David Graham Russell, (born 2 December 1950) is an Australian

barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include taking cases in superior courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, researching law and ...

who specialises in

international tax International taxation is the study or determination of tax on a person or business subject to the tax laws of different countries, or the international aspects of an individual country's tax laws as the case may be. Governments usually limit the ...

law.

Early life and education

David Russell was born in the town of Dalby in

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

as the second son of Charles Wilfred Russell MP and Hilary Maude Russell (née Newton), subsequently H M Russell

OBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

. He attended Jimbour State School from 1956 to 1960, after which he attended Anglican Church Grammar School in

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...

from 1961 to 1967. His university years were spent at the

University of Queensland , mottoeng = By means of knowledge and hard work , established = , endowment = A$224.3 million , budget = A$2.1 billion , type = Public research university , chancellor = Peter Varghese , vice_chancellor = Deborah Terry , city = B ...

in Brisbane, where he received his Bachelor of Arts in 1971, his

Bachelor of Laws Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Chi ...

in 1974, and finally his

Master of Laws A Master of Laws (M.L. or LL.M.; Latin: ' or ') is an advanced postgraduate academic degree, pursued by those either holding an undergraduate academic law degree, a professional law degree, or an undergraduate degree in a related subject. In mos ...

in 1983.

Career

Professional

Russell was admitted as a solicitor in Queensland in 1974, and was called to the

Bar Bar or BAR may refer to: Food and drink * Bar (establishment), selling alcoholic beverages * Candy bar * Chocolate bar Science and technology * Bar (river morphology), a deposit of sediment * Bar (tropical cyclone), a layer of cloud * Bar (u ...

in 1977. He is admitted to practise in Australia,

England and Wales England and Wales () is one of the three legal jurisdictions of the United Kingdom. It covers the constituent countries England and Wales and was formed by the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542. The substantive law of the jurisdiction is Eng ...

(where he is a member of

Lincoln's Inn The Honourable Society of Lincoln's Inn is one of the four Inns of Court in London to which barristers of England and Wales belong and where they are called to the Bar. (The other three are Middle Temple, Inner Temple and Gray's Inn.) Lincoln ...

), the Courts of the Dubai International Financial Centre, New York (as a legal consultant), New Zealand and

Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu Gini), officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea ( tpi, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niugini; ho, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niu Gini), is a country i ...

. He was appointed Queen's Counsel in Australia in 1986. He currently practises in Dubai and London at Outer Temple Chambers, Sydney at Ground Floor Wentworth Chambers and Brisbane at Sir Harry Gibbs Chambers, He has acted for

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has been synonymous with "republic". The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the ...

and State Governments as well as individuals and corporations. Russell was President of the

Taxation Institute of Australia The Tax Institute, formerly the Taxation Institute of Australia, is a member-based association of tax professionals in Australia. Members include accountants, lawyers and academics. The Tax Institute was founded in July 1943 by a Sydney accountant ...

from 1993 to 1995, and of the

Asia Oceania Tax Consultants' Association Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...

from 1996 to 2000. He is a member of the

Law Council of Australia The Law Council of Australia, founded in 1933, is an association of law societies and bar associations from the states and territories of Australia, and the peak body representing the legal profession in Australia. The Law Council represents mo ...

Business Law Section Taxation Committee. He served as a member of the Ministerial Consultative Committee for the Tax Law Improvement Project from 1994 to 1997 and as a member of the Steering Committee for the National Review of Standards for the Tax Profession in 1993 and 1994. From 1991 to 1995 he was a member of the National Tax Liaison Group. David Russell has lectured and written extensively on taxation related topics in Australia and overseas, and served as a member of the Advisory Editorial Board of Australian Tax Practice. He has lectured at the

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD), also known as Sydney University, or informally Sydney Uni, is a public research university located in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and is one of the country's si ...

for the Master of Taxation course, the

for the Master of Laws course and served as an

adjunct professor An adjunct professor is a type of academic appointment in higher education who does not work at the establishment full-time. The terms of this appointment and the job security of the tenure vary in different parts of the world, however the genera ...

of the University of Queensland. He was the Australian correspondent for

Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print books ...

's academic journal '' Trusts & Trustees''. and is now one of its co-editors. He was Chairman of

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Australia, a member of the STEP World Wide Council until 2018. Deputy Chair of STEP WorldWide in 2018 and 2019 and a member of STEP's Professional Standards and Public Policy Committees and the Committee of the STEP Contentious Trusts & Estates Special Interest Group, a co-chair of the United Arab Emirates Chapter of the International Section of the

New York State Bar Association The New York State Bar Association (NYSBA) is a voluntary bar association for the state of New York. The mission of the association is to cultivate the science of jurisprudence; promote reform in the law; facilitate the administration of justice ...

