John Stephen (1771–1833) was appointed solicitor-general and judge of the

Supreme Court of New South Wales The Supreme Court of New South Wales is the highest state court of the Australian States and territories of Australia, State of New South Wales. It has unlimited jurisdiction within the state in civil law (common law), civil matters, and hears ...

in the

Colony of New South Wales The Colony of New South Wales was a colony of the British Empire from 1788 to 1901, when it became a State of the Commonwealth of Australia. At its greatest extent, the colony of New South Wales included the present-day Australian states of New ...

Career

Stephen built up a legal practice as an attorney and barrister in

Basseterre Basseterre (; Saint Kitts Creole: ''Basterre'') is the Capital (political), capital and largest city of Saint Kitts and Nevis with an estimated population of 14,000 in 2018. Geographically, the Basseterre port is located at , on the south-wester ...

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. Stephen returned to England, where he lost on some bad investments, so then returned to Basseterre, but was unable to re-establish his previously profitable practice. His nephew James Stephen, who was permanent under-secretary of state for the colonies, recommended Stephen for appointment in the Colony of New South Wales. He was appointed the first

Solicitor General for New South Wales Solicitor General for New South Wales, known informally as the Solicitor General, is one of the Law Officers of the Crown, and the deputy of the Attorney General of New South Wales, Attorney General. They can exercise the powers of the Attorney ...

in 1824, serving until August 1825 when he was appointed an additional judge of the

. Stephen resigned from the Supreme Court in December 1932 due to ill health and died on 21 December 1833, at Clareville, described as his country house, in what is now Belfield.

Family

Stephen was the son of James Stephen, from

Aberdeen, Scotland Aberdeen ( ; ; ) is a port city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous Scottish city. Historically, Aberdeen was within the historic county of Aberdeenshire, but is now separate from the council area of Aberdeenshire. Aberd ...

, and Sibella Milner, of Poole, Dorsetshire. Stephen and his wife Mary Anne, née Pasmore, had six boys, and three girls. The

Stephen family The Stephen family is a prominent legal dynasty in Australia that has produced a number of judges and jurists. Members include: * John Stephen (1771–1833), commissioner of the Courts of Requests in New South Wales, solicitor-general, judge of the ...

became a prominent legal dynasty in Australia. Of his sons, Sir Alfred served as

Chief Justice of New South Wales The Chief Justice of New South Wales is the senior judge of the Supreme Court of New South Wales and the highest-ranking judicial officer in the Australian state of New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States a ...

, while Sidney served on the

Supreme Court of New Zealand The Supreme Court of New Zealand () is the highest court and the court of last resort of New Zealand. It formally came into being on 1 January 2004 and sat for the first time on 1 July 2004. It replaced the right of appeal to the Judicial Co ...

. His nephew

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served on the

Supreme Court of Victoria The Supreme Court of Victoria is the highest court in the Australian state of Victoria. Founded in 1852, it is a superior court of common law and equity, with unlimited and inherent jurisdiction within the state. The Supreme Court compri ...

, while his grandson, Sir Henry and great-grandson

Edward Edward is an English male name. It is derived from the Anglo-Saxon name ''Ēadweard'', composed of the elements '' ēad'' "wealth, fortunate; prosperous" and '' weard'' "guardian, protector”. History The name Edward was very popular in Anglo-S ...

served on the Supreme Court of New South Wales.

References

External links

*
John Stephen
at

FamilySearch FamilySearch is a nonprofit organization and website offering genealogical records, education, and software. It is operated by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and is part of the Church's Family History Department (FHD). The Fami ...

Colonial Secretary's papers 1822-1877

State Library of Queensland State Library of Queensland (State Library) is the state public reference and research library of Queensland, Australia, operated by the Government of Queensland, state government. The Library is governed by the Library Board of Queensland, whi ...

- includes digitised correspondence, petitions and letters written by Stephen to the

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Stephen, John 1771 births 1833 deaths Judges of the Supreme Court of New South Wales English emigrants to colonial Australia People from Poole English people of Scottish descent Settlers of New South Wales

Career

Family

See also

References

External links