Leonard James King (1 May 1925 – 23 June 2011) was an Australian politician, lawyer and judge.

Early life

King matriculated from St Joseph's Memorial School at age 14, then worked at

Shell Company A shell corporation is a company or corporation that exists only on paper and has no office and no employees, but may have a bank account or may hold passive investments or be the registered owner of assets, such as intellectual property, or s ...

as a clerk. He served in the

Royal Australian Air Force "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = RAAF Anniversary Commemoration ...

in Australia and

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu Hiri Motu, also known as Police Motu, Pidgin Motu, or just Hiri, is a language of Papua New Guinea, which is spoken in surrounding areas of Port Moresby (Capital of Papua New Guinea). It is a simplified version of ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, and used the

Commonwealth Reconstruction Training Scheme Commonwealth Reconstruction Training Scheme (CRTS) was an Australian government scheme started during World War II to offer vocational or academic training to both men and women who had served in the Australian Defence Force. Its purpose was to aid ...

to commence study for his law degree.

Legal career

King was admitted to practice as a barrister and solicitor in December 1950, and appointed

Queen's Counsel In the United Kingdom and in some Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth countries, a King's Counsel (Post-nominal letters, post-nominal initials KC) during the reign of a king, or Queen's Counsel (post-nominal initials QC) during the reign of ...

in 1967.

Political career

King was a Labor Party member of the

South Australian House of Assembly The House of Assembly, or lower house, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of South Australia. The other is the Legislative Council. It sits in Parliament House in the state capital, Adelaide. Overview The House of Assembly was creat ...

from 1970 to 1975, representing the eastern suburbs

electoral district of Coles Coles was an electoral district of the House of Assembly in the Australian state of South Australia from 1970 to 2002. The district was based in the eastern suburbs of Adelaide. Coles was first contested at the 1970 election and was won by Labo ...

. He was appointed to various ministerial portfolios during his career, including Aboriginal Affairs, Social Welfare, Community Welfare, and Prices & Consumer Affairs. In late 20th century South Australian history, he is one of the few newly-elected members of Parliament that have been appointed straight to a Cabinet position without any previous parliamentary experience. He was the 40th

Attorney-General of South Australia The attorney-general of South Australia is the Cabinet minister in the Government of South Australia who is responsible for that state's system of law and justice. The attorney-general must be a qualified legal practitioner, although this wa ...

during the reformist

Don Dunstan Donald Allan Dunstan (21 September 1926 – 6 February 1999) was an Australian politician who served as the 35th premier of South Australia from 1967 to 1968, and again from 1970 to 1979. He was a member of the House of Assembly (MHA) for th ...

government, from 1970 until 1975.

Judicial career

King was a

puisne justice A puisne judge or puisne justice (; from french: puisné or ; , 'since, later' + , 'born', i.e. 'junior') is a dated term for an ordinary judge or a judge of lesser rank of a particular court. Use The term is used almost exclusively in common law ...

of the

Supreme Court of South Australia The Supreme Court of South Australia is the superior court of the Australian state of South Australia. The Supreme Court is the highest South Australian court in the Australian court hierarchy. It has unlimited jurisdiction within the state in ...

from 20 June 1975 until his promotion to Chief Justice on 30 October 1978. He retired on 28 April 1995. King worked until his death as a part-time mediator and sometimes as an Acting Justice of the Supreme Court of South Australia.

Recognition

King was appointed a

Companion 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 ...

(AC) in the 1987 Queen's Birthday Honours "For service to the South Australian Parliament, Government and to the law."1987 Queen's Birthday Honours
archived from www.gg.gov.au

Legacy

The South Australian Electoral district of King was created before the 2018 state election and named after Len King. It covers the northern foothills of the

Mount Lofty Ranges The Mount Lofty Ranges are a range of mountains in the Australian state of South Australia which for a small part of its length borders the east of Adelaide. The part of the range in the vicinity of Adelaide is called the Adelaide Hills and ...

including Bibaringa, Yattalunga, Uleybury,

One Tree Hill One Tree Hill may refer to: * "One Tree Hill" (song), a 1987 song by U2 referencing One Tree Hill, New Zealand volcanic peak * ''One Tree Hill'' (TV series), a 2003–2012 American drama series named for the U2 song ** ''One Tree Hill'' (soundtr ...

Gould Creek Gould Creek is an outer northeastern rural suburb of Adelaide, South Australia. Gould Creek is located in the City of Tea Tree Gully and City of Playford local government areas, and is adjacent to Greenwith, Salisbury Heights and Hillbank, a ...

Hillbank Hillbank is a residential suburb of the City of Playford in the northern suburbs of Adelaide, South Australia. It contains such features as Jo Gapper Regional Park, Hillbank Childcare Centre, Elizabeth Pistol Club and an On The Run petrol station ...

, Salisbury Park, Salisbury Heights, Greenwith, Golden Grove and part of Salisbury East

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:King, Len 1925 births 2011 deaths Australian King's Counsel Chief Justices of South Australia Companions of the Order of Australia Members of the South Australian House of Assembly Adelaide Law School alumni Attorneys-General of South Australia Judges of the Supreme Court of South Australia 20th-century Australian judges Royal Australian Air Force personnel of World War II Australian Labor Party members of the Parliament of South Australia