, and a member of the Executive Committee of the Section, an Academician of The International Academy of Estate and Trust Law, a member of The Worshipful Company of Tax Advisers, a member of The Commercial Bar Association, an Honorary Member of The Taxation Institute of Hong Kong, a Fellow Member of the Chartered Institute of Taxation (UK) and a

Freeman of the City of London The Freedom of the City of London started around 1237 as the status of a 'free man' or 'citizen', protected by the charter of the City of London and not under the jurisdiction of a feudal lord. In the Middle Ages, this developed into a freedom or ...

. Russell is listed in the Taxation Category in the

Australian Financial Review ''The Australian Financial Review'' (abbreviated to the ''AFR'') is an Australian business-focused, compact daily newspaper covering the current business and economic affairs of Australia and the world. The newspaper is based in Sydney, New Sou ...

's Best Lawyers review of the Australian Legal Profession in 2008 and all later years. In 2012, he was made a

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

for, amongst other things, "service … to

taxation law Tax law or revenue law is an area of legal study in which public or sanctioned authorities, such as federal, state and municipal governments (as in the case of the US) use a body of rules and procedures (laws) to assess and collect taxes in a ...

and

legal education Legal education is the education of individuals in the principles, practices, and theory of law. It may be undertaken for several reasons, including to provide the knowledge and skills necessary for admission to legal practice in a particular j ...

". In 2014 he was awarded Chartered Tax Adviser of the Year. Since 2017 he has been a member of Legal Week's Private Client Clobal Elite rl=https://privateclientglobalelite.com From 2016 to 2018 he chaired the DIFC's Wealth Management Review, and is Executive Editor of the Laws of the DIFC ef=https://academy.difc.ae/publication/laws-difc-volume-1/

Political

David Russell served continuously on the State Executive of the

Liberal National Party of Queensland The Liberal National Party of Queensland (LNP) is a major political party in Queensland, Australia. It was formed in 2008 by a merger of the Queensland divisions of the Liberal Party and the National Party. At a federal level and in most other ...

and its predecessor party, the

National Party of Australia The National Party of Australia, also known as The Nationals or The Nats, is an List of political parties in Australia, Australian political party. Traditionally representing graziers, farmers, and regional voters generally, it began as the Au ...

— Queensland from 1984 to 2014 apart from six months in 2008–2009. He was President of the National Party in Queensland from 1995 to 1999, Vice-President of the National Party of Australia from 1990 to 1995, and 1999 to 2005, and President of the National Party of Australia from 2005 to 2006. He played a significant part in the merger of the National and Liberal Parties in Queensland in 2008, and was Vice-President of the

Liberal Party of Australia The Liberal Party of Australia is a centre-right political party in Australia, one of the two major parties in Australian politics, along with the centre-left Australian Labor Party. It was founded in 1944 as the successor to the United Au ...

from 2009 to 2011.

Other

Outside the law, David Russell maintains his interest in his family's rural business, Russell Pastoral Company, and its flagship property, ''

Jimbour Station Jimbour is a heritage-listed homestead on one of the earliest stations established on the Darling Downs, Queensland, Australia, It is important in demonstrating the pattern of early European exploration and pastoral settlement in Queensland, ...

'' in Jimbour, Queensland. He served as President of the Australia-Japan Society in Queensland from 1997 to 2002, and as inaugural President of the National Federation of Australia Japan Societies from 2001 to 2005. In 2010 he was awarded the

Order of the Rising Sun The is a Japanese order, established in 1875 by Emperor Meiji. The Order was the first national decoration awarded by the Japanese government, created on 10 April 1875 by decree of the Council of State. The badge features rays of sunlight ...

with Gold Rays and Neck Ribbon for services to

Australia–Japan relations Bilateral relations exist between Australia and Japan. The relationships are generally warm and have since continued to grow strong over the years, both nations being considerably close, substantial and driven by mutual interests, with both ...

Personal

David Russell married Deborah Ann Campbell on 19 September 1975. Deborah was the daughter of The Hon. Sir Walter Benjamin Campbell AC QC and Georgina Margaret Campbell (née Pearce). They have one son, Andrew Russell.

Publications

* ''Towards greater fairness in taxation: A Model Taxpayer Charter'' (2013) – with Michael Cadesky & Ian Hayes

Notes

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Russell, David 1950 births Australian Anglicans Australian barristers Australian pastoralists Australian King's Counsel Living people Members of the Order of Australia People from Brisbane Recipients of the Order of the Rising Sun, 3rd class Royal Australian Air Force officers University of Queensland alumni People from Dalby, Queensland