Thomas O'Sullivan QC (13 December 1856 – 22 February 1953) was a

barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdiction (area), jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include arguing cases in courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, jurisprud ...

, Justice of the Supreme Court of Queensland, and member of both the

Queensland Legislative Council Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, ...

and

Queensland Legislative Assembly The Legislative Assembly of Queensland is the sole chamber of the unicameral Parliament of Queensland established under the Constitution of Queensland. Elections are held every four years and are done by full preferential voting. The Assembly h ...

Early years

O'Sullivan was born at

Ipswich, Queensland Ipswich () is an urban centre within the City of Ipswich in South East Queensland, Australia. Situated on the Bremer River (Queensland), Bremer River, it is approximately 40 km (25 mi) west of the Brisbane central business district. Ipswich is ...

, to Patrick O'Sullivan, himself a future member of the

Queensland Parliament The Parliament of Queensland is the unicameral legislative body of the Australian state of Queensland. As provided under the Constitution of Queensland, the Parliament consists of the King, represented by the Governor of Queensland, and the ...

, and his wife, Mary (née Real). He was educated at the local state school and at St. Mary's College, Ipswich. In 1873, O'Sullivan began his legal career in Ipswich, being employed by, and later articled to, Charles Frederick Chubb, Solicitor. Two years later he moved to

Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...

, being articled to Robert Little, but returned to Ipswich to look after his brother's legal business after his death in 1877. He was admitted as a

solicitor A solicitor is a lawyer who traditionally deals with most of the legal matters in some jurisdictions. A person must have legally defined qualifications, which vary from one jurisdiction to another, to be described as a solicitor and enabled to p ...

in September, 1878.O'Sullivan, Thomas (1856–1953)
– ''

Australian Dictionary of Biography The ''Australian Dictionary of Biography'' (ADB or AuDB) is a national co-operative enterprise founded and maintained by the Australian National University (ANU) to produce authoritative biographical articles on eminent people in Australia's ...

''. Retrieved 23 March 2015.

Legal career

Moving back to Brisbane in 1886, O'Sullivan went into partnership with Charles Bedell Lilley, son of Sir Charles Lilley, and after the partnership finished O'Sullivan continued on with the business while also studying for the Bar and was admitted in 1900. In 1911, he was made a KC. In 1915, O'Sullivan was appointed as a District Court judge, and made chairman of the Central Sugar Cane Prices Board. In 1922, he was made a judge in the

Supreme Court of Queensland The Supreme Court of Queensland is the highest court in the Australian State of Queensland. It was formerly the Brisbane Supreme Court, in the colony of Queensland. The original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court allows its trial division to ...

, serving until his retirement in 1926. During this time he was a member of the Court of Industrial Arbitration and chairman of the Land Appeal Court.

Political career

O'Sullivan contested the electorate of

Stanley Stanley may refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Stanley'' (1972 film), an American horror film * ''Stanley'' (1984 film), an Australian comedy * ''Stanley'' (1999 film), an animated short * ''Stanley'' (1956 TV series) ...

, the seat his father had represented, at the 1899 election, losing to the Ministerialist candidate, Frederick Lord. Within a week of having become

premier Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of govern ...

in 1903, Arthur Morgan appointed O'Sullivan to the Queensland Legislative Council. During his term he was the Government Representative in the Legislative Council. He resigned from the Council in January, 1906 to contest the seat of

Warwick Warwick ( ) is a market town, civil parish and the county town of Warwickshire in the Warwick District in England, adjacent to the River Avon, Warwickshire, River Avon. It is south of Coventry, and south-east of Birmingham. It is adjoined wit ...

in a

by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, or a bypoll in India, is an election used to fill an office that has become vacant between general elections. A vacancy may arise as a result of an incumben ...

to replace Arthur Morgan, who had resigned to join the Legislative Council. This time he was successful, winning by 449 votes to 435 against his competitor, George Barnes. He was appointed Secretary for Public Works in January 1906, serving until February 1907 when he was also given role of Agriculture, serving until November 1907. In the 1908 election, O'Sullivan was once again up against Barnes, this time the latter was successful, winning by 1297 votes to 1206. Within two weeks of losing his seat, O'Sullivan was reappointed to the Legislative Council, the Premier this time being

William Kidston William Kidston (17 August 1849 – 25 October 1919) was an Australian bookseller, politician and Premier of Queensland, from January 1906 to November 1907 and again from February 1908 to February 1911. Early life William Kidston was born in F ...

. He immediately returned to the role of Secretary for Agriculture in 1908, and then in October of that year he was made

Attorney-General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general (: attorneys general) or attorney-general (AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have executive responsibility for law enf ...

and remained in the position until June, 1915. He resigned in December 1915 to take up his appointment to the District Courts.

Personal life

On 20 January 1886, O'Sullivan married Rosanna Mellin (d. 1937) at St Mary's Cathedral in Sydney. He had been a President of the Queensland Irish Association and the Johnsonian Club and was a member of the Constitutional Club. Survived by three sons and two daughters, O'Sullivan died at his home in February, 1953. He was accorded a

state funeral A state funeral is a public funeral ceremony, observing the strict rules of protocol, held to honour people of national significance. State funerals usually include much pomp and ceremony as well as religious overtones and distinctive elements o ...

, which was held at St Stephen's Cathedral and proceeded to the

Toowong Cemetery Toowong Cemetery is a heritage-listed cemetery on the corner of Frederick Street and Mt Coot-tha Road, Toowong, City of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It was established in 1866 and formally opened in 1875. It is Queensland, Queensland's lar ...

.O'Sullivan Thomas
— Brisbane City Council Grave Location Search. Retrieved 23 March 2015.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:OSullivan, Thomas 1856 births 1953 deaths Members of the Queensland Legislative Assembly Members of the Queensland Legislative Council Judges of the Supreme Court of Queensland Australian King's Counsel Burials at Toowong Cemetery Australian people of Irish descent Colony of Queensland people