The ACT's Chief Magistrate Lorraine Walker has advised that she will step down from the role in 2026 after more than 15 years serving on the bench, the vast majority of which has been as the head of the jurisdiction.
Her Honour's final sitting day will be 27 March 2026.
Chief Magistrate Walker was appointed to the Magistrates Court in 2010 and to the role of Chief Magistrate in 2011, the first woman to hold the role. Chief Magistrate Walker is also the Chief Coroner.
In 2019 she was sworn in as an Acting Judge of the Supreme Court to establish the ACT's Drug and Alcohol Court. She resumed as Chief Magistrate in April 2020 in light of the impact of the pandemic.
Prior to serving on the bench, Chief Magistrate Walker served as a legal officer in the Royal Australian Air Force before working in the UK Crown Prosecution Service.
Upon returning to Australia in 1996, she became a partner at Barker Gosling law firm and then practised as a barrister in the ACT for 10 years.
Her Honour has also served on the boards of the ACT Law Society, the ACT Bar Association and the Canberra Institute of Technology, and tutored at the ANU.
The ACT Government sincerely thanks Chief Magistrate Walker for her significant contribution to the ACT community. Formal acknowledgement and recognition of Chief Magistrate Walker's achievements and tenure will take place in March.
Recruitment for a new Chief Magistrate will begin in the new year.
