Sir Joseph George Long Innes (16 October 1834 – 28 October 1896), was a judge and politician in colonial Australia, and

Attorney General of New South Wales The Attorney General of New South Wales, in formal contexts also Attorney-General or Attorney General for New South Wales and usually known simply as the Attorney General, is a minister in the Government of New South Wales who has responsibil ...

from 1873 to 1875. Innes was born in

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

the eldest son of Major Joseph Long Innes (superintendent of police) and his wife Elizabeth Anne, the daughter of Thomas Reibey and

Mary Reibey Mary Reibey née ''Haydock'' (12 May 177730 May 1855) was an English-born merchant, shipowner and trader who was transported to Australia as a convict. After gaining her freedom, she was viewed by her contemporaries as a community role model an ...

. Innes was educated at

William Timothy Cape William Timothy Cape (25 October 1806 – 4 June 1863) was an early school master in Sydney, Australia; several of the Premiers of New South Wales attended his school. Cape was born at Walworth, Surrey, England, the son of William Cape, a Lon ...

's school and at

the King's School, Parramatta The King's School is an Education in Australia#Non-government schools, independent Anglican Church of Australia, Anglican, Pre-school education, early learning, primary school, primary and secondary school, secondary day and boarding school, boardi ...

. He then went to England, and entered as a student at Lincoln's Inn in November 1856; and, after winning a certificate of honour in May 1859, he was called to the bar in November of the same year. Having returned to Australia, Innes was admitted to the New South Wales bar in 1862, and practised till 1865, when he was appointed a district judge 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_ ...

. This position he resigned in 1869, and returned to practise his profession in Sydney. He also went into politics, and was returned to the

New South Wales Legislative Assembly The New South Wales Legislative Assembly is the lower of the two houses of the Parliament of New South Wales, an Australian state. The upper house is the New South Wales Legislative Council. Both the Assembly and Council sit at Parliament Ho ...

for

Mudgee Mudgee is a town in the Central West (New South Wales), Central West of New South Wales, Australia. It is in the broad fertile Cudgegong River valley north-west of Sydney and is the largest town in the Mid-Western Regional Council Local gover ...

on 7 March 1872, in May of which year he became Solicitor General in the first Parkes ministry. He resigned as the member for Mudgee to accept an appointment to the Legislative Council, appointed Representative of the Government in the Legislative Council from taking his seat on 9 September 1873. In November he was appointed Attorney General in succession to Edward Butler, without a seat in Cabinet, holding office until the break-up of the Parkes Ministry in February 1875. In the previous year he had accompanied Sir Hercules Robinson, the then Governor of New South Wales, on his special mission to Fiji, in connection with the annexation of the island to the British Crown, and was knighted in January 1875 in recognition of his legal services on that occasion. Sir George acted as Chairman of Committees in the Legislative Council till August 1880, when he succeeded

Francis Suttor Sir Francis Bathurst Suttor (30 April 1839 – 4 April 1915) was an Australian pastoralist, politician, and sheep and horse breeder. Early life Suttor was born in Bathurst, New South Wales, the son of pastoralist William Henry Suttor and his wi ...

Minister of Justice A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a v ...

in the third Parkes ministry, resigning from the ministry and the Legislative Council in October 1881, on being appointed a Judge of the Supreme Court of New South Wales. In 1865 Innes married Emily Janet Smith, daughter of John Smith of Llanarth,

Bathurst, New South Wales Bathurst () is a city in the Central Tablelands of New South Wales, Australia. Bathurst is about 200 kilometres (120 mi) west-northwest of Sydney and is the seat of the Bathurst Regional Council. Bathurst is the oldest inland settlement in ...

. Sir George died on in England, survived by his wife, five sons and a daughter. One of his sons,

Reginald Reginald is a masculine given name in the English language. Etymology and history The meaning of Reginald is “King". The name is derived from the Latin ''Reginaldus'', which has been influenced by the Latin word ''regina'', meaning "queen". Th ...

, was also appointed to the Supreme Court.

References

External link

Colonial Secretary's papers 1822-1877

State Library of Queensland The State Library of Queensland is the main reference and research library provided to the people of the State of Queensland, Australia, by the state government. Its legislative basis is provided by the Queensland Libraries Act 1988. It contai ...

- includes digitised letters written by Innes to the

Colonial Secretary of New South Wales Colonial or The Colonial may refer to: * Colonial, of, relating to, or characteristic of a colony or colony (biology) Architecture * American colonial architecture * French Colonial * Spanish Colonial architecture Automobiles * Colonial (1920 ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Innes, Joseph George 1834 births 1896 deaths Members of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly Members of the New South Wales Legislative Council 19th-century Australian politicians Attorneys General of the Colony of New South Wales Solicitors General for New South Wales Judges of the Supreme Court of New South Wales Colony of New South Wales judges 19th-century Australian judges Chairman of Committees of the New South Wales Legislative Council