Stephen Donaghue QC appointed as Solicitor-General

Following Justin Gleeson’s resignation in October, the Turnbull government has appointed top silk Stephen Donaghue QC.

The Turnbull government has appointed top Melbourne silk Stephen Donaghue QC as the next Commonwealth Solicitor-General - a post that has been vacant since the resignation in October of Justin Gleeson SC.

Stephen Donaghue QC. Picture: Victorian Bar

Dr Donaghue’s appointment is the final chapter in the furore triggered by the collapse of relations between the nation’s two most senior law officers.

Mr Gleeson resigned soon after it was revealed that he secretly briefed the Labor Opposition about his differences with Attorney-General George Brandis.

The trigger for the feud had been Mr Gleeson’s opposition to rules that would have given Senator Brandis control over requests for advice from the Solicitor-General.

Those rules were abandoned after Mr Gleeson left office.

A senate inquiry in October revealed that Mr Gleeson, who had been providing confidential advice to the government, had a short telephone conversation with the Opposition about his differences with Senator Brandis.

That conversation, which involved Labor’s legal affairs spokesman Mark Dreyfus, took place during the federal election campaign and gave Labor confirmation about the nature of the dispute.

Justin Gleeson SC resigned in October. Picture: Kym Smith

Mr Gleeson later told the senate he believed this was justified. He was concerned that the rule governing access to the Solicitor-General would have made it unlawful for the Governor-General to seek advice if the election had resulted in a hung parliament.

When asked in the senate if he considered it appropriate to speak to the Opposition, Mr Gleeson replied that on that issue “my client was not Senator Brandis. My client was the Commonwealth of Australia, it was the rule of law and it was the Constitution”.

Dr Donaghue, who has previously represented the Commonwealth in the High Court, will become the government’s second law officer - after Senator Brandis - and will argue the government’s case in the High Court and at international tribunals.

Like his predecessor, he will also provide confidential advice to ministers. The withdrawal of the rule at the heart of the dispute with Senator Brandis means access to Dr Donaghue’s office will not be controlled by the Attorney-General.

Dr Donaghue holds a doctorate of philosophy from Oxford University, a bachelor of laws (with first class honours) and a bachelor of arts from the University of Melbourne.

He has been appointed for a five-year term and will take office on January 16. After Mr Gleeson’s early resignation, Thomas Howe QC had been appointed acting Solicitor-General.

Dr Donaghue is the chair of the public law section of the Commercial Bar Association, a member of the constitutional law committee of the Law Council of Australia and a senior fellow of the faculty of law at the University of Melbourne.