A King's Counsel is a senior lawyer appointed by the monarch of some Commonwealth realms as a "Counsel learned in the law". When the reigning monarch is a woman, the title is Queen's Counsel (QC).
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.
The title of Senior Counsel or State Counsel is given to a senior lawyer in some countries that were formerly part of the British Empire. "Senior Counsel" is used in current or former Commonwealth countries or jurisdictions that have chosen to change the title "King's Counsel" to a name without monarchical connotations, usually related to the British monarch that is no longer head of state, such that reference to the King is no longer appropriate. Examples of jurisdictions that have made the change because of the latter reason include Mauritius, Zambia, India, Hong Kong, Ireland, South Africa, Kenya, Malawi, Singapore, Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago. Jurisdictions that have retained the monarch as head of state, but have nonetheless opted for the new title include some states and territories of Australia, as well as Belize.
Peter deCarteret Cory, was a puisne judge of the Supreme Court of Canada, from 1989 to 1999.
Sir Kenneth James Keith is a New Zealand judge. He was elected to the International Court of Justice in November 2005, serving a nine-year term during the years 2006 through 2015.
Lex Lasry is an Australian lawyer and a retired judge of the Supreme Court of Victoria from 2007 to 2018. He also sat as a reserve judge from 2018 until his retirement as a reserve judge in February 2024.
John Spence Winneke, was a judge of the Supreme Court of Victoria and President of the Court of Appeal of the Supreme Court of Victoria, which is the highest ranking court in the Australian state of Victoria.
Alex Chernov is an Australian lawyer, judge and barrister who served as the 28th Governor of Victoria, from 2011 to 2015. Chernov also served as Vice-President of the Australian Bar Association, from 1986 to 1987, President of the Law Council of Australia, from 1990 to 1991, and the 20th Chancellor of Melbourne University, from 2009 to 2011.
John Harber Phillips, AC, QC was an Australian lawyer and judge who served as Chief Justice of Victoria from 1991 to 2003. He was first appointed to the Victorian Supreme Court in 1984, having previously been the state's director of public prosecutions as well as a director of the National Crime Authority.
Peter David Connolly QC was an Australian politician and judge of the Supreme Court of Queensland.
Mark Samuel Weinberg is a former judge of the Court of Appeal of the Supreme Court of Victoria from July 2008 to May 2018. He is a former judge of the Federal Court of Australia who served from July 1998 to July 2008.
John Digby is an Australian lawyer and a judge in the Supreme Court of Victoria, in the Australian state of Victoria.
Geoffrey Arthur Akeroyd Nettle is a former Justice of the High Court of Australia, the highest court in the Australian court hierarchy, who served from 3 February 2015 to 30 November 2020. Prior to his appointment to the High Court, he served as a judge at the Court of Appeal, Supreme Court of Victoria, where he presided from June 2004 to 2015.
Geoffrey Michael Eames is an Australian jurist, who was a judge of the Supreme Court of Victoria. He served in the trial division of the Court from 1992 to 2002, and was then a member of the Court of Appeal until 2007. He subsequently served as an Acting Judge of the Supreme Court of the Northern Territory, and as Chief Justice of Nauru.
Abul Hossain Mohammed Shamsuddin Chowdhury Manik is a retired judge of the Appellate Division of Bangladesh. He drew controversy after submitting verdicts in cases after his retirement, making questionable remarks on television as well as criminal misconduct.
Kevin Joseph Aloysius Lyons KC is an Australian judge and former barrister who has served on the Supreme Court of Victoria since May 2018, sitting in the Trial Division.
Peter Barrington Kidd SC is an Australian jurist. He has served as Chief Judge of the County Court of Victoria since 8 September 2015, and as a Justice of the Supreme Court of Victoria since 24 May 2016.
John Setka is an Australian trade unionist.
