A former NSW judicial officer and an experienced Sydney barrister have been appointed special magistrates for the ACT, boosting the resources of the territory's busiest court.
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Attorney-General Shane Rattenbury announced on Friday that he had appointed Paula Russell and Thomas Jones to the ACT Magistrates Court in temporary capacities.
Ms Russell was a NSW judicial officer for more than 19 years, serving as a specialist children's court magistrate and deputy state coroner during that time.
Her appointment as an ACT special magistrate will run until the end of June 2023.
Mr Jones has been a barrister since 2006, specialising in criminal law, proceeds of crime matters, coronial inquests, common law, and building and construction disputes.
He has been made a special magistrate until the end of September 2024.
Mr Rattenbury said special magistrates were "critical" to the court's operations.
"They allow the chief magistrate more listing flexibility as they can be deployed to cover leave, conflicts or fluctuations in workload," he said.
Chief Magistrate Lorraine Walker welcomed the additional resources, saying the new appointees would help address "surge or unexpected requirements".
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"We look forward to working creatively with the ACT government to ensure that the court, and the professional services that work with it, are well resourced to improve our service to the community and in particular to address avoidable delay and extended pre-conviction incarceration," she said.
The ACT government has also extended the appointments of existing special magistrates Margaret Hunter and Anthony Hopkins.
Ms Hunter's term is now due to end in mid-February 2023, by which time she will have been on the bench for nearly nine years.
Dr Hopkins, who has presided over the Galambany Court for Indigenous offenders since last year, has been reappointed through to the end of September 2024.
Friday's announcements are the latest in a series of recent personnel changes at the ACT courts.
A former special magistrate, Jane Campbell, was sworn in as a permanent member of the judiciary last month alongside Ken Archer, who is the territory's first dedicated coroner.
Chief Justice Lucy McCallum and Justice Geoffrey Kennett also took up roles as ACT Supreme Court judges in March, replacing the territory's two most experienced judges following their retirements.
Justice Michael Elkaim will also retire in December, when he is to be replaced as a judge by NSW deputy senior crown prosecutor Belinda Baker.
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