Sir John Winfield Bonser, (24 October 1847 – 9 December 1914) was a British colonial judge. He served as the

Chief Justice of Ceylon The chief justice of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is the head of the judiciary of Sri Lanka and the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka. Established in 1801, the chief justice is one of ten Supreme Court justices; the other nine are t ...

for almost 10 years.

Early life

Bonser was the son of Reverend John Bonser. He was born in Walsham, Norfolk, in 1847. Bonser was educated at Ashby Grammar School,

Loughborough Grammar School Loughborough Grammar School is a 10–18 Private schools in the United Kingdom, private boys' school in the town of Loughborough, Leicestershire, England, founded in 1495 with money left in the will of Thomas Burton (merchant), Thomas Burton. To ...

, Heath Grammar School admitted October 1863, and

Christ's College, Cambridge Christ's College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England. The college includes the Master, the Fellows of the College, and about 450 undergraduate and 250 graduate students. The c ...

and

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

Legal career

He was

Attorney General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general (: attorneys general) or attorney-general (AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have executive responsibility for law enf ...

of the

Straits Settlements The Straits Settlements () were a group of British territories located in Southeast Asia. Originally established in 1826 as part of the territories controlled by the British East India Company, the Straits Settlements came under control of the ...

between 1883 and 1893. He was appointed Chief Justice of the Straits Settlements, in 1893, on the untimely death from

cholera Cholera () is an infection of the small intestine by some Strain (biology), strains of the Bacteria, bacterium ''Vibrio cholerae''. Symptoms may range from none, to mild, to severe. The classic symptom is large amounts of watery diarrhea last ...

of the incumbent Chief Justice,

Elliot Bovill Sir Elliot Charles Bovill (23 April 1848 – 24 March 1893) was a British lawyer and judge. He served as Chief Justice of Cyprus and the Straits Settlements in the late 19th century. Early life Bovill was born in Clapham, at that time in Surre ...

. He soon transferred to

Ceylon Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...

where he served as

from 1893 to 1902. He was knighted in 1894. He was appointed to the Privy Council on 11 June 1902, and sat as a Member of

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 ...

from 1902 onwards.

Marriage

Bonser married Mary Catherine Colville, daughter of Colonel Hon. Sir William James Colville and Georgiana Mary Montagu Baillie, on 19 April 1899.

Death

Bonser died in London, England in December 1914.''North China Herald'', 19 December 1914, p60

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bonser, John Winfield 1847 births 1914 deaths People educated at Loughborough Grammar School People educated at Heath Grammar School Alumni of Christ's College, Cambridge Knights Bachelor Members of the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council Chief justices of British Ceylon Chief justices of the Straits Settlements Straits Settlements judges Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom