List of judges of the Federal Court of Australia

"Chief Justice of the Federal Court of Australia" redirects here; not to be confused with Chief Justice of Australia.

Judges who have served on the Federal Court of Australia as of May 2019^[update],^[1][2] are appointed in accordance with section 72 of the Constitution, which has, since the Court's inception in 1976, been for a term expiring at age 70.^[3]

In addition to their judicial service, six judges of the Federal Court have also been elected to the Parliament of Australia: Nigel Bowen, Bob Ellicott, Merv Everett, Tony Whitlam, John Reeves and Duncan Kerr. All were elected prior to their appointment to the bench.^{[citation needed]}

Additionally, two judges of the Federal Court have served in state Parliaments: Bernard Riley, formerly of the New South Wales Legislative Council, and Howard Olney, formerly of the Western Australian Legislative Council.^{[citation needed]}

Judges including Chief Justices

Position	Name	Appointment commenced	Appointment ended	Term	Comments	Notes
Chief Justice	Sir Nigel Bowen AC, KBE, QC	20 December 1976	31 December 1990	14 years, 11 days	Chief Judge in Equity of the Supreme Court (NSW)	[4]
	Michael Black AC, KC	1 January 1991	21 March 2010	19 years, 79 days	Barrister (Queen's Counsel for Victoria and Tasmania)	[5]
	Patrick Keane AC, KC	22 March 2010	28 February 2013	2 years, 343 days	Court of Appeal Judge in the Supreme Court (Qld) Appointed to the High Court	[2][6][7]
	James Allsop AC KC	1 March 2013	6 April 2023	10 years, 36 days	Previously President of the Court of Appeal (NSW) previously served as Federal Court judge	[2][8]
	Debra Mortimer	7 April 2023		2 years, 127 days	Judge of the Federal Court (2013–)	[1][9]
Judge	Sir Richard Blackburn OBE	1 February 1977	31 March 1985	8 years, 58 days		[2]
	(Sir) Gerard Brennan AC, KBE, QC		12 February 1981	4 years, 11 days	Appointed to the High Court
	Xavier Connor AO, QC		17 March 1982	5 years, 44 days
	Phillip Evatt DSC		28 February 1987	10 years, 27 days	Judge of the Supreme Court (NI)
	Sir William Forster AC, KBE, QC		31 January 1989	11 years, 365 days
	Robert Franki		5 August 1986	9 years, 185 days
	Russell Fox AC, QC		31 March 1989	12 years, 58 days	Chief Judge of the Supreme Court (NI)
	John Keely QC		29 February 1996	19 years, 28 days	Judge of Industrial Relations Court
	James Muirhead AC, KStJ, QC		4 August 1986	9 years, 184 days
	Sir John Nimmo CBE, OStJ, QC		30 June 1980	3 years, 150 days
	Ray Northrop QC		31 August 1998	21 years, 211 days	Judge of Industrial Relations Court
	Bernard Riley		4 August 1978	1 year, 184 days
	Sir Reginald Smithers		30 September 1986	9 years, 241 days
	Robert St John		31 March 1985	8 years, 58 days	Judge of the Supreme Court (NI)
	Charles Sweeney CBE		29 June 1995	18 years, 148 days
	John Sweeney		7 May 1981	4 years, 95 days
	Richard Ward QC		24 November 1977	296 days
	Sir Edward Woodward AC, OBE, QC		31 July 1990	13 years, 180 days
	(Sir) William Deane AC, KBE, KC	1 April 1977	26 July 1982	5 years, 116 days	Appointed to the High Court
	John Toohey AC, QC	4 April 1977	31 December 1986	9 years, 271 days	Appointed to the High Court
	Douglas McGregor AC, QC	7 November 1977	14 November 1985	8 years, 7 days
	Francis Fisher AC, QC	6 March 1978	31 July 1989	11 years, 147 days
	John Gallop AM, RFD, QC	11 March 1978	30 July 2000	22 years, 141 days
	Daryl Davies QC	17 May 1978	31 August 1998	20 years, 106 days
	John Lockhart AO	30 October 1978	11 June 1999	20 years, 224 days	(1935–2006)[10][11][12]
	Ian Sheppard AO	9 December 1979	23 May 1997	17 years, 165 days
