- New judge of the Court of Appeal announced
- The Hon. Justice Janine Pritchard will fill the position effective immediately
Attorney General John Quigley is pleased to announce the appointment of the Hon. Justice Janine Pritchard as a judge of the Court of Appeal of Western Australia.
As stated by Attorney General John Quigley:
“The Hon. Justice Janine Pritchard is a highly experienced legal practitioner.
“Justice Pritchard was admitted to practice in Western Australia in 1993.
“In 2009, Justice Pritchard was appointed a judge of the District Court and a Deputy President of the State Administrative Tribunal.
“In 2010, she was appointed a judge of the Supreme Court of Western Australia.
“When the Court of Appeal was established in 2005, it comprised six Judges of Appeal including the President, two of whom were women.
“The size of the court increased to seven in 2006, before returning to six by 2011. The court has operated with its current capacity of five judges of appeal for a number of years, with additional judicial resources being provided from the General Division of the Supreme Court.
“The Hon. Christine Wheeler retired from the court in 2010. The Hon. Carmel McLure retired as President of the Court of Appeal in June 2016, having held that appointment since 2009.
“Since its establishment, no other woman has been appointed as a judge of appeal. As a consequence, there has been no woman holding a permanent appointment to the Court of Appeal for more than two years.
“Justice Pritchard is widely recognised as an outstanding jurist throughout the courts and the legal profession in Western Australia and beyond. The appointment of Her Honour not only brings another exceptional legal mind to the highest tier of our State’s judicial system, but delivers greater gender diversity to the Court of Appeal.
“It is consistent with the McGowan Government’s policy of pursuing equal gender representation across all levels of Government.”
Attorney General’s office – 6552 6800
