Former Chief Justice of the High Court of Australia.
Sir Anthony Frank Mason, AC KBE QC is a former Chief Justice of the High Court of Australia. After being called to the NSW Bar in 1951, he was appointed Queen’s Counsel in 1964, and from 1964 to 1969 was the Commonwealth Solicitor-General, during which time he made important contributions to the development of the Commonwealth administrative law system. In 1969, he was appointed to the Supreme Court of New South Wales, where he served on the Court of Appeal, and in 1972 was appointed to the High Court. Fifteen years later, he was appointed Chief Justice, a post he held until his retirement from the Bench in 1995. He was subsequently appointed to the Court of Final Appeal of Hong Kong as a non-permanent judge, and also served as President of the Court of Appeal of the Solomon Islands, and as judge on the Supreme Court of Fiji. During his years as Chief Justice, Sir Mason made a significant impact on the High Court, and many important cases were decided during his tenure, such as Mabo v Queensland (No 2) (1992) 175 CLR 1; Dietrich v The Queen (1992) 177 CLR 292; Polyukhovich v Commonwealth (1991) 172 CLR 501; and Nationwide News v Wills (1992) 177 CLR 1. In addition to his judicial roles, Sir Mason served as Chancellor of the University of New South Wales from 1994 to 1999, from 1996 to 1997 was a professor of legal science at the University of Cambridge, and is a Visiting Fellow at the Australian National University’s Faculty of Law.
Sir Anthony Frank Mason, AC KBE QC is a former Chief Justice of the High Court of Australia. After being called to the NSW Bar in 1951, he was appointed Queen’s Counsel in 1964, and from 1964 to 1969 was the Commonwealth Solicitor-General, during which time he made important contributions to the development of the Commonwealth administrative law system. In 1969, he was appointed to the Supreme Court of New South Wales, where he served on the Court of Appeal, and in 1972 was appointed to the High Court. Fifteen years later, he was appointed Chief Justice, a post he held until his retirement from the Bench in 1995. He was subsequently appointed to the Court of Final Appeal of Hong Kong as a non-permanent judge, and also served as President of the Court of Appeal of the Solomon Islands, and as judge on the Supreme Court of Fiji. During his years as Chief Justice, Sir Mason made a significant impact on the High Court, and many important cases were decided during his tenure, such as Mabo v Queensland (No 2) (1992) 175 CLR 1; Dietrich v The Queen (1992) 177 CLR 292; Polyukhovich v Commonwealth (1991) 172 CLR 501; and Nationwide News v Wills (1992) 177 CLR 1. In addition to his judicial roles, Sir Mason served as Chancellor of the University of New South Wales from 1994 to 1999, from 1996 to 1997 was a professor of legal science at the University of Cambridge, and is a Visiting Fellow at the Australian National University’s Faculty of Law.