	John Kelly QC	11 March 1980	1 July 1990	10 years, 112 days
	Trevor Morling QC	11 February 1981	1 February 1993	11 years, 356 days	Judge of the Supreme Court (NI)
	Bob Ellicott KC	2 March 1981	24 February 1983	1 year, 359 days
	Gerald Fitzgerald AC, QC	25 November 1981	30 June 1984	2 years, 218 days
	Kenneth Jenkinson	1 November 1982	5 June 1997	14 years, 216 days
	Alan Neaves AC, KC	11 March 1983	8 January 1995	11 years, 303 days
	Michael Kirby AC, CMG	30 March 1983	23 September 1984	1 year, 177 days	Appointed to NSW Court of Appeal then to High Court
	Bryan Beaumont AO	30 May 1983	11 February 2005	21 years, 257 days	Chief Justice of the Supreme Court (NI)
	Murray Wilcox AO, QC	11 May 1984	2 October 2006	22 years, 144 days	Chief Justice of Industrial Relations Court Judge of the Supreme Court (NI) Additional Judge of the Supreme Court (ACT)
	Peter Gray AM	17 May 1984	17 May 2013	29 years, 0 days	Judge of Industrial Relations Court
	Jeffrey Spender KC	17 May 1984	19 July 2010	26 years, 63 days	Judge of Industrial Relations Court Additional Judge of the Supreme Court (ACT)
	Merv Everett	27 June 1984	4 October 1987	3 years, 99 days
	Bill Pincus QC	25 March 1985	16 December 1991	6 years, 266 days
	James Burchett	3 June 1985	10 October 2000	15 years, 129 days
	Jeffrey Miles AO	18 June 1985	30 September 2002	17 years, 104 days
	David Jackson AM, KC	15 November 1985	26 May 1987	1 year, 192 days	"Australia's pre-eminent constitutional law barrister", according to lawyer Louise Clegg in the AFR (2023)[13]
	Donnell Ryan KC	29 September 1986	2 June 2011	24 years, 246 days	Judge of Industrial Relations Court Additional Judge of the Supreme Court (ACT)
	William Gummow AC, KC	24 November 1986	20 April 1995	8 years, 147 days	Appointed to the High Court
	Robert French AC	25 November 1986	1 September 2008	21 years, 281 days	Additional Judge of the Supreme Court (ACT) Appointed to Chief Justice of the High Court
	Marcus Einfeld	18 December 1986	16 April 2001	14 years, 119 days
	Trevor Hartigan	13 August 1987	24 April 1990	2 years, 254 days
	Michael Foster QC	2 November 1987	26 November 1998	11 years, 24 days
	Alastair Nicholson AO, RFD	1 February 1988	31 May 2004	16 years, 120 days
	Malcolm Lee AO, KC	15 February 1988	1 May 2006	18 years, 75 days	Judge of Industrial Relations Court
	Howard Olney AM, KC	21 May 1988	30 April 2003	14 years, 344 days
	John von Doussa AO, KC	1 December 1988	15 August 2003	14 years, 257 days	Judge of Industrial Relations Court
	Graham Hill	1 February 1989	24 August 2005	16 years, 204 days
	Deirdre O'Connor	1 July 1990	5 March 2002	11 years, 247 days
	John Phillips AO, QC	14 August 1990	17 December 1991	1 year, 125 days
	Maurice O'Loughlin	1 August 1989	28 January 2003	13 years, 180 days
	Terrence Higgins AO, KC	1 July 1990	12 September 2013	23 years, 73 days
	Peter Heerey AM, QC	17 December 1990	16 February 2009	18 years, 61 days
	Doug Drummond QC	2 December 1991	12 April 2003	11 years, 131 days
	Richard Cooper	30 March 1992	14 March 2005	12 years, 349 days
	Margaret Beazley AC, KC	1 January 1993	28 April 1996	3 years, 118 days	Judge of Industrial Relations Court Appointed to Court of Appeal (NSW)
	Tony Whitlam KC	1 January 1993	1 May 2005	12 years, 120 days
	Christopher Carr	13 December 1993	1 August 2004	10 years, 232 days
	Michael Moore	28 March 1994	1 August 2011	17 years, 126 days	Judge of Industrial Relations Court Additional Judge of the Supreme Court (ACT)
Catherine Branson KC	16 May 1994	13 October 2008	14 years, 150 days
Jane Mathews AO	4 July 1994	6 April 2001	6 years, 276 days
Kevin Lindgren AM, KC	26 July 1994	12 February 2010	15 years, 201 days
