Eulalie Spicer (20 April 1906 – 29 March 1997) was a British lawyer and legal aid administrator. She was a leading divorce lawyer and liked to be called "Miss Spencer" or "EES". She wore her hair very short in an Eton crop, wore a suit, used a cigarette holder, travelled around on a scooter and enjoyed shooting revolvers.

Early life and education

Eulalie Evan Spicer was born in

Beckenham Beckenham () is a town in Greater London, England, within the London Borough of Bromley. Prior to 1965, it was part of Kent. It is situated north of Elmers End and Eden Park, east of Penge, south of Lower Sydenham and Bellingham, and west ...

on 20 April 1906. Her parents were Elsie Mary (née Williams) and Charles Evan Spicer. Her father dealt in wholesale stationary. Spicer was educated at St Helen’s School, Northwood, and graduated from

King’s College London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public university, public research university in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of George IV of the United Kingdom, King George IV ...

with a BA in philosophy. She was awarded a PhD in philosophy from

University College London University College London (Trade name, branded as UCL) is a Public university, public research university in London, England. It is a Member institutions of the University of London, member institution of the Federal university, federal Uni ...

for her thesis on

Aristotle Aristotle (; 384–322 BC) was an Ancient Greek philosophy, Ancient Greek philosopher and polymath. His writings cover a broad range of subjects spanning the natural sciences, philosophy, linguistics, economics, politics, psychology, a ...

's conception of the soul. She then took a law degree and qualified as a solicitor in June 1938. At that time, only an average of only fifteen women qualified each year.

Career

Spicer practised law from premises at 5–6 Clement's Inn, London, close to the law courts. In 1942 she joined the Law Society's staff as a solicitor. She was the supervising solicitor of the services divorce department, newly established to cope with the increase of marriage breakdowns during the Second World War. Women solicitors were now in demand as many male solicitors were drafted into the military. There were several solicitors but she was the leading light, travelling across the country to brief barristers on hundreds of cases. She became “one of the most prominent divorce lawyers of her day”. In 1945 she had 100 people assisting her and seven solicitors. A Labour government came to power in 1945 and they decided to establish legal aid.

Legal Aid

The

Legal Aid and Advice Act 1949 The Legal Aid and Advice Act 1949 ( 12, 13 & 14 Geo. 6. c. 51) was a British act of Parliament which extended the welfare state so that those unable to pay for a solicitor were able to access free legal help. It set up the first ever state funde ...

received Royal assent on 30 July and came into force in a limited way in October 1950. Suddenly there was one system for claiming

legal aid Legal aid is the provision of assistance to people who are unable to afford legal representation and access to the court system. Legal aid is regarded as central in providing access to justice by ensuring equality before the law, the right ...

in England and Wales. The assistance was means tested but freely available to people of "small or moderate means". She became responsible for approving the 25,000 applications that arrived in 1966, her final year in the London area. When she retired from that position in 1966, and set up in private practice, her previous job was split into two so that two people could do it. She commanded a great deal of respect from those who dealt with her. She worked at that and liked to be called "Miss Spencer" or "EES" by her staff.

Personal life

Spicer wore her hair very short, wore a suit, used a cigarette holder and travelled around on a scooter. One of her hobbies was shooting a revolver. In retirement she became secretary of the legal aid committee of the

general synod The General Synod is the title of the governing body of some church organizations. Anglican Communion The General Synod of the Church of England, which was established in 1970 replacing the Church Assembly, is the legislative body of the Church ...

of the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...

and a

lay reader In Anglicanism, a licensed lay minister (LLM) or lay reader (in some jurisdictions simply reader) is a person authorised by a bishop to lead certain Church service, services of worship (or parts of the service), to preach and to carry out pastoral ...

. Age seventy, she took the degree

Bachelor of Divinity In Western universities, a Bachelor of Divinity or Baccalaureate in Divinity (BD, DB, or BDiv; ) is an academic degree awarded for a course taken in the study of divinity or related disciplines, such as theology or, rarely, religious studies. ...

at King's College, London. Spicer died in

St Thomas' Hospital St Thomas' Hospital is a large NHS teaching hospital in Central London, England. Administratively part of the Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust, together with Guy's Hospital, Evelina London Children's Hospital, Royal Brompton Hospita ...

in Lambeth. She was unmarried and had no children. She left over £1.2m.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Spicer, Eulalie 1906 births 1997 deaths People from Beckenham English solicitors Alumni of King's College London Alumni of University College London