Barbara Baker | |
---|---|
29th Governor of Tasmania | |
Assumed office 16 June 2021 | |
Monarchs | Elizabeth II Charles III |
Premier | Peter Gutwein Jeremy Rockliff |
Lieutenant Governor | Alan Blow |
Preceded by | Kate Warner |
Judge of the Federal Circuit Court | |
In office 27 October 2008 –31 January 2021 [1] | |
Personal details | |
Born | 31 March 1958 |
Spouse | Don Chalmers |
Parents |
|
Alma mater | University of Tasmania |
Profession | Lawyer Judge |
Barbara Avalon Baker AC (born 31 March 1958) is an Australian barrister and former judge, who is the 29th and current governor of Tasmania since 16 June 2021. She served on the Federal Circuit Court of Australia from 2008 to 2021.
Baker was born on 31 March 1958 in Hobart, Tasmania, [2] and raised in Sandy Bay. Her parents were Alison Burton, a tennis player, and Bob Baker, a lawyer who became a Liberal member of the Tasmanian Parliament. [3] Baker studied arts and law at the University of Tasmania, graduating in 1980 (BA, LLB). [2] She represented Tasmania in tennis and field hockey at under-18 level. [4]
Baker was admitted to the legal profession in 1983. She joined Simmons Wolfhagen as a solicitor and later worked for the Office of the Solicitor-General. In 1993 she became the first female partner at Murdoch Clarke. [4] As a lawyer Baker "specialised in family law and relationship matters". [5] She served on the executive of the Law Society of Tasmania (1995–1996) and as president of the Family Law Practitioners' Association (2002). [4]
In 2008, Baker was appointed to the Federal Magistrates Court of Australia, the first Tasmanian woman to serve on the court. In 2013 the court was renamed the Federal Circuit Court and its members received the title "judge" rather than magistrate. She retired from the judiciary in January 2021 and returned to practise as a barrister at Burbury Chambers. [4]
In May 2021, Premier Peter Gutwein announced that Baker would succeed Kate Warner as governor of Tasmania with effect from 16 June. [6] She stated that she would "focus on gender equality and family violence issues in the community", as well as encouraging participation in sport and acting as a role model for young lawyers. [5] She also said that her personal views on the monarchy or republicanism were not relevant to the position. [6]
In the 2021 Queen's Birthday Honours she was appointed a Companion of the Order of Australia. [7]
Baker is married to Don Chalmers AO, an emeritus professor of law at the University of Tasmania, and has two daughters. [4]
Baker captained Tasmania in indoor hockey and is a former national singles and doubles champion in real tennis. [4]
A solicitor is a legal practitioner who traditionally deals with most of the legal matters in some jurisdictions. A person must have legally-defined qualifications, which vary from one jurisdiction to another, to be described as a solicitor and enabled to practise there as such. For example, in England and Wales a solicitor is admitted to practise under the provisions of the Solicitors Act 1974. With some exceptions, practising solicitors must possess a practising certificate. There are many more solicitors than barristers in England; they undertake the general aspects of giving legal advice and conducting legal proceedings.
The call to the bar is a legal term of art in most common law jurisdictions where persons must be qualified to be allowed to argue in court on behalf of another party and are then said to have been "called to the bar" or to have received "call to the bar". "The bar" is now used as a collective noun for barristers, but literally referred to the wooden barrier in old courtrooms, which separated the often crowded public area at the rear from the space near the judges reserved for those having business with the court. Barristers would sit or stand immediately behind it, facing the judge, and could use it as a table for their briefs.
Court dress comprises the style of clothes and other attire prescribed for members of courts of law. Depending on the country and jurisdiction's traditions, members of the court may wear formal robes, gowns, collars, or wigs. Within a certain country and court setting, there may be many times when the full formal dress is not used. Examples in the UK include many courts and tribunals including the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom, and sometimes trials involving children.
Raymond John Groom is an Australian lawyer and former sportsman and politician, representing the Liberal Party in the Federal Parliament 1975–84 and the Tasmanian Parliament 1986–2001. He was a Federal and state minister for a total of 13 years. He was Premier of Tasmania from 1992 to 1996 and also served as Deputy Premier and Attorney-General.
Sir Francis Villeneuve Smith was an Australian lawyer, judge and politician, who served as the fourth Premier of Tasmania from 12 May 1857 until 1 November 1860.
The Federal Circuit Court of Australia, formerly known as the Federal Magistrates Court of Australia or the Federal Magistrates Service, was an Australian court with jurisdiction over matters broadly relating to family law and child support, administrative law, admiralty law, bankruptcy, copyright, human rights, industrial law, migration, privacy and trade practices.
Sir Reginald Charles Wright was an Australian barrister and politician. He was a member of the Liberal Party and served as a Senator for Tasmania from 1950 to 1978. He held ministerial office in the Gorton and McMahon governments, although he was known for crossing the floor.
Catherine Margaret Branson is a former Australian judge and public servant. She was a judge of the Federal Court of Australia from 1994 to 2008, and then President of the Australian Human Rights Commission from 2008 to 2012.
Linda Marion Dessau is an Australian jurist and barrister who served as the 29th Governor of Victoria from 2015 to 2023. She is the first female and the first Jewish holder of the office. She was previously a judge of the Family Court of Australia from 1995 to 2013.
Stephen Peter Estcourt is an Australian judge, who has been Puisne Judge of the Supreme Court of Tasmania since April 2013. From 2004 to 2013, he maintained barristers' chambers in Hobart and Melbourne, dividing his time between the two.
The Honourable Acting Justice Shane Raymond Marshall AM is a former judge of the Federal Court of Australia. After retiring from his federal appointments, from January 2017 until 30 June 2023 he held successive commissions as an acting Judge of the Supreme Court of Tasmania.He was appointed to the Supreme Court of Tasmania as a full time Acting Judge on 12 August 2024 by Her Excellency Governor Barbara Baker AC. From August 2019 to August 2024 he was a Deputy Chairperson of the Victorian Racing Tribunal. From October 2023 until August 2024 he was a member of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal.
Susan Coralie Kenny AM is a former Judge of the Federal Court of Australia, and formerly a Judge of the Supreme Court of Victoria, where she was the first woman to serve on the Court of Appeal.
The College of Arts, Law and Education was founded in 2017 as a college of the University of Tasmania that incorporated the School of Humanities, the School of Social Sciences, the School of Creative Arts and the Faculties of Law and Education. The College offers undergraduate, postgraduate and research programs.
Robert Wilfred Baker was an Australian lawyer, legal scholar and politician, who was elected to the Tasmanian House of Assembly in 1969 as a Liberal member for Denison. He held his seat until 1980, when the results of the 1979 state election were voided and a by-election was held, in which Baker lost his seat to fellow Liberal Gabriel Haros.
David James Porter is a full time acting judge of the Supreme Court of Tasmania, having served as a Judge of that Court from 2008 to 2016, then as a part time acting judge from 2017 to 2024.
Catherine Ann Warner is an Australian lawyer and legal academic who was the 28th Governor of Tasmania from 2014 to 2021.
Timothy James Ellis SC is a Tasmanian barrister and former Tasmanian Director of Public Prosecutions.
Alison Violet Burton was a left-handed Australian tennis player. She and Joyce Wood won the girls' doubles competition at the Australian Championships in 1938, 1939 and 1940.