Norton was born in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, the eldest son of the late Honorary James Norton, Member of Legislative Council, formerly a solicitor in large practice in Sydney, by his first wife, Jane, daughter of Alexander Kenneth Mackenzie.
Norton was nominated to the New South Wales Legislative Council in October 1879, and was Postmaster-General in the Stuart ministry from May 1883 to May 1884. Norton practised as a solicitor in Sydney, being a Fellow of Saint Paul"s College within the University of Sydney and a trustee of the Free Public Library and Australian Museum in that city.
