High Court of Australia

The High Court of Australia is the final court of appeal in Australia. It is mandated by Section 71 of the Australian Constitution.

High Court justices

The first three justices of the High Court were:

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• The Chief Justice, Sir Samuel Griffith, former Premier and former Chief Justice of Queensland.
• Sir Edmund Barton, the first Prime Minister of Australia and Leader of the Australian Constitutional Conventions of the 1890s
• Richard Edward O'Connor.

In 1906, an additional two justices were appointed, and in 1912 the bench was expanded to seven justices. During the Great Depression, two of the seats were left vacated due to the decline in the volume of work.

Related Topics:
1906 - 1912 - Great Depression

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The current (as of 2005) sitting justices of the High Court are:

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• Chief Justice Anthony Murray Gleeson
• Justice Michael McHugh(to be replaced by the Justice Susan Crennan of the Federal Court of Australia, as of 1 November 2005)
• Justice William Gummow
• Justice Michael Kirby
• Justice Kenneth Hayne
• Justice Ian Callinan
• Justice Dyson Heydon

Section 72 of the Australian Constitution specifies that High Court Justices must retire once they reach the age of 70.

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See also: List of Judges of the High Court of Australia, List of High Court of Australia cases, Australian court hierarchy.

Related Topics:
List of Judges of the High Court of Australia - List of High Court of Australia cases - Australian court hierarchy

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