Robert French

Infobox_President
honorific-prefix = The Honourable Chief Justice
name = Robert French
honorific-suffix =
CitWa, BSc LLB, Hon LLD
nationality =Australian


order =12th Chief Justice of Australia
term_start =1 September 2008
term_end =
appointer =Kevin Rudd
predecessor =Murray Gleeson
successor =Incumbent
birth_date =birth date and age|1947|03|19|df=y
birth_place =
death_date =
death_place =
religion =|

Robert Shenton French (b. 19 March 1947) is Chief Justice of the High Court of Australia, the highest court in the Australian court hierarchy.

Although two other Western Australians, Sir Ronald Wilson and John Toohey, have been High Court judges, Robert French is the first Chief Justice from that state.cite news
title=Intellectual all-rounder will change court subtly
work=The West Australian
date=31 July, 2008
author=Johnson, Chris]

Biography

French attended the University of Western Australia in Perth, where he graduated with a Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Laws. He was President of the University's Liberal Clubcite news
url=http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,24101281-601,00.html
title=Robert French new Chief Justice of the High Court
work=The Australian
date=July 30, 2008] and served briefly as treasurer of the University of Western Australia Student Guild. In 1969 at the age of 22, he contested the safe Labor Federal seat of Fremantle for the Liberal Party, which he lost to Kim Beazley, Sr.. He is a close friend of Kim Beazley, Jr..

Judicial activity

The Hawke government appointed French to the Federal Court in 1986, at the age of 39.cite web
url=http://www.fedcourt.gov.au/aboutct/french.html
title=The Hon Robert Shenton FRENCH
work=Federal Court of Australia
date=July 31, 2008]

On 30 July 2008, Prime Minister Kevin Rudd announced that French would succeed Murray Gleeson as Chief Justice of the High Court of Australia. He was sworn in on 1 September 2008 [cite news
url=http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/rudd-names-new-chief-justice/2008/07/30/1217097307144.html
title=Rudd names new chief justice
date=30 July, 2008
work=Sydney Morning Herald] .

On republicanism

French said in a WA Law Society speech in May 2008:

"It is unacceptable in contemporary Australia that the legal head of the Australian state ... can never be chosen by the people or their representatives, cannot be other than a member of the Anglican Church, can never be other than British and can never be an indigenous person."

Indigenous issues

Justice French is known for working for the rights of Indigenous Australians; in the early 1970s he helped found the WA Aboriginal Legal Service. He was also the first president of the National Native Title Tribunal.

At his swearing in ceremony as Chief Justice, French specifically referred to the long history of indigenous Australia, noting that:

Recognition of their presence is no mere platitude. The history of Australia's indigenous people dwarfs, in its temporal sweep, the history that gave rise to the Constitution under which this court was created.Our awareness and recognition of that history is becoming, if it has not already become, part of our national identity. [Pelly, Michael, [http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,,24274358-2702,00.html?from=public_rss French sworn in as Chief Justice] , "The Australian", 2008-09-01. Accessed 2008-09-08.]

Awards

* Honorary Doctor of Laws, Edith Cowan University, 1998
* Western Australian Citizen of the Year – Professions, 1998
* Centenary Medal, 2001

References