Bruce Anthony Chamberlain AM (9 August 1939 – 1 October 2005) was an Australian politician. He was born at

Brighton Brighton ( ) is a seaside resort in the city status in the United Kingdom, city of Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England, south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze Age Britain, Bronze Age, R ...

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

to Peter Henry Chamberlain, a railways paymaster, and Eileen, ''née'' Haddad. After attending De La Salle College in Malvern, he studied at the

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne (colloquially known as Melbourne University) is a public university, public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in the state ...

, receiving a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

and a

Bachelor of Law A Bachelor of Laws (; LLB) is an undergraduate law degree offered in most common law countries as the primary law degree and serves as the first professional qualification for legal practitioners. This degree requires the study of core legal subje ...

. On 6 February 1965 he married Paula Swan, with whom he had four children. In 1965 he became a partner with the solicitors' firm Melville, Orton & Lewis, while also acquiring farming property near

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: * Alexander Hamilton (1755/1757–1804), first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States * ''Hamilton'' (musical), a 2015 Broadway musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda ** ''Hamilton'' (al ...

. He served on Hamilton City Council from 1969 to 1973. In 1973 he was elected to the

Victorian Legislative Assembly The Victorian Legislative Assembly is the states and territories of Australia, state lower house of the bicameral Parliament of Victoria in Australia; the state upper house being the Victorian Legislative Council. Both houses sit at Parliament H ...

as the Liberal member for Dundas. His seat was abolished in 1976 and he won election to the

Victorian Legislative Council The Victorian Legislative Council is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of Victoria, Australia, the lower house being the Victorian Legislative Assembly, Legislative Assembly. Both houses sit at Parliament House, Melbourne, Parliament ...

for

Western Province Western Province or West Province may refer to: *Western Province, Cameroon *Western Province, Rwanda *Western Province (Kenya) *Western Province (Papua New Guinea) *Western Province (Solomon Islands) *Western Province, Sri Lanka *Western Provinc ...

. Appointed Shadow Minister for Conservation and Planning in 1982, he became Shadow Attorney-General in 1985 and Leader of the Opposition in the Upper House in 1986. In 1988 he moved to the portfolio of Local Government and Major Projects, afterwards taking Industry, Technology and Resources (1989–90), Planning and State Growth (1990–91), and Local Government (1990–92). From 1992 to 2002, he served as the 17th President of the Legislative Council of Victorian Parliament. He was appointed a

Member of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an Australian honours and awards system, Australian honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Monarch ...

on Australia Day 2005, but on 1 October that year he died in Armadale, Victoria.

References

1939 births 2005 deaths Liberal Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Victoria Members of the Victorian Legislative Council Presidents of the Victorian Legislative Council Members of the Order of Australia Melbourne Law School alumni Australian solicitors Victoria (state) local councillors 20th-century Australian politicians Politicians from Melbourne 21st-century Australian politicians {{Australia-Liberal-politician-stub