Born in
Mosman Park, Western Australia, Burt's great-grandfather,
Sir Archibald Burt, was Chief Justice of Western Australia from 1861 to 1879, while his grandfather,
Septimus Burt, was
Attorney-General and
Agent-General when
responsible government was granted to Western Australia in December 1890. Archibald Burt had been a slaveholder in the West Indies. Burt was educated at
Guildford Grammar School and later studied law at the
University of Western Australia. During the
Second World War he served in the
Royal Australian Navy and the
Royal Australian Air Force. After being admitted to the Bar in 1941, Burt gained his skills as a
Queen's Counsel in 1959, and in 1961 founded the independent
Bar in
Western Australia. With others, he established Bar Chambers in 1962. He was appointed a judge of the
Supreme Court of Western Australia in 1969, a position he held until 1977 when he was promoted to
Chief Justice of Western Australia. He retired in 1988. Burt was afforded a
state funeral on his death in 2004. He is buried at
Karrakatta Cemetery. The Francis Burt Chambers located in
Allendale Square,
Perth, and the Francis Burt Law Education Centre and Museum in
Stirling Gardens are both named in his honour. ==References==