Sir John Megaw, (16 September 1909 – 27 December 1997) was a British judge who eventually rose to

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 ...

and Irish international

rugby union Rugby union football, commonly known simply as rugby union in English-speaking countries and rugby 15/XV in non-English-speaking world, Anglophone Europe, or often just rugby, is a Contact sport#Terminology, close-contact team sport that orig ...

player.

Early life and career

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 ...

, Megaw was the son of Irish (later Northern Irish) politician and judge

Robert Megaw Robert Dick Megaw (26 October 1867 – 2 May 1947) was an Irish barrister and a Unionist politician. Megaw was born in Ballymoney, Antrim, on 26 October 1867, the son of farmer John Megaw and Ellen Dick. He was educated at Ballymoney Intermedia ...

and the brother of the crystallographer

Helen Megaw Helen Dick Megaw (1 June 1907 – 26 February 2002) was an Irish crystallographer who was a pioneer in X-ray crystallography. She made measurements of the cell dimensions of ice and established the Perovskite crystal structure. Education and ...

. After the creation of the

Irish Free State The Irish Free State (6 December 192229 December 1937), also known by its Irish-language, Irish name ( , ), was a State (polity), state established in December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty of December 1921. The treaty ended the three-ye ...

, his father, a strong Protestant, relocated the family to

Belfast Belfast (, , , ; from ) is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North Channel ...

. He was educated at the Royal Academical Institution in Belfast, before being elected to an open scholarship in Classics at

St John's College, Cambridge St John's College, formally the College of St John the Evangelist in the University of Cambridge, is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge, founded by the House of Tudor, Tudor matriarch L ...

. After gaining a first in Part I of the classical

tripos TRIPOS (''TRIvial Portable Operating System'') is a computer operating system. Development started in 1976 at the Computer Laboratory of Cambridge University and it was headed by Dr. Martin Richards. The first version appeared in January 1978 a ...

, he switched to Law, gaining a first in Part II of the law tripos and in the LLB (which, at the time was a postgraduate law degree). He then attended

Harvard Law School Harvard Law School (HLS) is the law school of Harvard University, a Private university, private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1817, Harvard Law School is the oldest law school in continuous operation in the United ...

on a Choate fellowship. He also played

internationally for Ireland, delaying his call to the bar for a term to take part in a match. Megaw was called to the bar by

Gray's Inn The Honourable Society of Gray's Inn, commonly known as Gray's Inn, is one of the four Inns of Court (professional associations for barristers and judges) in London. To be called to the bar in order to practise as a barrister in England and Wale ...

in 1934, having gained a certificate of honour in the bar finals. He became a

pupil The pupil is a hole located in the center of the iris of the eye that allows light to strike the retina.Cassin, B. and Solomon, S. (1990) ''Dictionary of Eye Terminology''. Gainesville, Florida: Triad Publishing Company. It appears black becau ...

Henry Willink Sir Henry Urmston Willink, 1st Baronet, (7 March 1894 – 20 July 1973) was a British politician and public servant. A Conservative Member of Parliament from 1940, he became Minister of Health in 1943. During his time in power he was appointed ...

at 3 Essex Court, and became a tenant there. Through devilling for Willink, Megaw became known to the

India Office The India Office was a British government department in London established in 1858 to oversee the administration of the Provinces of India, through the British viceroy and other officials. The administered territories comprised most of the mo ...

, and was regularly retained by the Indian government to appear in front of the

Judicial Committee of the Privy Council The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (JCPC) is the highest court of appeal for the Crown Dependencies, the British Overseas Territories, some Commonwealth countries and a few institutions in the United Kingdom. Established on 14 August ...

. His practice was mainly in commercial law, in which he distinguished himself. Megaw married in 1938. The same year, disapproving of the

Munich Agreement The Munich Agreement was reached in Munich on 30 September 1938, by Nazi Germany, the United Kingdom, the French Third Republic, French Republic, and the Kingdom of Italy. The agreement provided for the Occupation of Czechoslovakia (1938–194 ...

, he joined the Territorial Army. Called up as a gunner in 1939, he saw active service in London during

the Blitz The Blitz (English: "flash") was a Nazi Germany, German bombing campaign against the United Kingdom, for eight months, from 7 September 1940 to 11 May 1941, during the Second World War. Towards the end of the Battle of Britain in 1940, a co ...

, before being posted to a staff position in Washington DC. He was demobilized with the rank of

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 awarded the US

Legion of Merit The Legion of Merit (LOM) is a Awards and decorations of the United States military, military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievemen ...

