Sir Edward Acton (6 November 1865 – 17 November 1945) was an English barrister and judge. He had the distinction of being the first County Court judge to be appointed to the

High Court of Justice The High Court of Justice in London, known properly as His Majesty's High Court of Justice in England, together with the Court of Appeal (England and Wales), Court of Appeal and the Crown Court, are the Courts of England and Wales, Senior Cour ...

Biography

Early life and legal career

Edward Acton was born in

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

, the son of Henry Morell Acton and of Anne Shaw, ''née'' Williamson. His father was an editor of the ''

Manchester Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'', and the son of the Unitarian minister Henry Acton. He educated at

Uppingham School Uppingham School is a public school (English fee-charging boarding and day school for pupils 13–18) in Uppingham, Rutland, England, founded in 1584 by Robert Johnson, the Archdeacon of Leicester, who also established Oakham School. ...

, where he was an exhibitioner, and

Wadham College, Oxford Wadham College ( ) is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. It is located in the centre of Oxford, at the intersection of Broad Street, Oxford, Broad Street and Parks Road ...

, where he was a classical scholar and the Hody Greek exhibitioner. Acton took a first in

classical moderations Honour Moderations (or ''Mods'') are a set of examinations at the University of Oxford at the end of the first part of some degree courses (e.g., Greats or '' Literae Humaniores''). Honour Moderations candidates have a class awarded (hence the ...

in 1886 and a second in '' literae humaniores'' in 1888, then joined the

Inner Temple The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple, commonly known as the Inner Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court and is a professional association for barristers and judges. To be called to the Bar and practice as a barrister in England and Wa ...

as a foundation scholar in 1890. He was

called to the bar The call to the bar is a legal term of art in most common law jurisdictions where persons must be qualified to be allowed to argue in court on behalf of another party and are then said to have been "called to the bar" or to have received "call to ...

in 1891 and later became a bencher of the Inner Temple. He joined the

Northern Circuit The Northern Circuit is a circuit of the General Council of the Bar and English judiciary. The Northern Circuit stretches from Carlisle in Cumberland at its northernmost point, running through Lakeland to the port of Whitehaven in the West, ...

and practiced mainly in Manchester and Liverpool, building up a large practice. He additional became a lecturer in the law of evidence and procedure at the

University of Manchester The University of Manchester is a public university, public research university in Manchester, England. The main campus is south of Manchester city centre, Manchester City Centre on Wilmslow Road, Oxford Road. The University of Manchester is c ...

Judicial career

Acton had been expected to

take silk A King's Counsel ( post-nominal initials KC) is a senior lawyer appointed by the monarch (or their viceregal representative) of some Commonwealth realms as a "Counsel learned in the law". When the reigning monarch is a woman, the title is Que ...

, but surprised his friends in 1918 by accepting appointment as a County Court judge. Few County Court judges were ever promoted, and none had ever been promoted to the High Court, and was assigned to circuit 18 at

Nottingham Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located south-east of Sheffield and nor ...

. In 1920, the High Court received two additional judgeships to deal with arrears in the

King's Bench Division The King's Bench Division (or Queen's Bench Division when the monarch is female) of the High Court of Justice deals with a wide range of common law cases and has supervisory responsibility over certain lower courts. It hears appeals on point ...

Lord Birkenhead Earl of Birkenhead was a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1922 for the noted lawyer and Conservative politician F. E. Smith, 1st Viscount Birkenhead. He was Solicitor-General in 1915, Attorney-General from 1915 to 1 ...

, a former member of the Northern Circuit, selected Acton for one of the vacancies. Acton was duly appointed and received the customary

knighthood A knight is a person granted an honorary title of a knighthood by a head of state (including the pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church, or the country, especially in a military capacity. The concept of a knighthood ...

. This was the first time a County Court judge had been elevated to the High Court bench, and the appointment was generally welcomed, though it was noted that Acton and Birkenhead had both attended Wadham College and been members of the same circuit. Assessments of his tenure differ. W. O. Hart in the ''

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

'' writes that Acton's appointment was successful and that he was well-regarded as a judge.

Henry Cecil Sir Henry Richard Amherst Cecil (11 January 1943 – 11 June 2013) was a British flat racing horse trainer. Cecil was very successful, becoming Champion Trainer ten times and training 25 domestic Classic winners. These comprised four winners o ...

, however, said that he was "a very poor lawyer" who made so many mistakes of law that successive lord chancellors were dissuaded from promoting further County Court judges; Patrick Polden thought the latter assertion questionable. Whatever the reason, the next appointment from the County Court, of Judge Austin Jones, did not occur until 1945. Acton left few well-known judgments: he was said to prefer to decide cases based on the facts, without undue elaboration of the law. Of note was his judgment in ''Flint v Lovell''

935 Year 935 ( CMXXXV) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * Spring – Arnulf I ("the Bad") of Bavaria invades Italy, crossing through the Upper Adige (modern Tyrol). He proceeds ...

1 KB 354, in which he awarded damages for loss of life expectancy; the judgment was upheld on appeal. He resigned from the High Court in 1934 on grounds of ill-health, and retired to

Surrey Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...

, where he died in 1945. Acton married Edith Nina Tulloch, daughter of Conrad William Alexander Tulloch, in 1903; they had no children.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Acton, Edward Knights Bachelor 1945 deaths Lawyers from Manchester People educated at Uppingham School Alumni of Wadham College, Oxford Members of the Inner Temple Academics of the University of Manchester Queen's Bench Division judges 1865 births County Court judges (England and Wales)