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Chief Justice Bryant was appointed Chief Justice of the Family Court in 2004.
Born in Perth, Chief Justice Bryant is a third-generation lawyer who graduated with a Bachelor of Laws from Melbourne University and with a Master of Laws from Monash University.
Prior to attending Monash, Chief Justice Bryant was admitted as a legal practitioner in Victoria in 1970. She returned to Perth in 1977 to join law firm Phillips Fox where she worked as a solicitor and counsel specialising in family law until 1990. She was also a director of Australian Airlines from 1984-1989.
Between 1990 and 2000, Chief Justice Bryant practised at the Victorian Bar where she specialised in family law and de facto property disputes. Through her family law practice, she also handled bankruptcy, human rights and equal opportunity matters. In 1997, she was appointed a Queen’s Counsel.
Chief Justice Bryant is widely recognised for the important role she played in establishing the Federal Magistrates Court, having “guided the emergence and growth” of the Court as inaugural Chief Federal Magistrate from 2000-2004.
When appointed Chief Justice of the Family Court, she became the second woman in Australia’s history to head a federal court.
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