Norman Birkett, 1st Baron Birkett
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The Right Honourable The Lord Birkett PC QC |
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| Lord of Appeal in Ordinary | |
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In office 1958–1961 |
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| Court of Appeal of England and Wales | |
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In office 2 October 1950 – 1956 |
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| Appointed by | Lord Jowitt |
| High Court of Justice of England and Wales | |
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In office 11 November 1941 – 2 October 1950 |
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| Appointed by | Lord Simon |
| Preceded by | Sir Anthony Hawke |
| Member of Parliament for Nottingham East |
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In office 30 May 1929 – 27 October 1931 |
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| Preceded by | Edmund Brocklebank |
| Succeeded by | Louis Gluckstein |
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In office 6 December 1923 – 29 October 1924 |
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| Preceded by | John Plowright Houfton |
| Succeeded by | Edmund Brocklebank |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 6 September 1883 Ulverston, Lancashire |
| Died | 10 February 1962 (aged 78) London |
| Nationality | British |
| Political party | Liberal |
| Spouse(s) | Ruth Nilsson |
| Children | 2, including Michael |
| Alma mater | Emmanuel College, Cambridge |
| Profession | Barrister, judge |
| Religion | Methodist |
William Norman Birkett, 1st Baron Birkett, PC, QC (6 September 1883 – 10 February 1962) was a British barrister, judge, politician and preacher who served as the alternate British judge during the Nuremberg Trials.
Birkett received his education at Barrow-in-Furness Grammar School. He was a Methodist preacher and a draper before attending Emmanuel College, Cambridge in 1907, to study theology, history and law. Upon graduating in 1910 he worked as a secretary and was called to the Bar in 1913.
Declared medically unfit for military service during World War I, Birkett used the time to make up for his late entry into the legal profession and was appointed a King's Counsel in 1924. He became a criminal defence lawyer and acted as counsel in a number of famous cases including the second of the Brighton trunk murders. A member of the Liberal Party, he sat in Parliament for Nottingham East twice, first in 1923 and again in 1929.
Despite refusing appointment to the High Court of Justice in 1928, he was offered the position again in 1941 and accepted, joining the King's Bench Division. In 1945 he served as the alternate British judge at the Nuremberg trials, and he was made a Privy Counsellor in 1947. He joined the Court of Appeal of England and Wales in 1950 but retired in 1956 when he had served for long enough to draw a pension. From 1958 he served in the House of Lords, and his speech against a private bill in 1962 saw it defeated by 70 votes to 36, two days before he died on 10 February 1962.
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