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Thomas Hetherington
Major Sir Thomas Chalmers Hetherington, (18 September 1926 – 28 March 2007), better known as Sir Tony Hetherington, was a British barrister. He was Director of Public Prosecutions of England and Wales from 1977 to 1987, and was the first head of the Crown Prosecution Service for the year after it was founded in 1986. Early life Hetherington was born on 18 September 1926 in Dumfriesshire, Scotland. His father was a doctor. He was educated at Rugby School. He read law at Christ Church, Oxford, graduating in 1951, and was called to the Bar in 1952 at the Inner Temple. Career Military career On 5 January 1947, he was granted an emergency commission into the Royal Regiment of Artillery, British Army, as a second lieutenant. He was promoted to lieutenant on 11 May 1948. He saw active service in the Middle East in the aftermath of World War II. He continued to serve in the Territorial Army until 1967, rising to the rank of major. Battery Commander of P (7th London) Battery 254 ...
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Major (rank)
Major is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer military rank, rank used in many countries. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators, major is one rank above Captain (land), captain in armies and air forces, and one rank below lieutenant colonel. It is considered the most junior of the senior officer ranks. Background Etymologically, the word stems from the Latin word meaning "greater". The rank can be traced back to the rank of sergeant major general, which was shortened to sergeant major, and subsequently shortened to ''major''. When used in hyphenated or combined fashion, the term can also imply seniority at other levels of rank, including major general, denoting a low-level general officer, and sergeant major, denoting the most senior non-commissioned officer (NCO) of a military unit. The term major can also be used with a hyphen to denote the leader of a military band such as in Pipe-Major, pipe-major or drum-major. Links to major ...
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World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the world's countries participated, with many nations mobilising all resources in pursuit of total war. Tanks in World War II, Tanks and Air warfare of World War II, aircraft played major roles, enabling the strategic bombing of cities and delivery of the Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, first and only nuclear weapons ever used in war. World War II is the List of wars by death toll, deadliest conflict in history, causing World War II casualties, the death of 70 to 85 million people, more than half of whom were civilians. Millions died in genocides, including the Holocaust, and by massacres, starvation, and disease. After the Allied victory, Allied-occupied Germany, Germany, Allied-occupied Austria, Austria, Occupation of Japan, Japan, a ...
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Sir Cyril Smith
Sir Cyril Richard Smith (28 June 1928 – 3 September 2010) was a British Liberal Party and Liberal Democrat politician who served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Rochdale from 1972 to 1992. Smith was first active in local politics as a Liberal in 1945 before switching to Labour in 1950; he served as a Labour councillor in Rochdale, Lancashire, from 1950 and became mayor in 1966. He subsequently switched parties again and entered Parliament as a Liberal in 1972, winning his Rochdale seat on five further occasions. He was appointed the Liberal Chief Whip in June 1975 but later resigned on health grounds. In his later years as an MP, he opposed an alliance with the Social Democratic Party and did not stand for re-election in 1992; however, he remained loyal to the Liberal Democrats upon the parties' merger. Throughout much of his career, he maintained a high profile in the media and became a well-known public figure. In later years, Smith's public esteem was considerab ...
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Bencher
A bencher or Master of the Bench is a senior member of an Inn of Court in England and Wales or the Inns of Court in Northern Ireland, or the Honorable Society of King's Inns in Ireland. Benchers hold office for life once elected. A bencher can be elected while still a barrister (usually, but not always, King's Counsel in the UK or Senior Counsel in Ireland), in recognition of the contribution that the barrister has made to the life of the Inn or to the law. Others become benchers as a matter of course when appointed as a High Court judge. The Inn may elect non-members as honorary benchers – for example, distinguished judges and lawyers from other countries, eminent non-lawyers or (in the English Inns) members of the British Royal Family, who become known as "Royal Benchers" once elected. One member of each Inn is the Treasurer, a position which is held for one year only. While succession to the post of Treasurer was once dependent purely on seniority (or '' auncien ...
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Queen's Counsel
A King's Counsel (Post-nominal letters, post-nominal initials KC) is a senior lawyer appointed by the monarch (or their Viceroy, viceregal representative) of some Commonwealth realms as a "Counsel learned in the law". When the reigning monarch is a woman, the title is Queen's Counsel (QC). The position originated in England and Wales. Some Commonwealth countries have retained the designation, while others have either abolished the position or renamed it so as to remove monarchical connotations — for example, "Senior Counsel" or "Senior Advocate". Appointment as King's Counsel is an office recognised by courts. Members in the UK have the privilege of sitting within the inner Bar (law), bar of court. As members wear silk gowns of a particular design, appointment as King's Counsel is known informally as ''taking silk'' and KCs are often colloquially called ''silks''. Appointments are made from within the legal profession on the basis of merit and not a particular level of expe ...
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Jeremy Thorpe
John Jeremy Thorpe (29 April 1929 – 4 December 2014) was a British politician who served as the Member of Parliament for North Devon from 1959 to 1979 and as leader of the Liberal Party from 1967 to 1976. In May 1979 he was tried at the Old Bailey on charges of conspiracy and incitement to murder his ex-boyfriend Norman Scott, a former model. Thorpe was acquitted on all charges, but the case, and the furore surrounding it, ended his political career. Thorpe was the son and grandson of Conservative MPs, but decided to align with the small and ailing Liberal Party. After studying Law at Oxford University he became one of the Liberals' brightest stars in the 1950s. He entered Parliament at the age of 30, rapidly made his mark, and was elected party leader in 1967. After an uncertain start during which the party lost ground, Thorpe capitalised on the growing unpopularity of the Conservative and Labour parties to lead the Liberals through a period of electoral success. This cu ...