. Returning to the bar after the war, Megaw

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 1953, and was made silk in Northern Ireland, even though he did not practice there. He was appointed Recorder of

Middlesbrough Middlesbrough ( ), colloquially known as Boro, is a port town in the Borough of Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire, England. Lying to the south of the River Tees, Middlesbrough forms part of the Teesside Built up area, built-up area and the Tees Va ...

in 1957 and elected a bencher of Gray's Inn in 1958, serving as treasurer in 1976. During his career at the bar he acted as pupil master to Michael Kerr (also later a Lord Justice of Appeal) and was a chambers contemporary of John Donaldson (later

Master of the Rolls The Keeper or Master of the Rolls and Records of the Chancery of England, known as the Master of the Rolls, is the President of the Court of Appeal (England and Wales)#Civil Division, Civil Division of the Court of Appeal of England and Wales ...

Judicial career

In 1961, on the recommendation of

Lord Kilmuir David Patrick Maxwell Fyfe, 1st Earl of Kilmuir, (29 May 1900 – 27 January 1967), known as Sir David Maxwell Fyfe from 1942 to 1954 and as Viscount Kilmuir from 1954 to 1962, was a British Conservative politician, lawyer and judge who combin ...

, he was appointed to the High Court, 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 ...

. Assigned to the

Queen'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 ...

, he also became President of the

Restrictive Practices Court The Restrictive Trade Practices Act 1956 ( 4 & 5 Eliz. 2. c. 68) was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom intended to enforce competition, and provide an appropriate check on restrictive combines and practices. It required that any agr ...

, but resigned from the latter in 1968, in protest against the government's use of legislation to overrule the court. In December 1964, he sentenced Ronald Cooper to death for murder, becoming the last judge to pronounce a death sentence at the

Old Bailey The Central Criminal Court of England and Wales, commonly referred to as the Old Bailey after the street on which it stands, is a criminal court building in central London, one of several that house the Crown Court of England and Wales. The s ...

. He was promoted a

in 1969, and was sworn of the Privy Council. Having become dissatisfied with judicial work and aware that he would not be promoted 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 ...

, he retired during the Long Vacation with little fanfare. After his retirement, he occasionally sat on the Privy Council and as an arbitrator. In 1981–82, he chaired the Committee of Inquiry into Civil Service Pay (Megaw Committee), formed in the aftermath of a Civil Service strike.

Honours

In addition to the customary knighthood and appointment to the Privy Council, Megaw received the American Legion of Merit in 1946, the

Territorial Decoration __NOTOC__ The Territorial Decoration (TD) was a military medal of the United Kingdom awarded for long service in the Territorial Force and its successor, the Army Reserve (United Kingdom), Territorial Army. This award superseded the Volunteer O ...

in 1951, and was appointed

CBE 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 ...

in 1956 for service as a member of the Industrial Injuries Advisory Council. He was an honorary fellow of

, and received an honorary LLD from

Queen's University Belfast The Queen's University of Belfast, commonly known as Queen's University Belfast (; abbreviated Queen's or QUB), is a public research university in Belfast, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom. The university received its charter in 1845 as part of ...

Family

Megaw married Eleanor Grace Chapman in 1938; they had one son and two daughters.

Notable cases

Notable judicial decisions of Lord Justice Megaw included: *'' Ward v Tesco Stores Ltd'' *'' Re Baden's Deed Trusts (No 2)'' *'' Nettleship v Weston'' *'' Maredelanto Compania Naviera SA v Bergbau-Handel GmbH'' *'' Tenax Steamship Co v Owners of the Motor Vessel Brimnes'' *'' Lawrence v Metropolitan Police Comr'' (in the Court of Appeal) *'' Thornton v Shoe Lane Parking Ltd'' *'' Bunge Corp v Tradax Export SA'' (in the Court of Appeal) *''

Aluminium Industrie Vaassen BV v Romalpa Aluminium Ltd ''Aluminium Industrie Vaassen BV v Romalpa Aluminium Ltd''

976 Year 976 ( CMLXXVI) was a leap year starting on Saturday of the Julian calendar. Events By place Byzantine Empire * January 10 – Emperor John I Tzimiskes dies at Constantinople, after returning from a second campaign against ...

1 WLR 676 is a landmark UK insolvency law case, concerning a quasi-security interest in a company's assets and priority of creditors in a company winding up. Facts Aluminium Indu ...

Rugby Union

John Megaw was also capped twice as an international rugby union player for Ireland in the 1930s, once 1934 against Wales and again in 1938 against England, both times playing at Number Eight. Ireland lost both tests.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Megaw, John Lawyers from Belfast 20th-century English judges Lord justices of appeal Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom Ireland international rugby union players 1909 births 1997 deaths Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Knights Bachelor 20th-century King's Counsel Northern Ireland King's Counsel Members of Gray's Inn Members of the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council British Army personnel of World War II Royal Artillery soldiers Alumni of St John's College, Cambridge Queen's Bench Division judges Harvard Law School alumni Recipients of the Legion of Merit Royal Artillery officers Rugby union players from Dublin (city) Rugby union players from Belfast Rugby union number eights Lawyers from Dublin (city)