Brian Tamberlin KC	29 August 1994	30 March 2009	14 years, 213 days	Additional Judge of the Supreme Court (ACT)
Ronald Sackville AO, KC	19 September 1994	25 August 2008	13 years, 341 days
Susan Kiefel AC, KC	17 October 1994	3 September 2007	12 years, 321 days	Judge of the Supreme Court (NI) Appointed to the High Court
Robert Nicholson AO	1 January 1995	7 August 2007	12 years, 218 days
Paul Finn	3 July 1995	4 July 2012	17 years, 1 day
Ross Sundberg AM, KC	10 July 1995	9 August 2010	15 years, 30 days
Shane Marshall AM	17 July 1995	21 November 2015	20 years, 127 days	Judge of Industrial Relations Court
John Lehane	3 October 1995	10 September 2001	5 years, 342 days
Rodney Madgwick KC	3 October 1995	21 April 2008	12 years, 201 days	Judge of Industrial Relations Court Additional Judge of the Supreme Court (ACT)
Anthony North KC	3 October 1995	11 September 2018	22 years, 343 days	Judge of Industrial Relations Court Additional Judge of the Supreme Court (ACT)	[2][14]
Ron Merkel KC	5 February 1996	15 May 2006	10 years, 99 days		[2]
John Mansfield AM, KC	2 September 1996	24 August 2016	19 years, 357 days
Arthur Emmett AO, KC	3 February 1997	6 March 2013	16 years, 31 days
Alan Goldberg AO, QC	3 February 1997	4 July 2010	13 years, 151 days
Raymond Finkelstein KC	21 July 1997	1 July 2011	13 years, 345 days
Geoffrey Giudice AO	17 September 1997	28 February 2012	14 years, 164 days	President of AIRC & then Fair Work Australia
Mark Weinberg AO, KC	15 July 1998	19 July 2008	10 years, 4 days	Judge of the Court of Appeal (Vic) Chief Justice of the Supreme Court (NI) Additional Judge of the Supreme Court (ACT)
John Dowsett AM, KC	14 September 1998	26 April 2018	19 years, 224 days	Additional Judge of the Supreme Court (ACT) Previously a Judge of the Supreme Court (Qld).	[15][16]
Leslie Katz SC	30 September 1998	21 March 2002	3 years, 172 days		[2]
Peter Hely	2 October 1998	1 October 2005	6 years, 364 days
Susan Kenny AM	16 October 1998	29 November 2023[2]	26 years, 300 days	Presidential member of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal Previously a judge of the Court of Appeal (Vic)	[1]
Roger Gyles AO, KC	11 June 1999	22 August 2008	9 years, 72 days	Additional Judge of the Supreme Court (ACT)	[2]
Richard Conti QC	15 August 2000	15 August 2007	7 years, 0 days
Margaret Stone AO	9 October 2000	22 March 2012	11 years, 165 days	Additional Judge of the Supreme Court (ACT)
James Allsop AC, KC	7 May 2001	2 June 2008	7 years, 26 days	As Justice. Additional Judge of the Supreme Court (ACT) Appointed President of the Court of Appeal (NSW) returned to court as Chief Justice	[8]
Garry Downes AM, KC	2 April 2002	15 May 2012	10 years, 43 days	Judge of the Supreme Court (NI)	[2]
Peter Jacobson KC	17 June 2002	25 January 2015	12 years, 222 days	Chief Justice of the Supreme Court (NI)
Bradley Selway QC	18 November 2002	10 April 2005	2 years, 143 days
Annabelle Bennett AC, SC	5 May 2003	23 March 2016	12 years, 323 days	Additional Judge of the Supreme Court (ACT)
Bruce Lander KC	14 July 2003	31 August 2013	10 years, 48 days	Judge of the Supreme Court (NI) Additional Judge of the Supreme Court (ACT)
Susan Crennan AC, KC	3 February 2004	1 November 2005	1 year, 271 days	Appointed to the High Court
Antony Siopis SC	14 April 2005	5 May 2018	13 years, 21 days	Presidential member of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal	[17][18]
Richard Edmonds SC	5 May 2005	10 February 2016	10 years, 281 days		[2]
Peter Graham KC	24 May 2005	6 September 2010	5 years, 105 days		[2]
Andrew Greenwood	4 August 2005	19 July 2022	16 years, 349 days		[2][19][20]
