Frederick Lawton (judge)
| Sir Frederick Lawton | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Frederick Horace Lawton 21 December 1911 |
| Died | 3 February 2001 (aged 89) York, Yorkshire, England |
| Nationality | United Kingdom |
| Occupation | Barrister and Judge |
| Known for | Lord Justice of Appeal |
Sir Frederick Horace Lawton PC (21 December 1911 – 3 February 2001) was a British judge who sat in the Court of Appeal.
Lawton was born in Wandsworth, London. His father was governor of Wandsworth Prison. He was educated at Battersea Grammar School and at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge.
In the 1930s he converted to Roman Catholicism, which became an important part of his life.
In 1936 he was adopted as the British Union of Fascists' candidate for Hammersmith North, but there was no election before the Second World War. He served briefly in the war in the London Irish Rifles but was invalidated out due to a training accident in 1941. The war ended his association with the far right, and he later joined the Conservative Party.
He was called to the Bar as a member of Inner Temple in 1935. He took Silk in 1957, and was appointed a Judge of the High Court of Justice, Chancery Division, in 1961. He was promoted to the Court of Appeal in 1972 (when he also became a member of the Privy Council), and retired in 1986.
British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher served her period of pupillage at the English bar under Sir Frederick when he was still a junior barrister.
Sir Frederick married in 1957, to Doreen Wilton, she predeceased him, dying in 1979, they had two sons.
Sir Frederick made a number of comments during his judicial career which attracted scrutiny.
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