Kenneth Bailey (lawyer)

Sir Kenneth Hamilton Bailey CBE QC (3 November 1898 – 3 May 1972) was a senior Australian public servant and lawyer, best known for his time as Secretary of the Attorney-General's Department between 1946 and 1964.

Sir Kenneth Bailey CBE QC
Secretary of the Attorney-General's Department
In office 9 May 1946 – 2 February 1964
Preceded by	Sir George Knowles
Succeeded by	Ted Hook
Personal details
Born	Kenneth Hamilton Bailey (1898-11-03)3 November 1898 Canterbury, Victoria, Australia
Died	3 May 1972(1972-05-03) (aged 73) Canberra, Australia
Spouse	Editha Olga Bailey ​ (m. 1925)​
Children	Peter Bailey
Alma mater	University of Melbourne Corpus Christi College, Oxford
Occupation	Public servant, lawyer

Life and career

Kenneth Bailey was born on 3 November 1898 in Canterbury, Victoria.^[1] He was dux of his high school, Wesley College, in 1916.^[2] He was Victoria's Rhodes Scholar for 1918, a feat later emulated by his son. Both attended Corpus Christi College, Oxford.^[3]

In 1927, Bailey was appointed professor of jurisprudence at the University of Melbourne; the following year becoming the first Australia-born dean of the law school.^[4]

Between 1946 and 1964, Bailey was Solicitor-General of Australia and Secretary of the Attorney-General's Department.^[1] During his time as Solicitor-General, Bailey officially opened the Australian Police College in Barton on 25 October 1960.^[5]

Bailey died on 3 May 1972 in Canberra and was cremated. His son, Peter Hamilton Bailey, was also a public servant, as well as a human rights academic.^[1]

Awards and honours

Bailey was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire in June 1953 whilst Permanent Head of the Attorney-General's Department.^[6] He was knighted in 1958.^[7]

In 1972, the University of Melbourne awarded Bailey an honorary doctorate at a special conferring ceremony at Canberra Hospital.^[2] The degree was conferred to recognize his distinguished service to the university.^[8]

References

1. Richardson, Jack E., "Bailey, Sir Kenneth Hamilton (1898–1972)", Australian Dictionary of Biography, Australian National University, archived from the original on 1 March 2014
2. Melbourne Law School, Kenneth Bailey 1928-1936, 1938-1942, University of Melbourne, archived from the original on 2 January 2015
3. Father and Son Rhodes Scholars, The Age, 7 December 1949.
4. "BAILEY Kenneth Hamilton", Legal Opinions Author Biographies, Australian Government
5. Annual Report 2012–13 (PDF), Australian Institute of Police Management, 2013, p. 25, archived (PDF) from the original on 4 February 2014
6. "Search Australian Honours: BAILEY, Kenneth Hamilton, Commander of the Order of the British Empire", itsanhonour.gov.au, Australian Government, archived from the original on 15 January 2015
7. "Search Australian Honours: BAILEY, Kenneth Hamilton, Knight Bachelor", itsanhonour.gov.au, Australian Government, archived from the original on 26 October 2021
8. "Jurist honoured". The Canberra Times. 18 March 1972. p. 1.

Government offices
Preceded by George Knowles	Secretary of the Attorney-General's Department 1946 – 1964	Succeeded by Ted Hook
Diplomatic posts
Preceded by David Hay	Australian High Commissioner to Canada 1964 – 1969	Succeeded by David McNicoll