Attorney General's Department, predecessor and successor agencies (GRG1)

An Advocate General for South Australia was provided under a British Order-in-Council of 23 February 1836. This authorised a Council for the proposed province of South Australia, consisting of Governor, Judge, Colonial Secretary, Advocate General and Resident Commissioner (1).

The first holder of the office of 'Advocate General and Crown Solicitor', Charles Mann, was appointed in England on 13 July 1836 (2). After differences of opinion with Governor Hindmarsh he resigned on 13 November 1837. He was succeeded on 12 December 1837 by George Milner Stephen, who was in turn followed on 18 July 1838 by Robert Bernard, and on 1 April 1840 by William Smillie.

From 1836 to 1842 the department was known officially as the Department of the Advocate General. From March 1839 the Advocate General and Crown Solicitor was assisted by a Clerk of the Peace (Arthur Hardy), whose duties were to manage the smaller cases in the Resident Magistrate's Court to prepare the necessary indictments against persons submitted for trial in the Supreme Court, and to
prepare briefs in all cases for trial. (3) The office of Clerk of the Peace was abolished on 31 March 1841, (4) being replaced by that of Assistant Crown Solicitor; Hardy resigned. (5) The first Assistant Crown Solicitor William Bernard (brother of the former Advocate General), was appointed on 1 April 1841.

Smillie recommended that the Assistant Crown Solicitor's duties should be wider than those of the Clerk of the Peace, 'so as to include Civil cases and the business. of the Department generally as well as Criminal business ...' (6) William Bernard was succeeded in the post by J.H. Richinan on 30 August 1843.

About this time the Department became known officially as the Law Officers' Department. (7)

Richman resigned on 13 March 1845 and was not replaced.

In 1850 a combination of circumstances led to the appointment of Charles Mann (the original Advocate General and Crown Solicitor) as Crown Solicitor to work in the same Department as William Smillie, the Advocate General.

It was made clear by the Colonial Secretary, when challenged on the point by Mann, that the Crown Solicitor formed part of the Advocate General's Department: 'His Excellency considers you are jointly Law officers of the Crown, and that you cannot be treated as distinct establishments except so far as distinction is made between yourselves for mutual convenience in the despatch of business. '(8)

When the new Constitution was proclaimed on 24 October 1856 the title 'Attorney General' was introduced in place of 'Advocate General'. The Advocate General of the time, R.D. Hanson, was gazetted as Attorney General. (9) The term 'Law Officers' Department' was still used in 1857, but was replaced in 1858 by 'Attorney General's Department'.

Subsequent changes of departmental title may be summarised as follows: (10)

1858-1875 Attorney General's Department
1876-1901 Attorney General and Law Officers' Department
1902-1915 Attorney General's Department
1916-1917 Attorney General and Crown Solicitor's Department

In 1918 the Attorney General's Department and the Crown Solicitor's Department finally became separate establishments.

A position of Public Solicitor, within the Crown Solicitor's Department, was established in 1926, the appointee being C.A. Sandery, LL.B on 31 March 1926. The Public Solicitor's Office was abolished as from 1 September 1933. (11)

The title of the Crown Solicitor's Department was altered to Crown Law Department by a proclamation published on 27 February 1969. (12) (From this date until 30 July 1970 the permanent head of the Department was styled Solicitor-General. On the latter date, however, Crown Solicitor again became the title of the permanent
head, Crown Solicitor General becoming the title of an official in the Attorney General's Department.)

Between 1975 and 1976 the Attorney General's Department underwent substantial administrative changes. In August 1975 the reporting functions of the Government Reporting Department, the Supreme Court Department, the Local and District Criminal Courts Department, the Labour and Industry Department Industrial Commission branch and the Premier's Department Planning Appeal Board Division were amalgamated with the Attorney General's Department. (Government Gazette 14 August 1975 p.882-883.)

In October 1975 the office of the Parliamentary Counsel was transferred from the Attorney General's Department to the Premier's Department (Government Gazette 9 October 1975 p.1946}, and in the following March the Office of the Inspector of Places of Public Entertainment, the Trade Measurements Branch, the Credit Tribunal, the Companies Branch, the Licensing Branch and the Prices and Consumer Affairs Branch of the Department were transferred to the newly created Department of Public and Consumer Affairs. (Government Gazette 18 March 1976 p.1204.)

In July 1976 the remainder of the Attorney General's Department was amalgamated with the Crown Law Department and the Local and District Criminal Courts Department to form the Department of Legal Services. (Government Gazette 29 July 1976 p.255}. The name of the Department was altered to Law Department in 1978 (Government Gazette 12 January 1978 p.50) and the former Attorney General's Department is now designated the Attorney General's Office within that Department. (August 1980).

Over the years, the Attorney General's portfolio has included a number of other agencies. Some of these include the Coroner's Office, National Pleasure Resorts and Tourist Bureau, Parliamentary Draftsman's Office, Electoral Department, Registrar of Deeds, Commissioner of Forest Lands, Public Solicitor's Office and the Land Agents' Board. As a consequence, some or all of the the extant records of these agencies will be found in GRG 1.

Same agency as GA 158 to GA 166 - different system of archival control.

References:
(1) Ralph Hague, 'History of the Law in South Australia', Vol.l, Ch.l, p.21.
(2) 'S.A. Gaz. & Col.Reg.', 3 June 1837, 1 a.
(3) GRG 24/1/1840/542B
(4) Year books containing statistical and other information prepared for the Colonial Office (GRG 44/79, 1841, p. 114 footnote.)
(5) Hague, Op.Cit. Vol.8, ch.9, ninth page. Hague states that Hardy resigned in April.
(6) GRG 24/1/1841/641.
(7) Year books ...(see note 4) 1843, p.104.
(8) GRG 24/4/23 p.71.
(9) S.A. Govt. Gaz. 25 Oct. 1856, p.970.
(10) Taken from form used in Blue Books (S.A. Parliamentary Paper No.2 for most years).
(11) Report of the Public Service Commissioner for the year ended June 30th 1934 (S.A. Parliamentary Paper No.5 of 1934).
(12) S.A. Govt. Gaz. 27 Feb. 1969, p.577.