New South Wales’ first female Attorney General Gabrielle Upton today announced the appointment of the state’s first female Crown Solicitor, Lea Armstrong.
The Crown Solicitor’s office serves as the cornerstone of public law in the state and is the single biggest provider of legal services to the NSW government. The acclaimed position of Crown Solicitor has always been held by men, until today.
The historic appointment of a woman to one of the state’s top legal roles comes soon after two similarly historic moments for women in NSW: The appointment of Gabrielle Upton as the state’s first ever female Attorney General and the appointment of Gladys Berejiklian as the first female state Treasurer.
Upton seems to want to continue this trend with today’s announcement of Armstrong’s promotion. Armstrong has worked as an attorney in the Crown Solicitor’s office for 20 years and is therefore well placed to take on the top job. Prior to joining the Crown Solicitor’s office in 1995, Armstrong worked in a top commercial law firm and has a total of 23 years experience as a solicitor. She also spent a year working as an associate under former High Court Judge Michael McHugh.
Within the Crown Solicitor’s office, she ascended the ranks to be appointed Assistant Crown Solicitor and then last year became the first woman to be appointed to the role of General Counsel within the office.
Armstrong has a Bachelor of Arts (Honours), and a Bachelor of Laws from the Australian National University and a Masters of Law from the University of New South Wales.
Armstrong said she thinks it is crucial for women lawyers to gain more visibility in Australian public law and public life.
“I am extremely honoured to be the first female Crown Solicitor in NSW, particularly as I am following in the footsteps of the state’s first female Attorney General and Treasurer,” she said.
“I think it is incredibly important for female lawyers and women in government to have positive role models who hold senior positions in the public service.
“There is no doubt it will be a huge challenge, but an exciting and rewarding one and I look forward to working broadly across the legal and government sectors over the coming months.”
Shortly after his re-election NSW Premier Mike Baird signaled that he hoped the historic female appointments to top cabinet positions would be symbolic of the government’s approach to its second term – we hope Armstrong’s appointment may be indicative of this continued commitment.
“I am particularly proud that Gladys Berejiklian and Gabrielle Upton will become the first women in NSW history to hold the positions of Treasurer and Attorney General,” the Premier said when announcing his cabinet.
Upton also congratulated Armstrong on her appointment and drew attention to her becoming the first woman in the top legal job.
“Ms Armstrong is an outstanding solicitor with 23 years’ experience in government and commercial law, including 18 years at the NSW crown solicitor’s office,” she said.
“Last year she became NSW Treasury’s first General Counsel and today she has achieved another milestone – becoming the first woman in the state to be appointed as a Crown Solicitor.”
As Crown Solicitor, Armstrong will continue working on major projects for the NSW government, notably on the development and execution of the government’s new electricity network – or ‘poles and wires’ – legislation.
Armstrong will assume the role of July 13, 2015, replacing former Crown Solicitor Ian Knight, who retired in February after 20 years in the office.