Lord Scarman
|
The Right Honourable The Lord Scarman OBE PC QC |
|
|---|---|
| Lord of Appeal in Ordinary | |
|
In office 1977–1986 |
|
| Lord Justice of Appeal | |
|
In office 1973–1977 |
|
| High Court judge | |
|
In office 1961–1973 |
|
| Personal details | |
| Born |
29 July 1911 Streatham, London, England, UK |
| Died | 8 December 2004 (aged 93) Westgate-on-Sea, Kent, England, UK |
| Nationality | British |
| Spouse(s) | Ruth Wright |
| Children | 1 |
| Alma mater | Brasenose College, Oxford |
Leslie George Scarman, Baron Scarman OBE PC QC (29 July 1911 – 8 December 2004) was an English judge and barrister, who served as a Law Lord until his retirement in 1986.
He was born in Streatham but grew up on the border of Sussex and Surrey. He won scholarships to Radley College and then Brasenose College, Oxford, as a Classical Scholar, graduating in 1932 with a first.
He was called to the Bar in 1936. He remained briefless until World War II, which he spent in the RAF as a staff officer in England, North Africa, and then continental Europe and he was present with Lord Tedder when the German surrender was accepted in Berlin. He returned to law in 1945, practising from Fountain Court Chambers in London, and became a QC in 1957, and a High Court judge in 1961 – assigned to the Family Division. He joined the Court of Appeal in 1973 and was Lord of Appeal in Ordinary, a Law Lord, from 1977 until his retirement in 1986.
He was appointed head of the Law Commission from 1965 to 1973, during which time 27 Commission-inspired statutes were made law. As a judge, Scarman's career had some controversial decisions. Although widely regarded as a liberal, he upheld the blasphemy conviction of Gay News (1979), punctured the GLC's Fares Fair low-cost public transport policy (1981), and supported the banning of trade unions at GCHQ (1985). He is best known for chairing the public inquiry on the causes of the race riots in Brixton in 1981. He also chaired inquiries into the Northern Ireland riots of August 1969 (1969–1972), the Red Lion Square disorders (1975) and the Grunwick dispute (1977).
...
Wikipedia