Sir Henry Josceline Phillimore,

OBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

, PC (25 December 1910 – 4 June 1974) was an English barrister and judge, who served as a

Lord Justice of Appeal A Lord Justice of Appeal or Lady Justice of Appeal is a judge of the Court of Appeal of England and Wales, the court that hears appeals from the High Court of Justice, the Crown Court and other courts and tribunals. A Lord (or Lady) Just ...

from 1968 to 1974.

Biography

Henry Phillimore was the son of Charles Augustus Phillimore, a partner at

Coutts Coutts & Co. () is a British private bank and wealth manager headquartered in London, England. Founded in 1692, it is the eighth oldest bank in the world. Today, Coutts forms part of NatWest Group's wealth management division. In the Channe ...

Bank. His father's cousin was the prominent judge

Walter Phillimore, 1st Baron Phillimore Walter George Frank Phillimore, 1st Baron Phillimore (21 November 1845 – 13 March 1929), known as Sir Walter Phillimore, 2nd Baronet, from 1885 to 1918, was a British lawyer and judge. Biography Phillimore was the son of Robert Phillimore, Si ...

, himself the son of the judge Sir Robert Phillimore, 1st Baronet and grandson of the lawyer

Joseph Phillimore Joseph Phillimore (1775–1855) was an English civil lawyer and politician, Regius Professor of Civil Law at Oxford from 1809. Life The eldest son of Joseph Phillimore, vicar of Orton on the Hill, Leicestershire, by Mary, daughter of John Mach ...

. He was educated at

Eton College Eton College ( ) is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school providing boarding school, boarding education for boys aged 13–18, in the small town of Eton, Berkshire, Eton, in Berkshire, in the United Kingdom. It has educated Prime Mini ...

, where he was an Oppidan, and

Christ Church, Oxford Christ Church (, the temple or house, ''wikt:aedes, ædes'', of Christ, and thus sometimes known as "The House") is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1546 by Henry V ...

, where he took

second-class honours The British undergraduate degree classification system is a grading structure used for undergraduate degrees or bachelor's degrees and integrated master's degrees in the United Kingdom. The system has been applied, sometimes with significant var ...

in Greats. 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 ...

by the

Middle Temple The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known simply as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court entitled to Call to the bar, call their members to the English Bar as barristers, the others being the Inner Temple (with whi ...

in 1934. He was the pupil of Edward Pearce, and after his

pupillage A pupillage, in England and Wales, Northern Ireland, Kenya, Malaysia, Pakistan and Hong Kong, is the final, vocational stage of training for those wishing to become practising barristers. Pupillage is similar to an apprenticeship, during which ba ...

joined his chambers. He joined the Western circuit and acquired a varied practice. He joined the Territorial Army as a gunner in July 1939, and was commissioned in December the same year. After serving in the Norwegian Campaign in 1940, he joined the Prisoner of War Department at the

War Office The War Office has referred to several British government organisations throughout history, all relating to the army. It was a department of the British Government responsible for the administration of the British Army between 1857 and 1964, at ...

. He attended the

Yalta Conference The Yalta Conference (), held 4–11 February 1945, was the World War II meeting of the heads of government of the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Soviet Union to discuss the postwar reorganization of Germany and Europe. The three sta ...

in 1944. The following year, he was promoted

colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

and was appointed continental secretary of the British War Crimes Executive. He then served as leading junior counsel of the British prosecution team at the

Nuremberg Trials #REDIRECT Nuremberg trials {{redirect category shell, {{R from other capitalisation{{R from move ...

in 1945–46. He was appointed

in 1946. After the Nuremberg Trials, Phillimore returned to his old chambers. He was Recorder of

Poole Poole () is a coastal town and seaport on the south coast of England in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole unitary authority area in Dorset, England. The town is east of Dorchester, Dorset, Dorchester and adjoins Bournemouth to the east ...

between 1946–54 and Recorder of

Winchester Winchester (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in Hampshire, England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government Districts of England, district, at the western end of the South Downs N ...

between 1954 and 1959. He

took 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 Qu ...

in 1952. In 1959, Phillimore was appointed a Justice of the High Court and assigned to the

Probate, Divorce and Admiralty Division 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 and the Crown Court, are the Senior Courts of England and Wales. Its name is abbreviated as EWHC (England ...

, receiving 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 ...

. In 1962 he was transferred to the Queen's Bench Division on the retirement of Mr Justice Hilbery. In 1968, he was promoted to the

Court of Appeal An appellate court, commonly called a court of appeal(s), appeal court, court of second instance or second instance court, is any court of law that is empowered to Hearing (law), hear a Legal case, case upon appeal from a trial court or other ...

, on the elevation of Lord Justice Diplock to the

House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the lower house, the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. One of the oldest ext ...

, and was sworn of the Privy Council. He retired in April 1974 and died two months later. Phillimore was a member of the Royal Commission on Assizes and Quarter Sessions, which recommended their abolition, between 1967 and 1969, and was chairman of the Committee on Contempt of Court from 1971 to 1974. The report of the committee, sometimes known as the Phillimore Report, led to the

Contempt of Court Act 1981 The Contempt of Court Act 1981 (c. 49) is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It codifies some aspects of the common law offence of contempt of court Contempt of court, often referred to simply as "contempt", is the crime of bei ...

Family

Phillimore married Katharine Mary, daughter of Lieutenant-Commander L. C. Maude-Roxby, in 1938; they had two daughters.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Phillimore, Henry Knights Bachelor 1974 deaths English King's Counsel People educated at Eton College Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford Members of the Middle Temple British Army personnel of World War II Officers of the Order of the British Empire Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom Probate, Divorce and Admiralty Division judges Queen's Bench Division judges Fellows of Eton College 20th-century King's Counsel