Chief Justice of Tasmania

Chief Justice of Tasmania
Royal Arms used by the Supreme Court of Tasmania
Incumbent Vacant (Until 20 January 2025)
Supreme Court of Tasmania
Style	Mr. Chief Justice (informal) Your Honor (within court) The Honorable (formal)
Status	Chief justice
Member of	Judiciary of the State of Tasmania
Seat	Tasmanian Supreme Court Building, Hobart
Nominator	Attorney-General of Tasmania
Appointer	The Governor of Tasmania with Executive Council and Cabinet deliberation
Term length	None Mandatory retirement at 75 years of age
Constituting instrument	The Supreme Court Act 1887
Formation	1887

The Chief Justice of Tasmania is the senior judge of the Supreme Court of Tasmania, and the highest ranking judicial officer in the Australian state of Tasmania. The Chief Justice is both the judicial head of the Supreme Court as well as the administrative head. They are responsible for arranging the business of the court and establishing its rules and procedures. The current Chief Justice is Alan Blow, who was appointed in 2013 by the then Governor, Peter Underwood who himself had been a Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. Blow CJ had been a puisne justice of the court since 2000. The Chief Justice also serves as Lieutenant-Governor.

Due to age limits previously changed on request of Blow, the incumbent Chief Justice must retire by the end of 2024, at which time the Governor will appoint a replacement.^[1]

List of chief justices of Tasmania

Name	Term as Chief Justice
Sir John Pedder	4 March 1824 – 4 May 1854
Sir Valentine Fleming	7 August 1854 – 31 December 1869
Sir Francis Smith	8 August 1870 – 7 February 1885
Sir William Lambert Dobson	7 February 1885 – 17 March 1898
Sir John Stokell Dodds	29 October 1898 – 26 June 1914
Sir Herbert Nicholls	1 July 1914 – 31 October 1937
Sir Harold Crisp	21 December 1937 – 14 April 1940
Sir John Morris	15 April 1940 – 3 July 1956
Sir Stanley Burbury	28 August 1956 – 29 October 1973
Sir Guy Green	30 October 1973 – 1 September 1995
William Cox	4 September 1995 – 1 December 2004
Peter Underwood	2 December 2004 – 28 March 2008
Ewan Crawford	24 April 2008 – 7 April 2013
Alan Blow	8 April 2013 – present

See also

• Judiciary of Australia
• Supreme Court of Tasmania

References

1. "State's top judge to step down after 'a long and distinguished career'". The Examiner. 29 June 2024. Retrieved 14 September 2024.