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Norman Skelhorn
Sir Norman John Skelhorn, KBE, QC (10 September 1909 – 28 May 1988) was an English barrister who was Director of Public Prosecutions for England and Wales from 1964 to 1977. Early life and education Skelhorn was born in Glossop, Derbyshire, the son of a clergyman. He was educated at Shrewsbury School. He was called to the Bar in 1931. Career Appointed DPP in 1964, in 1965, Sir Norman presented a paper to the Commonwealth and Empire Law Conference in Sydney, titled "Crime and Punishment of Crime: Investigation of Offences and Trial of Accused Persons." In this paper, he set out his agenda. These words came back negatively when, in ''Rupasinghe v. Attorney General'' the defence counsel in this case about violation of the right to silence, used the report in contrast to Sir Norman's 1972 role as a member of the eleventh Criminal Law Revision Committee. One of the first cases Skelhorn dealt with was the August 1966 seizure by Scotland Yard's obscene publications squad of all copi ...
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Merlyn Rees
Merlyn Merlyn-Rees, Baron Merlyn-Rees, (né Merlyn Rees; 18 December 1920 – 5 January 2006) was a British Labour Party politician and Member of Parliament from 1963 until 1992. He served as Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (1974–1976) and Home Secretary (1976–1979). Early life Rees was born in Cilfynydd, near Pontypridd, Glamorgan, the son of Levi Rees, a war veteran who moved from Wales to England to find work. He was educated at Harrow Weald Grammar School, Harrow, England and Goldsmiths College, London where he was president of the students' union. Goldsmiths was evacuated to Nottingham University early in the war, where Rees served in Nottingham University Air Squadron. In 1941 Rees joined the Royal Air Force, becoming a squadron leader and earning the nickname "Dagwood". He served in Italy as operations and intelligence officer to No 324 Squadron under Group Captain W. G. G. Duncan Smith (father of the future Conservative leader). One of Rees's Spitfire ...
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Home Secretary
The secretary of state for the Home Department, more commonly known as the home secretary, is a senior minister of the Crown in the Government of the United Kingdom and the head of the Home Office. The position is a Great Office of State, making the home secretary one of the most senior and influential ministers in the government. The incumbent is a statutory member of the British Cabinet and National Security Council (United Kingdom), National Security Council. The position, which may be known as interior minister in other nations, was created in 1782, though its responsibilities have Home Office#History, changed many times. Past office holders have included the prime ministers Lord North, Robert Peel, the Duke of Wellington, Lord Palmerston, Winston Churchill, James Callaghan and Theresa May. The longest-serving home secretary is Henry Addington, 1st Viscount Sidmouth, who held the post continuously for 9 years, 221 days. The shortest-serving home secretary is Grant Shapps, w ...
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Treasury Solicitor
The Government Legal Department (previously called the Treasury Solicitor's Department) is the largest in-house legal organisation in the United Kingdom's Government Legal Profession. The department is headed by the Treasury Solicitor (formally, 'The Solicitor for the affairs of His Majesty's Treasury'). This office goes back several centuries. The office was enshrined in law by the Treasury Solicitor Act 1876 (39 & 40 Vict. c. 18), which established the Treasury Solicitor as a corporation sole (an office with perpetual succession). Employees of the department exercise legal powers which are vested in the corporation sole. The department is a non-ministerial government department and executive agency. The Treasury Solicitor reports to the Attorney General for England and Wales. The department employs more than 1,900 solicitors and barristers to provide advice and legal representation on a huge range of issues to many government departments. History The department was historica ...
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Solicitor General For England And Wales
His Majesty's Solicitor General for England and Wales, known informally as the Solicitor General, is one of the law officers of the Crown in the government of the United Kingdom. They are the deputy of the Attorney General for England and Wales, Attorney General, whose duty is to advise the The Crown, Crown and Cabinet of the United Kingdom, Cabinet on the law. They exercise the powers of the Attorney General which are delegated to them under section 1 of the Law Officers Act 1997. Despite the title, the position is usually held by a barrister as opposed to a solicitor. There is also a Solicitor General for Scotland, who is the deputy of the Lord Advocate. As well as the Sovereign's Solicitor General, the Prince of Wales and a Queen consort (when the Sovereign is male) are also entitled to have an Attorney and Solicitor General, though the present Prince of Wales has only an Attorney General and no Solicitor General. The Solicitor General is addressed in court as "Mr Solicitor ...
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Attorney-General
In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general (: attorneys general) or attorney-general (AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have executive responsibility for law enforcement and prosecutions, or even responsibility for legal affairs generally. In practice, the extent to which the attorney general personally provides legal advice to the government varies between jurisdictions, and even between individual office-holders within the same jurisdiction, often depending on the level and nature of the office-holder's prior legal experience. Where the attorney general has ministerial responsibility for legal affairs in general (as is the case, for example, with the United States Attorney General or the Attorney-General for Australia, and the respective attorneys general of the states in each country), the ministerial portfolio is largely equivalent to that of a Minister of Justice in some other countries. T ...
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