James Comyn

Add links
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Sir James Comyn
Royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom
Justice of the High Court
In office
9 January 1978 – 29 September 1985
Personal details
Born
James Peter Comyn

(1921-03-08)8 March 1921
Stillorgan, County Dublin
Died5 January 1997(1997-01-05) (aged 75)
Navan, County Meath
Spouse
Anne Chaundler
​
(m. 1967)​
Children2
Alma materNew College, Oxford

Sir James Peter Comyn (8 March 1921 – 5 January 1997) was an Irish-born barrister and English High Court judge. The scion of a prominent Nationalist legal family, Comyn was sent to England after they fell out with Éamon de Valera. Considered by many to be "the finest all-round advocate at the English bar",[1] Comyn was appointed to the High Court of Justice in 1978, serving on the bench until his retirement in 1985.

Early life

James Comyn was born at Beaufield House,

R. M. Smyllie, but abandoned journalism after a joke he added to an obituary was printed in the paper, leading to his demotion to the racing department.[3]

Comyn then matriculated at

presidency of the Oxford Union, winning by four votes.[1] After suffering the first of several breakdowns through his life, he briefly worked for the BBC's Empire Service during the war.[1]

Career at the bar

Comyn was called to the English bar by the

Irish Bar in 1947, and the Hong Kong bar in 1969.[4] In 1944, he began his pupillage with Edward Holroyd Pearce KC, later a law lord, and joined his chambers at Fountain Court.[1] Comyn practised in London and on the Western circuit, supplementing his earnings by teaching banking, a subject of which he knew nothing.[3] On one occasion, he rose in Lambeth County court to cross-examine a female defendant in an eviction case; just as Comyn began by saying "Madam", the defendant opened her bag, took out a dead cat, and threw it at him. The judge's reaction was to tell the defendant: "Madam, if you do that again, I’ll commit you".[5][6] Comyn won the case.[5]

Comyn

took silk in 1961,[7] and acquired a large practice as a senior, appearing in many high-profile cases. In 1964, he won damages for libel for the former safe-breaker Alfie Hinds against a Scotland Yard inspector by convincing the jury that Hinds was in fact innocent.[1] In 1970, he successfully defended the Labour MP Will Owen, who was accused of providing information to the Czechoslovak intelligence services.[1] In 1975, he defeated the government's attempt to obtain an injunction against the publication of the diaries of former minister Richard Crossman (Attorney General v Jonathan Cape Ltd).[1] Of his powers of advocacy, it was said that "Jimmy Comyn can take the stink out of everything".[1]

Comyn was Recorder of Andover between 1964 and 1971 (honorary life recorder from 1972), commissioner of assize for the Western Circuit in 1971, and a Recorder of the Crown Court between 1972 and 1977.[4][8] He was elected a bencher of the Inner Temple in 1968, and served as chairman of the Bar council from 1973 to 1974.[4]

Judicial career

Having refused a previous invitation by

Unification Church (colloquially known as the Moonies) against the Daily Mail, the longest libel trial in England up to that time.[1] His Irish background made him the target of IRA action, and in 1981 the Provisional IRA burnt his house in Tara.[1] Recurring bouts of depression led to his early retirement, on grounds of ill health, in 1985.[1]

In retirement, he divided his time between England and Ireland, whose citizenship he had retained. He wrote a number of books, including memoirs, light verse, and books on famous trials. He also bred Friesian cattle.[3] He died on 5 January 1997 at age 75.[2]

Family

Comyn married Anne Chaundler, a solicitor, in 1967; they had two children.[2][3] Lady Comyn passed away in 2018, aged 92.[10]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q "Sir James Comyn". The Times. 9 January 1997. p. 19.
  2. ^ a b c d "Sir James Comyn, former noted English High Court judge, dies". The Irish Times. 6 January 1997.
  3. ^ a b c d O'Toole, Michael (7 January 1997). "Obituary: Sir James Comyn". The Independent.
  4. ^
    Who's Who & Who Was Who. A & C Black. (Subscription or UK public library membership
    required.)
  5. ^ a b Comyn, James (1991). Summing it Up: Memoirs of an Irishman at Law in England. Dublin: Round Hall Press. p. 99.
  6. ^ Megarry, Sir Robert (Summer 2014). "Contempt" (PDF). The Green Bag. 17 (4): 427.
  7. ^ "No. 42324". The London Gazette. 11 April 1961. p. 2651.
  8. ^ "No. 45491". The London Gazette. 8 October 1971. p. 10853.
  9. ^ "No. 47488". The London Gazette. 14 March 1978. p. 3241.
  10. ^ "Lady Anne Comyn". Legacy.com. 14 March 2018.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=James_Comyn&oldid=1170203057"