Cecil Patrick Linton Lavery (6 October 1894 – 17 December 1967) was an Irish lawyer, judge and politician who served as a Judge of the

Supreme Court In most legal jurisdictions, a supreme court, also known as a court of last resort, apex court, high (or final) court of appeal, and court of final appeal, is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

from 1950 to 1966 and

Attorney General of Ireland The attorney general of Ireland () is a constitutional officer who is the legal adviser to the Government and is therefore the chief law officer of the State. The attorney general is not a member of the Government but does participate in cabine ...

from 1948 to 1950. He served as a

Teachta Dála A Teachta Dála ( ; ; plural ), abbreviated as TD (plural ''TDanna'' in Irish language, Irish, TDs in English), is a member of Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Oireachtas, the parliament of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The official Engli ...

(TD) for the Dublin County constituency from 1935 to 1938. He was also a

Senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or Legislative chamber, chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the Ancient Rome, ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior ...

for the

Cultural and Educational Panel Culture ( ) is a concept that encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, customs, capabilities, attitudes, and habits of the individuals in these gr ...

from 1948 to 1950.

Early life

Born at English Street in Armagh, Lavery was the son of Patrick Lavery, a solicitor, and Annie Rose (née Vallely). He was educated at St Patrick's School, Armagh,

Castleknock College Castleknock College () is a voluntary Vincentian secondary school for boys, situated in the residential suburb of Castleknock, west of Dublin city centre, Ireland. Founded in 1835 by Philip Dowley, it is one of the oldest boys' schools in ...

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

; and later at

University College Dublin University College Dublin (), commonly referred to as UCD, is a public research university in Dublin, Ireland, and a collegiate university, member institution of the National University of Ireland. With 38,417 students, it is Ireland's largest ...

(UCD), where he became one of the first auditors of the UCD Law Society. In 1927, he was appointed to set up a "Memorial Committee" by

W. T. Cosgrave William Thomas Cosgrave (5 June 1880 – 16 November 1965) was an Irish politician who served as the President of the Executive Council of the Irish Free State from 1922 to 1932, Leader of the Opposition from 1932 to 1944, Leader of Fine Gael ...

, President of the

Irish Free State The Irish Free State (6 December 192229 December 1937), also known by its Irish-language, Irish name ( , ), was a State (polity), state established in December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty of December 1921. The treaty ended the three-ye ...

Executive Council in order to advance the process of the

Irish National War Memorial Gardens The Irish National War Memorial Gardens () is an Irish war memorial in Islandbridge, Dublin, dedicated "to the memory of the 49,400 Irish soldiers who gave their lives in the Great War, 1914–1918",Dúchas The Heritage Service, Visitors Guide ...

where an impasse situation had evolved.

Career

Lavery was elected to

Dáil Éireann Dáil Éireann ( ; , ) is the lower house and principal chamber of the Oireachtas, which also includes the president of Ireland and a senate called Seanad Éireann.Article 15.1.2° of the Constitution of Ireland reads: "The Oireachtas shall co ...

on his first attempt, at a by-election held on 17 June 1935 in the Dublin County constituency, after the death of Fine Gael TD Batt O'Connor. He was returned to the

9th Dáil The 9th Dáil was elected at the 1937 general election on 1 July 1937 and met on 21 July 1937. The members of Dáil Éireann, the house of representatives of the Oireachtas (legislature) of the Irish Free State, are known as TDs. Seanad Éirea ...

at the 1937 general election, but the following year at the 1938 general election, he lost his seat to his Fine Gael running-mate Patrick Belton. Lavery had sympathetic views of fascism stating "Fascism has done much good in countries that have adopted it and may prove a satisfactory government for other countries in time to come”. He did not stand for election again until 1948, when he was elected to the

6th Seanad The 6th Seanad was in office from 1948 to 1951. An election to Seanad Éireann, the Senate of the Oireachtas (Irish parliament), followed the 1948 general election to the 13th Dáil. The senators served until the close of poll for the 7th Sea ...

as a Senator for the

, and was appointed as

Taoiseach The Taoiseach (, ) is the head of government or prime minister of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The office is appointed by the President of Ireland upon nomination by Dáil Éireann (the lower house of the Oireachtas, Ireland's national legisl ...

John A. Costello John Aloysius Costello (20 June 1891 – 5 January 1976) was an Irish Fine Gael politician who served as Taoiseach from 1948 to 1951 and from 1954 to 1957. He was leader of the opposition from 1951 to 1954 and from 1957 to 1959 and attorney gene ...

. Costello made two controversial decisions on Lavery's appointment; reversing the practice of many years he decided that Lavery could continue in private practice and that such fees as were paid to him as Attorney General should count as part of his income rather than be paid into the Exchequer. Costello justified both decisions on the ground that Lavery was one of the Bar's top earners and had taken a considerable pay cut as Attorney General. As Attorney General, he advised on several difficult issues, notably devaluation of the currency and fishing rights in

Lough Foyle Lough Foyle, sometimes Loch Foyle ( or "loch of the lip"), is the estuary of the River Foyle, on the north coast of Ireland. It lies between County Londonderry in Northern Ireland and County Donegal in the Republic of Ireland. Sovereignty over t ...

which were claimed by both Governments, North and South. He left the Seanad on 21 April 1950, when he was appointed as a judge of the

, where he served till his retirement in 1966. He was offered the presidency of the High Court but withdrew his name, apparently after the

Department of Justice A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice, is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a ...

raised a question about his qualifications. In 1961, on the retirement of Conor Maguire, Costello lobbied hard for Lavery to be appointed

Chief Justice of Ireland The chief justice of Ireland () is the president of the Supreme Court of Ireland. The chief justice is the highest judicial office and the most senior judge in the Republic of Ireland. The role includes several constitutional and administrativ ...

, calling him with perhaps some exaggeration "the outstanding Irish legal figure of the last half-century". He later lobbied, also unsuccessfully, for Lavery to be appointed a judge of the

International Court of Justice The International Court of Justice (ICJ; , CIJ), or colloquially the World Court, is the only international court that Adjudication, adjudicates general disputes between nations, and gives advisory opinions on International law, internation ...

(apparently the only time an Irish candidate was considered).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lavery, Cecil 1894 births 1967 deaths Fine Gael TDs Attorneys general of Ireland Members of the 8th Dáil Members of the 9th Dáil Members of the 6th Seanad Irish barristers Judges of the Supreme Court of Ireland Alumni of University College Dublin People educated at Castleknock College Fine Gael senators People educated at St Patrick's Grammar School, Armagh Lawyers from County Armagh People from Armagh (city) Cultural and Educational Panel senators