Sir William Patrick Deane, AC, KBE, KC (born 4 January 1931) is an Australian barrister and jurist who served as the 22nd governor-general of Australia, in office from 1996 to 2001.

Deane had a low profile during his five-year term, facing no major constitutional issues, but did come to international notice by officially opening the 2000 Summer Olympics.

He was the youngest of three children and only son born to Lillian Elizabeth (née Hussey) and Cornelius Aloysius Deane.

His father grew up in a large Catholic family in Wahring, Victoria, and won the Military Cross during World War I.

In August 1995, the Labor Prime Minister, Paul Keating, announced that Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia had agreed to the appointment of Deane as Governor-General to succeed Bill Hayden.

[8] Less than a month later the Liberal/National coalition led by John Howard defeated Keating's government in the 1996 Australian federal election.

[9] On 28 August 1996, as governor-general, Deane, issued a proclamation that officially established 3 September as Australian National Flag Day.

[10] As governor-general, Deane received praise for his role in publicly mourning the victims of tragedies that took place during his term in office, including the Port Arthur massacre (1996), the Thredbo landslide (1997) the Swiss canyoning disaster (1999) and the Childers Palace Backpackers Hostel fire (2000).

[15] Deane's term of office was due to expire on 31 December 2000, but was extended by six months to cover the Centenary of Federation celebrations.

[16] Upon leaving office in June 2001, he stated that his main regret as governor-general was that Australia did not achieve Reconciliation by the end of the 20th century as he had hoped.

[19] In 2001, Deane was awarded the Sydney Peace Prize "for his consistent support of vulnerable and disadvantaged Australians and his strong commitment to the cause of reconciliation".