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Richard Edward O'Connor (4 August 1851 – 18 November 1912) was an Australian politician and judge. A barrister and later Queen's Counsel, O'Connor was active in the campaign for Australian Federation and was a close associate of Edmund Barton. He served as New South Wales Minister for Justice in the Dibbs ministry from 1891 to 1893 while a member of the New South Wales Legislative Council (1888–98), and was a member of the constitutional committee at the Federal Convention that drafted the Australian Constitution. A member of the first federal ministry as Vice-President of the Executive Council, O'Connor led the government in the Senate from 1901 to 1903, playing a key role in the development of that chamber's role in Australian politics. O'Connor resigned from Parliament in 1903 to become one of the inaugural justices of the High Court of Australia, which he had helped to create. He had a reputation as a liberal and independent-minded justice who occasionally voted with the progressives on industrial matters after 1906. He was also the first president of the Commonwealth Court of Conciliation and Arbitration from 1905 to 1907, and he continued to serve on the High Court until his early death in 1912. ==Early life== Richard Edward O'Connor was born in the Sydney suburb of Glebe on 4 August 1851. His mother was Mary Anne, ''née'' Harnett, while his father was Richard, an Irish-born Catholic who at that time served as librarian to the New South Wales Legislative Council, and would later become Clerk of the Legislative Assembly, chairing its first meeting.〔, and also counted the prominent Tasmanian pioneer Roderic O'Connor among their relations. Richard Edward, sometimes known as Dick, attended St Mary's College, a Benedictine school in Lyndhurst, from 1861 to 1866 before matriculating at Sydney Grammar School in 1867 and studying at the University of Sydney. From a young age his closest friend was Edmund Barton, in whose Cabinet O'Connor would later serve.〔 He won the Wentworth medal for the best English essay in 1870, and received a Bachelor of Arts in 1871 and a Master of Arts in 1873. While studying for his master's degree from 1871 to 1874, O'Connor worked as a clerk in the New South Wales Legislative Council, after which he was articled with Frederick Darley (afterwards Chief Justice), remaining solvent with contributions to the ''Freeman's Journal'', the ''Echo'' and the ''Evening News''.〔 He was admitted to the bar on 15 June 1876.〔 An enthusiastic debater, he was a regular participant at the Sydney School of Arts Debating Club, encountering future political foes and personal friends William McMillan and George Reid.〔 Establishing his own law practice, he served as Crown Prosecutor for the northern district. He married Sarah Jane Hensleigh on 30 October 1879 at St Joseph's Catholic Church in Delegate on the border between New South Wales and Victoria (Sarah came from Bendock).〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Richard O'Connor (politician)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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