Sir John Bere (died 1617), whose surname was also spelt Beere or Bare, was an Irish politician, Crown official,

barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdiction (area), jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include arguing cases in courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, jurisprud ...

and part-time

judge A judge is a person who wiktionary:preside, presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a judicial panel. In an adversarial system, the judge hears all the witnesses and any other Evidence (law), evidence presented by the barris ...

of the early seventeenth century. He held office as King's Serjeant,Smyth p.187 and sat in the

Irish House of Commons The Irish House of Commons was the lower house of the Parliament of Ireland that existed from 1297 until the end of 1800. The upper house was the Irish House of Lords, House of Lords. The membership of the House of Commons was directly elected, ...

in the Parliament of 1613–15.Hart p.163 Although he later developed close links with the town of

Carlow Carlow ( ; ) is the county town of County Carlow, in the south-east of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, from Dublin. At the 2022 census of Ireland, 2022 census, it had a population of 27,351, the List of urban areas in the Republic of Ireland, ...

,Ryan p.147 he was almost certainly born 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 ...

. Little is known of his family, although it is possible that Thomas Beere, who is listed as a member of the

King's Inns The Honorable Society of King's Inns () is the "Inn of Court" for the Bar of Ireland. Established in 1541, King's Inns is Ireland's oldest school of law and one of Ireland's significant historical environments. The Benchers of King's Inns aw ...

in 1614, was a relative of John.Kenny pp.277-89 He became King's Serjeant in February 1609 following the death of Nicholas Kerdiffe. At a fee of £20 per annum, and entered the King's Inns the same year. He was one of the

trustees Trustee (or the holding of a trusteeship) is a legal term which, in its broadest sense, refers to anyone in a position of trust and so can refer to any individual who holds property, authority, or a position of trust or responsibility for the ...

to whom the

legal title In property law, title is an intangible construct representing a bundle of rights in a piece of property in which a party may own either a legal interest or equitable interest. The rights in the bundle may be separated and held by different part ...

to the Inns was passed by Sir John Davies, the

Attorney-General for Ireland The Attorney-General for Ireland was an Kingdom of Ireland, Irish and then, from 1801 under the Acts of Union 1800, United Kingdom government office-holder. He was senior in rank to the Solicitor-General for Ireland: both advised the Crown on ...

, under a deed of 1612. Due to the expansion of the assize system in the early 1600s, the

common law Common law (also known as judicial precedent, judge-made law, or case law) is the body of law primarily developed through judicial decisions rather than statutes. Although common law may incorporate certain statutes, it is largely based on prece ...

judges were unable to cope with the additional workload, and the King's Serjeant was often called on to act as an extra judge of

assize The assizes (), or courts of assize, were periodic courts held around England and Wales until 1972, when together with the quarter sessions they were abolished by the Courts Act 1971 and replaced by a single permanent Crown Court. The assizes ex ...

. Bere carried out this function on at least nine occasions. He seems to have been extremely conscientious in performing his duties. In 1613 he was on assize for 68 days, travelling across most of the southern half of Ireland. In 1615 he went on assize twice, for a total of 92 days.Hart p.50 He served as Commissioner of the Irish Court of Wards in 1610, 1613 and 1615. He sat on a commission to inquire into the King's title to lands in

County Wexford County Wexford () is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster and is part of the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. Named after the town of Wexford, it was ba ...

in 1611, and on a similar commission for

County Longford County Longford () is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster. It is named after the town of Longford. Longford County Council is the Local government in the Republic ...

and

County Leitrim County Leitrim ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht and is part of the Northern and Western Region. It is named after the village of Leitrim, County Leitr ...

in 1615. He was

knighted 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 1615 for his impressive services to the Crown. In the only Irish Parliament (1613–15) called in the reign of

James I of England James VI and I (James Charles Stuart; 19 June 1566 – 27 March 1625) was King of Scotland as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the Scottish and English crowns on 24 March 1603 unti ...

, Bere was one of the two MPs returned for the borough of

, the other being his fellow Law Officer, Sir

Robert Jacobe Sir Robert Jacob or Jacobe (1573–1618) was an English-born lawyer, who was Solicitor General for Ireland between 1606 and 1618. He was a close friend and political associate of Sir John Davies, the Attorney General for Ireland; both were key f ...

, the

Solicitor-General for Ireland The Solicitor-General for Ireland was the holder of an Kingdom of Ireland, Irish and then (from the Act of Union 1800) United Kingdom government office. The holder was a deputy to the Attorney-General for Ireland, and advised the Crown on Irish ...

. His seat in Parliament did not then disqualify him from also sitting as an extra judge of assize: although such an arrangement would be impossible now, several High Court judges sat in the Irish House of Commons of 1613–15 in the Crown interest. He also became a burgess of Carlow under the new

royal charter A royal charter is a formal grant issued by a monarch under royal prerogative as letters patent. Historically, they have been used to promulgate public laws, the most famous example being the English Magna Carta (great charter) of 1215, but ...

granted to the town in 1613, which provided for a

corporation A corporation or body corporate is an individual or a group of people, such as an association or company, that has been authorized by the State (polity), state to act as a single entity (a legal entity recognized by private and public law as ...

of twelve. He died in 1617. Carlow Town Hall 2009 09 03

Sources

*Hart, A. R. ''History of the King's Serjeant at law in Ireland'' Dublin Four Courts Press 2000 *Kenny, Colum ''King's Inns and the Kingdom of Ireland'' Dublin Irish Academic Press 1992 *Ryan, James ''History and Antiquities of the County of Carlow'' Dublin Richard Moore Tims 1833 *Smyth, Constantine Joseph ''Chronicle of the Law Officers of Ireland'' Butterworth London 1839

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bere, John Serjeants-at-law (Ireland) 1617 deaths Lawyers from County Carlow 17th-century Irish politicians Members of the Parliament of Ireland (pre-1801) for County Carlow constituencies Irish MPs 1613–1615 Lawyers from County Dublin Politicians from County Carlow People from Carlow (town)