judges of Australia, Gibbs played an important role in many cases including the famous Koowarta v Bjelke-Petersen. In 2012, the Sir Harry Gibbs Legal Heritage Centre was opened in his honor.

Apart from being an Olympic gold medalist, Australian swimmer John Davies was also a UCLA graduate and later became a federal judge in the US. The breaststroke specialist became Australia’s first swimming gold medal winner since Clare Dennis, at Helsinki in 1952. He was also named to the International Swimming Hall of Fame.