ABSTRACT

The contents of any advice by a Solicitor-General to the Governor-General, to a State Governor or to the Administrator of the Northern Territory will only very rarely, if ever, be made public. Similarly, it will be very unusual for even the fact that such advice has been provided to appear anywhere on the public record. Nevertheless, the provision of advice to the holders of vice regal offices has often been one of the roles of Solicitors-General and various aspects of this role are discussed in this chapter. The argument that the Governor is entitled to the advice of a Solicitor-General has perhaps less force in relation to advice sought concerning the exercise of statutory or prerogative powers by a Governor, although it remains true that a Governor may not necessarily wish the Premier or the Attorney-General to know that he or she is effectively questioning their advice and seeking another opinion.