Neil Young KC	30 November 2005	24 January 2007	1 year, 55 days		[2]
Steven Rares	2 February 2006	15 November 2023[2]	17 years, 286 days	Additional Judge of the Supreme Court (ACT)	[21]
Berna Collier	8 February 2006		19 years, 185 days	Judge of the Papua New Guinea Supreme Court Deputy President of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal Additional Judge of the Supreme Court (ACT)	[22]
Dennis Cowdroy AO	13 March 2006	15 March 2014	8 years, 2 days		[2]
Anthony Besanko	3 April 2006	7 May 2024[2]	18 years, 34 days	Chief Justice of the Supreme Court (NI) Additional Judge of the Supreme Court (ACT) Previously a judge of the Supreme Court of South Australia	[23][24][25][26]
Christopher Jessup KC	23 June 2006	15 April 2017	19 years, 50 days		[2]
Richard Tracey AM, RFD QC	24 July 2006	16 August 2018	12 years, 23 days		[27]
John Middleton AM, KC	31 July 2006	25 December 2022	16 years, 147 days		[2]
Robert Buchanan KC	8 September 2006	10 September 2016	10 years, 2 days	Judge of the Supreme Court (NI)	[2]
John Gilmour QC	11 December 2006	23 March 2018	11 years, 102 days	Judge of the Supreme Court (NI)	[2]
Michelle Gordon AC, SC	20 April 2007	8 June 2015	8 years, 49 days	Appointed to the High Court	[2]
John Logan RFD	27 September 2007		17 years, 319 days		[1]
Geoffrey Flick	15 October 2007	18 October 2021	14 years, 3 days		[2]
Neil McKerracher	15 October 2007	5 December 2021	14 years, 51 days		[2]
John Reeves	19 November 2007	1 January 2022	14 years, 43 days		[2][28]
Nye Perram	8 August 2008		17 years, 4 days		[1]
Jayne Jagot	3 September 2008	16 October 2022	14 years, 43 days	Appointed to the High Court	[2]
Lindsay Foster	4 September 2008	30 September 2020	12 years, 26 days		[2]
Michael Barker	9 February 2009	11 February 2019	10 years, 2 days		[2]
John Nicholas	16 February 2009		15 years, 269 days		[1]
David Yates	30 November 2009	30 November 2024	15 years, 0 days		[2]
Mordecai Bromberg	7 December 2009		15 years, 248 days	President of the Australian Law Reform Commission (2023-present)[29]	[1]
Julie Dodds-Streeton KC	1 February 2010	1 April 2014	4 years, 59 days		[2]
Anna Katzmann	1 February 2010		15 years, 192 days		[30]
Alan Robertson	11 April 2011	8 May 2020	9 years, 27 days		[2]
Bernard Murphy	13 June 2011		14 years, 60 days		[1]
Iain Ross AO	1 March 2012	18 November 2022	10 years, 262 days	President of Fair Work Commission (2012-2022)	[2][31]
John Griffiths	23 April 2012	1 April 2022	9 years, 343 days		[2]
Duncan Kerr	10 May 2012	25 February 2022	9 years, 291 days	President of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (2012-2017) Previously member of the House of Representatives and Attorney-General	[2][32][33]
Kathleen Farrell	5 December 2012	1 August 2023	10 years, 239 days		[2]
Tony Pagone KC	21 June 2013	31 March 2018	4 years, 283 days		[2]
Jennifer Davies	4 July 2013	1 April 2022	8 years, 271 days		[2]
Debra Mortimer	12 July 2013		12 years, 31 days	Appointed Chief Justice (2023–)	[1]
Darryl Rangiah	13 August 2013		11 years, 364 days		[1]
Richard Conway White	31 August 2013	5 January 2022	8 years, 127 days		[2]
Michael Wigney	9 September 2013		11 years, 337 days	Judge of the Supreme Court (NI)	[1]
Melissa Perry	23 September 2013		11 years, 323 days		[1]
Jacqueline Gleeson	15 April 2014	28 February 2021	6 years, 319 days	Appointed to the High Court	[2]
Jonathan Beach	30 June 2014		11 years, 43 days		[1]
James Edelman	20 April 2015	29 January 2017	1 year, 284 days	Appointed to the High Court	[2][34]
Brigitte Markovic	24 August 2015		9 years, 353 days		[1]
