Philip Martin Bailhache was born in Jersey in 1946 and was educated at Charterhouse School. He read Law at Oxford University, was admitted to the English Bar in 1968 and the Jersey Bar in 1969. First elected to the States of Jersey as Deputy of Grouville in 1972, he resigned his seat in 1975 to become a Crown Officer when appointed Solicitor-General. He became Attorney-General in 1986. On 26 June 1989 he became one of the first two Queen's Counsel learned in the law of Jersey.
In 1994 he became Deputy Bailiff, and he became Bailiff in 1995 and received his knighthood in 1996.
In 2006 he was awarded l'Ordre de la Pléiade (Grand Officier class) by l'Assemblée Parlementaire de la Francophonie. He is an honorary fellow of Pembroke College, Oxford (elected 1995) and an Honorary Bencher of the Middle Temple.
He retired from the office of Bailiff at the end of June 2009. In 2011 he was again elected to the States as a Senator, and was re-elected at the 2014 general election. He served in the new role of Minister for Foreign Affairs and was reappointed to this position after the 2014 election.
He is chairman of the governing body of the Institute of Law, Jersey, an educational charity established in 2008 to conduct research and offer teaching about the laws of the Channel Islands. Sir Philip is an active member of the Commonwealth Magistrates and Judges' Association and became the Executive Vice-President in September 2009, following the retirement of Sir Henry Brooke.
He lives in Grouville with his second wife Linda and two children, Alice and Edward. His brother, William Bailhache, was sworn in as Bailiff in 2015.
| Predecessor | Successor | |
| Sir Peter Crill 1986-1995 |
Sir Philip Bailhache 1995-2009 |
Sir Michael Birt 2009-2015 |
