Sir Cecil Thomas Carr, KCB, QC, FBA (4 August 1878 – 12 May 1966) was an English lawyer. As well as serving as

Counsel A counsel or a counsellor at law is a person who gives advice and deals with various issues, particularly in legal matters. It is a title often used interchangeably with the title of ''lawyer''. The word ''counsel'' can also mean advice given ...

to the Speaker of the House of Commons from 1943 to 1955, he was a key figure in the establishment of English

administrative law Administrative law is the division of law that governs the activities of executive branch agencies of government. Administrative law concerns executive branch rule making (executive branch rules are generally referred to as " regulations"), ...

Early life

The son of a cloth manufacturer, Carr was born in 1878. He attended

Bath College Bath College is a Further Education college in the centre of Bath, Somerset and in Westfield, Somerset, England. It was formed in April 2015 by the merger of City of Bath College and Norton Radstock College. The College also offers Higher E ...

and

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any college at either Cambridge or Oxford. ...

, graduating in 1901 after completing part II of the law

Tripos At the University of Cambridge, a Tripos (, plural 'Triposes') is any of the examinations that qualify an undergraduate for a bachelor's degree or the courses taken by a student to prepare for these. For example, an undergraduate studying mathe ...

. Carr was called to the bar in 1902 but his practice remained small, giving him time to study. He won the

Yorke Prize The Yorke Prize is awarded annually by the Faculty of Law at the University of Cambridge for an essay of between 30,000 and 100,000 words on a legal subject, including the history, analysis, administration and reform of law, "of exceptional qualit ...

in 1902 and 1905, published books on the law of corporations (1905) and

collective ownership Collective ownership is the ownership of property by all members of a group. The breadth or narrowness of the group can range from a whole society to a set of coworkers in a particular enterprise (such as one collective farm). In the latter (nar ...

(1907), and edited a volume of trading company charters for the

Selden Society The Selden Society is a learned society and registered charity concerned with the study of English legal history. It functions primarily as a text publication society, but also undertakes other activities to promote scholarship within its sphere ...

(1913). His work was interrupted by his service as a

staff officer A military staff or general staff (also referred to as army staff, navy staff, or air staff within the individual services) is a group of officers, enlisted and civilian staff who serve the commander of a division or other large military ...

India India, officially the Republic of India ( Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the ...

during the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fig ...

S. F. C. Milsom Stroud Francis Charles Milsom (2 May 1923 – 24 February 2016) was an English legal historian, best known for his challenge to aspects of the works of F. W. Maitland. He was Professor of Law at the University of Cambridge from 1976 to 1990 ...

"Carr, Sir Cecil Thomas"
''

The Oxford Dictionary of National Biography The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') was published on 23 September ...

'' (online ed.,

Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print book ...

, 2004). Retrieved 11 March 2021.

Administrative law, official appointments and honours

In 1919, Carr left the armed forces and was appointed assistant to the editor of ''

Revised Statutes Revised Statutes is a term used in some common law jurisdictions for a collection of statutes that have been revised to incorporate amendments, repeals and consolidations. It is not a change to the law, but designed to make the body of statutes m ...

'' and the ''

Statutory Rules and Orders Statutory rules and orders were the means by which delegated legislation used to be made in the United Kingdom between 1893 and 1974 and in the Irish Free State until 1947. Statutory rules and orders began with the Rules Publication Act 1893. Pri ...

'' series. He became editor in 1923, serving for twenty years. He thereby became a pioneer of the study of

, and published ''Delegated Legislation'' in 1921. He travelled to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

in 1935 to advise on the establishment of the ''

Federal Register The ''Federal Register'' (FR or sometimes Fed. Reg.) is the official journal of the federal government of the United States that contains government agency rules, proposed rules, and public notices. It is published every weekday, except on fed ...

'' (which appeared the next year). In 1940, he was Carpentier Lecturer at

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manha ...

and the following year authored ''Concerning English Administrative Law''. In 1943 he was appointed

to the Speaker of the House of Commons and retired in 1955; he was also chairman of the

Statute Law Committee The Statute Law Committee was appointed for the purpose of superintending the publication of the first revised edition of the statutes in the United Kingdom. It also prepared the bills for Statute Law Revision Acts up to, and including, the Statut ...

from 1943 to 1947 (and a committee member until 1965). Carr had been knighted in 1939, appointed a Knight Companion of the

Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate medieval ceremony for appointing a knight, which involved bathing (as a symbol of purification) as ...

in 1943 and a

King's Counsel In the United Kingdom and in some Commonwealth countries, a King's Counsel (post-nominal initials KC) during the reign of a king, or Queen's Counsel (post-nominal initials QC) during the reign of a queen, is a lawyer (usually a barrister or ...

in 1945, and elected

fellow of the British Academy Fellowship of the British Academy (FBA) is an award granted by the British Academy to leading academics for their distinction in the humanities and social sciences. The categories are: # Fellows – scholars resident in the United Kingdom # C ...

in 1952. In 1920, he was awarded the

LLD Legum Doctor (Latin: “teacher of the laws”) (LL.D.) or, in English, Doctor of Laws, is a doctorate-level academic degree in law or an honorary degree, depending on the jurisdiction. The double “L” in the abbreviation refers to the early ...

degree by the

University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

.Holland (1966), p. 314. He also held three

honorary doctorates An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or '' ad ho ...

and was president of the Seldon Society (1958–61). He died in 1966; he was survived by his wife, Norah, daughter of Sir

Alexander Binnie Sir Alexander Richardson Binnie (26 March 1839 – 18 May 1917) was a British civil engineer responsible for several major engineering projects, including several associated with crossings of the River Thames in London. He was born in London t ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Carr, Cecil 1878 births 1966 deaths English lawyers English legal scholars Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge Knights Companion of the Order of the Bath Knights Bachelor 20th-century King's Counsel Fellows of the British Academy