Mark Moshinsky	3 November 2015		9 years, 282 days	Acting President of the Australian Law Reform Commission (2023–)[35]	[1]
Robert Bromwich	29 February 2016		9 years, 165 days		[1]
Natalie Charlesworth	1 March 2016		9 years, 164 days		[1]
Stephen Burley	6 May 2016		9 years, 98 days		[1]
David O'Callaghan	1 February 2017		8 years, 192 days		[1]
Michael Lee	27 March 2017		8 years, 138 days		[1]
Roger Derrington	29 March 2017		8 years, 136 days		[1]
David Thomas	27 June 2017	31 January 2024	6 years, 218 days	President of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (2017-2022) Previously a Judge of the Supreme Court (Qld)	[2]
Sarah Derrington AM	10 January 2018		7 years, 214 days	President of the Australian Law Reform Commission (2018-2023)[35]	[1]
Simon Steward	1 February 2018	30 November 2020	2 years, 303 days	Appointed to the High Court	[2]
Katrina Banks-Smith	12 February 2018		7 years, 181 days	Previously a Judge of Supreme Court (WA)	[1]
Craig Colvin	13 February 2018		7 years, 180 days		[1]
Thomas Thawley	14 February 2018		7 years, 179 days		[1]
Michael Wheelahan	3 October 2018		6 years, 313 days		[1]
Paul Anastassiou	1 February 2019	29 April 2022	3 years, 87 days		[2]
Angus Stewart	25 February 2019		6 years, 168 days		[1]
Michael O'Bryan	26 February 2019		6 years, 167 days		[1]
Darren Jackson	20 March 2019		6 years, 145 days		[1]
John Snaden	29 April 2019		6 years, 105 days		[1]
Stewart Anderson	6 May 2019		6 years, 98 days		[1]
Wendy Abraham	7 May 2019		6 years, 97 days		[1]
John Halley	19 March 2021		4 years, 146 days		[1]
Elizabeth Cheeseman	12 April 2021		4 years, 122 days		[1]
Helen Rofe	12 July 2021		4 years, 31 days		[1]
Kylie Downes	2 August 2021		4 years, 10 days		[1]
Scott Goodman	11 November 2021		3 years, 274 days		[1]
Patrick O'Sullivan	20 January 2022		3 years, 204 days	Previously a Judge of the District Court of South Australia	[1]
Shaun McElwaine	24 January 2022		3 years, 200 days		[1]
Michael Feutrill	8 March 2022		3 years, 157 days		[1]
Fiona Meagher	31 March 2022		3 years, 134 days	President of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (2022)	[1]
Timothy McEvoy	26 April 2022		3 years, 108 days	Previously a Judge of the Federal Circuit and Family Court (Division 1)	[1]
Lisa Hespe	27 April 2022		3 years, 107 days		[1]
Elizabeth Raper	2 May 2022		3 years, 102 days		[1]
Geoffrey Kennett	19 December 2022		2 years, 236 days	Previously a Judge of the Supreme Court of the Australian Capital Territory	[1]
Catherine Button	16 January 2023		2 years, 208 days	Previously a Judge of the Supreme Court of Victoria	[1]
Ian Jackman	6 February 2023		2 years, 187 days		[1]
Adam Hatcher	19 February 2023		2 years, 174 days	President of the Fair Work Commission (2023–)	[1]
Emilios Kyrou AO	8 June 2023		2 years, 65 days	Previously a Judge of the Supreme Court of Victoria President of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (2023–)	[1]
Christopher Horan	5 September 2023		1 year, 341 days		[1]
Yaseen Shariff	7 September 2023		1 year, 339 days		[1]
Penelope Neskovcin	8 February 2024		1 year, 185 days		[1]
Craig Dowling	9 February 2024		1 year, 184 days		[1]
Jane Needham	5 July 2024		1 year, 38 days		[1]
Stephen McDonald	8 July 2024		1 year, 35 days		[1]
Samuel Vandongen	17 December 2024		238 days	Previously a Judge of Supreme Court (WA)	[1]
Cameron Moore	18 December 2024		237 days		[1]
Nicholas Owen	18 December 2024		237 days		[1]
James Stellios	19 December 2024		236 days		[1]
Houda Younan	19 December 2024		236 days		[1]
Elizabeth Bennett	20 December 2024		235 days		[1]
Erin Longbottom	20 December 2024		235 days		[1]
Amelia Wheatley	6 January 2025		218 days		[1]

