Lars Fause | |
|---|---|
 Fause in 2010 | |
| Governor of Svalbard | |
| Assumed office 24 June 2021 | |
| Preceded by | Kjerstin Askholt |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1965-02-20)20 February 1965 (age 60) |
| Spouse | Anett Beatrix Osnes |
| Alma mater | University of Tromsø (M.S.L.) |
Lars Fause (born 20 February 1965) is a Norwegianprosecutor andcivil servant serving as thegovernor of Svalbard since 2021.
Fause is originally fromBalsfjord Municipality inTroms county.[1] Fause graduated from theUniversity of Tromsø in 1991 with aMaster of Studies in Law.[2] Much of his family lives inTromsø, where Fause resides when not in Svalbard.[3]
Following his graduation, Fause worked for theOslo Police District as an assistant.[2] He also worked for a year as a police lawyer for theTroms Police District, and for the following two years at theTrondenes District Court as an assistant judge.[2] Fause worked from 1996 to 2002 as a public prosecutor at the public prosecution offices ofTroms og Finnmark, and he received a promotion to the position of chief prosecutor in 2003.[2]
In 2008, Fause accepted a position as deputy governor of Svalbard, which he held until 2011.[4] He made headlines in October 2008 for becoming the first person to deny a person residence in Svalbard: a 28-year-old man who was said to be behind "many crimes".[5] After leaving office, he returned to his former position as chief prosecutor in Troms og Finnmark.[2] He held this position in his second stint from 2011 to 2020,[2] when he resigned to avoid aconflict of interest with his spouse.[6]
Fause took office as governor on 24 June 2021, following the departure of term-limited GovernorKjerstin Askholt.[2] He was selected over several other applicants, including judgesJørn Holme andCecilie Østensen Berglund.[citation needed] He is limited to a maximum of two terms of three years each, according to theSvalbard Treaty, upon which point he would not be eligible for a third term.[7]
Fause is the first governor of Svalbard to have the gender-neutral titleSysselmester instead of the traditional masculine titleSysselmannen;[7] both words translate to English as 'governor', but the change was required as part of Norway's effort to replace gendered governmental titles.[8]
| Civic offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Governor of Svalbard 2021–present | Succeeded by Incumbent |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