Location of current judges

Sydney

• Nye Perram (8 August 2008)
• John Nicholas (16 November 2009)
• Anna Katzmann (1 February 2010)
• Michael Wigney (9 September 2013)
• Melissa Perry (23 September 2013)
• Brigitte Markovic (24 August 2015)
• Robert Bromwich (29 February 2016)
• Stephen Burley (23 May 2016)
• Michael Lee (23 April 2017)
• Thomas Thawley (14 February 2018)
• Angus Stewart (25 February 2019)
• Wendy Abraham (7 May 2019)
• John Halley (19 March 2021)
• Elizabeth Cheeseman (12 April 2021)
• Scott Goodman (11 November 2021)
• Elizabeth Raper (2 May 2022)
• Geoffrey Kennett (19 December 2022)
• Ian Jackman (6 February 2023)
• Adam Hatcher (19 February 2023)
• Yaseen Shariff (7 September 2023)
• Jane Needham (5 July 2024)
• Cameron Moore (18 December 2024)
• Nicholas Owens (18 December 2024)
• James Stellios (19 December 2024)
• Houda Younan (19 December 2024)

Melbourne

• Mordecai Bromberg (7 December 2009)
• Bernard Murphy (13 June 2011)
• Debra Mortimer (12 July 2013) (Chief Justice)
• Jonathan Beach (30 June 2014)
• Mark Moshinsky (3 November 2015)
• David O'Callaghan (1 February 2017)
• Michael Wheelahan (3 October 2018)
• Michael O’Bryan (26 February 2019)
• John Snaden (29 April 2019)
• Stewart Anderson (6 May 2019)
• Helen Rofe (12 July 2021)
• Timothy McEvoy (26 April 2022)
• Lisa Hespe (27 April 2022)
• Catherine Button (16 January 2023)
• Emilios Kyrou (8 June 2023)
• Christopher Horan (5 September 2023)
• Penelope Neskovcin (8 February 2024)
• Craig Dowling (9 February 2024)
• Elizabeth Bennett (20 December 2024)

Brisbane

• Berna Collier (8 February 2006)
• John Logan (27 September 2007)
• Darryl Rangiah (13 August 2013)
• Roger Derrington (24 April 2017)
• Sarah Derrington (10 January 2018)
• Kylie Downes (2 August 2021)
• Fiona Meagher (31 March 2022)
• Erin Longbottom (20 December 2024)
• Amelia Wheatley (6 January 2025)

Perth

• Katrina Banks-Smith (12 February 2018)
• Craig Colvin (13 February 2018)
• Darren Jackson (20 March 2019)
• Michael Feutrill (8 March 2022)
• Samuel Vandongen (17 December 2024)

Adelaide

• Natalie Charlesworth (1 March 2016)
• Patrick O'Sullivan (20 January 2022)
• Stephen McDonald (8 July 2024)

Hobart

• Shaun McElwaine (24 January 2022)

See also

• Judiciary of Australia

Federal Court Judges holding concurrent appointments in:

• List of judges of the Federal Court of Bankruptcy
• List of judges of the Industrial Relations Court of Australia
• List of judges of the Supreme Court of the Australian Capital Territory
• List of judges of the Supreme Court of Christmas Island
• List of judges of the Supreme Court of the Cocos (Keeling) Islands
• List of judges of the Supreme Court of Norfolk Island